Movie Review: The Social Network

29 Jan Movie Review: The Social Network

I finally got around to seeing the movie The Social Network. I had heard a lot of good things about it but hadn’t had a chance to see it yet.  After watching it last night I must say it was relatively a well made movie. The acting is good and the story is told at a brisk pace. However, there are apparently quite a lot of dramatizations which are flat out not true. In fact many characters said they wished their lives were as dramatic and exciting as portrayed in the movie. Even with all these embellishments there are some interesting true facts. For instance, I was surprised to learn of the influence Sean Parker, the founder of Napster, had on the direction of the company in the early days.

I’m not sure how accurate the portrayal of the main character Mark Zuckerberg is, but if he’s really that nerdy and that anti-social it would be tough to be around him. So, when he almost back stabs Eduardo Saverin, the only person in the world that cared about him, I was about to go home and rally friends to get off Facebook. However, the end notes pointed out that he reconciled with him and things have been made right. It was also good to see that things with Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, Harvard Connection (later ConnectU), founders were patched up as well.

While I would recommend the movie, I will say I was very disappointed in the way young women were portrayed in the movie. It was disturbing to me to see how the two Asian girls were shown as simply throwing themselves at the young entrepreneurs. I guess this kind of sexism is to be expected in a Hollywood movie, but it was not needed in this particular movie. It added no value to the story and it was all exaggerated anyways! It left a bad taste in my mouth even though the main course was decent.

Related articles

• Sean Parker says he enjoyed Social Network film, but “it’s fiction” (venturebeat.com)
• Sean Parker says ‘The Social Network’ is fiction (cnn.com)
• The Social Network: Where Are They Now? (thoughtpick.com)
• The Social Network Receives 8 Academy Award Nominations (webpronews.com)
• MovieMantz Review: ‘The Social Network’ (omg.yahoo.com)