David Fincher had a lot of making up to do to me after the personal disappointments of the overlong, unengaging
Zodiac and the plain cheddary awfulness of
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button.
Se7en (pronounced 'Sesevenen') is one of my 15 greatest films of all time and
Fight Club isn't far behind, so I've spent the last ten years waiting for a worthy Finchgasm.
The Social Network isn't it.
What
The Social Network is is an excellent film made by a genuine genius. Every frame is beautiful, whether you're staring at Andrew Garfield's fascinating hair (how is he going to fit it all into his Spidey mask?) or Jesse Eisenberg's contemptuous chops. It's impressively scripted, shot and edited in order to successfully make two hours of people talking entertaining, the score is outstanding and it treats the viewer with enough respect not to simplify its technobabble without getting bogged down in jargon.
What
The Social Network isn't is the 21st century's
Citizen Kane, or the best film of the year (though it is in the top ten), or the second coming of Alfred Hitchcock. It's a great film but it's not a great story: some guys have an idea, make it work, then argue about whose idea it was. I didn't expect explosions, car chases, robots or aliens (although that would have been fun) but for me to soil myself over a film I expect something memorable, something thought-provoking, something surprising. Yes, I expect something unexpected.
That it remains a great film despite that is testament to everyone who made it. Everyone, that is, except the person responsible for the CG breath in the outdoor scenes. Apparently we can flawlessly transplant one actor's face onto another's so that he can play twins, but that exhaled vapour is no more convincing than it was in
Titanic.
The Social Network is an extraordinary achievement and God knows if almost any other director had made it it would be unwatchable. I'm just still waiting for David Fincher to blow my mind again, and it looks like I'll be waiting a while.
In other news, look at the thickness of the press notes I was given:
I literally* thought they were handing out the script or something.
*Not literally
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I think I agree with you. Great film, but not wet-yourself great (not that I expected it would be that good). Great Winklevii, bad breath!
ReplyDeleteMHO: http://filmsrruss.blogspot.com/2010/10/social-network.html
seSevenen?
ReplyDeleteWhat is this I don't even?
Zuckerberg is portrayed as a kniving genius that betrayed his only friend. He seems a little more normal and well-adjusted in real life, but still seems very awkward. The movie was really intriguing, and is one of the best movies of the year so far.
ReplyDeleteYep, hit the nail on the head. Bad CG breath. What a fucking disaster.
ReplyDeleteTotally blown away by the fact, that a film about Facebook directed by David Fincher, can be a big-time Oscar contender. Loved it almost from start to finish, hope it gets awards come Oscar time. Nice post, check out my review when you can!
ReplyDeleteit's so interesting to see how facebook was created! the movie is acteally good, exceeded my expectations. very recommended for the people that haven't seen yet.
ReplyDelete