Friday, October 15, 2010

The Social Network (2010)



Just recently, I went out and saw this film adapted from the book. Going into the movie, I had already had some background knowledge about the story since I had already read the book. I'm glad I did.

To be honest, this is really a film where you may need some background information about the story. For those interested in the movie, I highly recommend reading the book before seeing the movie. But, why?

The reason being is that the movie is really set in a way to introduce characters and events from the original story. It pans back and forth from present day to the past. And, without having any type of knowledge about the story and the characters one can get confused.

As for the film itself, there are some gaps in the movie as there are scenes presented that may not make sense to someone who is not familiar with the story. In a nutshell, I suggest reading the book before watching the movie to get a better understanding and feel for the story.

Regarding the storyline, I think it played true to the scenes and story presented in the book. Though, it seems like there were bits and pieces left out. With the time limit of film, it's understandable how some elements can be left out of a story.

With that being said, I think this film has a good story to tell. Though, I just feel it could have been done better.

This was not the great story I was hoping for. It seemed a bit jarred with bits and pieces, a little here and there. But, I just did not feel it had the "punch" it needed to be great. When it ended, my initial reaction was - "That's it?" To say the least, I was a bit disappointed.

(Note: For all the fans of the film, these are just my thoughts. To me, the movie just felt it lacked the "punch" to be great. Though, the trailer was done quite nicely).

The one thing that did stand out was the performance from both Jesse Eisenberg, who portrayed Mark Zuckerberg, and surprisingly Justin Timberlake, who portrayed Sean Parker. Both actors portrayed their respective roles superbly. I was very impressed with both of their performances.

Overall, this movie seemed a bit low budget in nature. The story was there but I feel it could have been presented better. At times, it just seemed like they threw in bits and pieces together - I just did not feel that it had enough zing to it. In a way, it seemed like it was trying to tell a story but the story was just not entirely presented in a way that it could have been great -it lacked emotion. It could have been done better.

(Note: For those who have seen the movie, it really reminds me of this movie that was a bit similar in nature. Though, it was not made for the big screen - it was a television type of movie).

If you've been thinking about seeing this film, I recommend it more as a rental. It was "ok," but lacked the punch it needed to be great. If the movie had the same quality and feeling of the trailer, I think it could have been great.

Though, that's the thing - the film lacked the emotion and "punch" it needed to tell a great story. To me, the way the story was told and its presentation was just mediocre in nature.

For those who are really wanting to see the film, I highly recommend reading the book before seeing the movie. And, for those who have been debating whether to see this in the theatre - I recommend it more as a rental.

Film Gurl's 15 Minute Rule: NEUTRAL

(Note: For those interested, check out this entertaining film spoof based on the movie. Enjoy!)

Happy movie watching!

p.s. Feel free to leave comments on any post either here and/or my Facebook Page. Comments are always welcome, thanks for reading!



Video Link

4 comments:

Candice Frederick said...

wow! i thought the story was the bets part aside from andrew garfield's stellar performance.

p.s. that video you posted was one of my favorite scenes from the movie. Garfield totally rocked it!

Film Gurl said...

Thanks Candice, I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I know, there are some who really did enjoy the movie. It had a good story.

Though, I think it could have been presented better. The story had potential to be a great film - it was just the execution and way it was presented that could have been better (in my opinion).

Thanks for stopping by! :)

Clarabela said...

I really enjoyed this movie. I didn't read the book, so I didn't know what to expect. I thought the story was very good and I agree with you about the performances of Jesse Eisenberg and Justin Timberlake.

Justin is turing into quite a good actor.

Film Gurl said...

Glad to hear your thoughts on the film. It's very interesting to hear from those who have seen the movie without reading the book and those who have. Sometimes the opinions are mixed. I wonder if my view would be different had I not read the book.

And, yes I agree. It will be interesting to see future performances by both Eisenberg and Timberlake. Both were excellent in the film.

Thanks for stopping by! :)