I kind of worship at the altar of intention and obstacle. Somebody wants something. Something's standing in their way of getting it. They want the money, they want the girl, they want to get to Philadelphia — doesn't matter. And if they can need it, that's even better.
Aaron Sorkin shares this quote in an interview with Esquire Magazine that nicely sums up the plot in The Social Network where we meet several characters, based on real people, who have some fairly strong intentions. What makes the film so intriguing is when intentions collide becoming obstacles for other people's intentions. The dialog is sharp, fast-paced, and witty - a lot like The West Wing. The opening scene, where Zuckerberg's girlfriend dumps him, is a cutting verbal melee of sarcastic jabs and assaults.
I enjoy debate, and I relish this kind of rapid-fire, attack parlance which fills the entire film. The frame work of the movie is a series of flashbacks filling in the details of two lawsuits: one from the Winklevoss twins and the other from the co-founder of Facebook, Eduardo. The jumping timeline keeps things exciting, and the relentless pacing requires the audience to be very active viewers.
I "liked" the movie (sorry, had to be done) quite a bit. It ranks pretty high on the list of 25 movies to see before Oscar night 2011. The way I finally sorted out the top five was to use my wife's criteria of how badly do I want to see that movie again. I challenged myself to consider if these five were all playing on the TV at the same time, what channel would I flip to. With that criteria, The Social Network landed number four. Up next, The King's Speech.
RANKING of OSCAR 2011 MUST-SEES (so far):
- True Grit
- Winter's Bone
- Black Swan
- The Social Network
- The Town
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
- Inception
- Toy Story 3
- How to Train Your Dragon
- The Fighter
- The Kids Are All Right
- Animal Kingdom
- Alice in Wonderland
What did you think of the movie? Would love to read your thoughts in the comments section.