Facebook and The Social Network: "You are all a lost generation"

There is a good chance this blog owes its existence to Mark Zuckerberg, the  (disputed – well, sort of) creator of Facebook.  No, Mr. Zuckerberg did not invent the blog, but what he did create was an online culture that has transcended past the computer screen and a list of codes, being integrated so intricately into every part of our daily lives.  Or did he?

With all its legal dramatization, The Social Network – directed by David Fincher – explores such a question.  Who created Facebook?  The answer does not appear as simple as one would think, nor do all the legalities, depositions, lawyers, or settlements present a clear solution.  The film begins with Zuckerberg, played by Jesse Eisenberg – who with this performance may have permanently shut down all those “Hey-isn’t-that-the-guy-from-Juno?” confusions – having a conversation with a soon-to-be ex.  Her closing statement hangs heavy upon the now, single Zuckerberg: “You are an asshole.”  He goes back to his dorm and vendetically creates a website for the Harvard community, judging the attractiveness of nearly each member of the female student body.

And so begins the Facebook phenomena, as Fincher intercuts present depositions with their respective testimonies serving as the expository flashbacks.  However, there are no needless plot elements, with writer Aaron Sorkin constructing a script and dialogue that is tight, fast paced, and always engaging.  The film may pose as a lawsuit drama or even a rise-and-fall (maybe fall-and-rise depending on your perspective) story of success/failure, but that’s only skin-deep.  What is more fascinating, are the social dimensions (no pun intended), which play out beyond metaphors, becoming a commentary on this Internet sensation and the lifestyle it will generate.

There is a scene where Zuckerberg is sitting tired and annoyed in a computer lab with an oblivious friend asking him if so-and-so is still dating so-and-so.  Zuckerberg listens apathetically until the light bulb suddenly burns bright.  He hurries back to his dorm and writes the code, which becomes translated into the now infamous and all too familiar “relationship status.”

What this scene suggests is that Zuckerberg and company, themselves have been greatly influenced by social norms and expectations, merely adapting them to digital form.  Gossip existed before Facebook and will do so as long as humans exist – regardless of the medium.  People want to know people, they want to be accepted, they want to express opinions.  All these things are true with or without Facebook. 

Well, right?  Judging in the context of a pre-Facebook world versus what is now the status-quo, the answer is quite convoluted.  Fincher does not look to give us a direct answer but presents a chicken-or-the-egg dilemma as we see the addictive and consuming nature of the website, which rapidly evolves and grows in membership – creating a culture of obsession.  A disgruntled girlfriend asks in the film, “Why does your relationship status still say ‘single’?”  Another scene has a girl telling Napster co-creator Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake) that the newly created website is pretty addicting, that she had been on it five-times that day… most of the audience will chuckle in amusement (hopefully even in embarrassment) as they think five times…? That’s it…?

Fincher also parallels the digital to the real, with the question of friendship and loyalty.  What does it mean to be a friend?  Who are our friends?  Do we really know a person?  The final scene asks these questions with subtle poignancy.   The creation of Facebook puts considerable strain and tension on a friendship between Zuckerberg, and his business/point man Eduardo Saverin.  Because we never see their relationship before they begin to brainstorm about Facebook, we wonder how close they really are, a question which we ask ourselves (consciously or not) every time we receive a friend’s request.  It will be interesting to see if this film holds any prophetic power, or if it carries such intrigue and power due to the overwhelming influence of its subject.  Whatever the case may be, Fincher and Sorkin has crafted a film that is tense and even, one could say, heartbreaking.  Many will see themselves in various forms on the screen.  Also, look for possible award nominations coming to Eisenberg.