8/8/2019 Me and The Social Network

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Its probably about time I started blogging. Or maybe its just too late now. Blogging is pass. Isnt it?

I can see how quickly something can be too late these days; I have just finished watching The Social

Network

Its probably the first time that I have held myself back for so long from watching such a good

(maybe good is too mild a word) film after its release.

One of the reasons for it was the horrible trailer. The trailer all but made this film look (and sound)

like another one of those high school flicks. Ok, maybe not high school or American varsity, but

maybe one of those Hey we are a film where a bunch of wise guys from Oxford, Cambridge, Yale or

Harvard can spit out posh, wise and witty English, which is uncomprehendable to the masses, hence

making them feel like shit about themselves. Secondly, it was about Facebook. Who wants to watch

anything about Facebook? Everyone is on Facebook all the time, including yours truly, but everyone

still hates to admit that they are addicted to it, that they love to change status messages and to

count how many people have liked them, that they are hooked up on it 24 x 7. Ok. So whats a film

about facebooks creator going to be like? Some maverick pulling off something out ofthe blue and

all that. American heroes. Thats the last thing I want to watch right now.

How I did actually get into watching it tonight though, is very strange, and maybe also a bit stupid.

I was on my way back from a meeting at the Southbank this afternoon and saw the poster for Black

Swanin the underground station. Natalie Portman? Vincent Cassel? Winona Ryder? Wow! And so I

leant down to squint at the name of the director at the bottom of the poster board. Darren

Aronofsky!

Whos he? My friend asked me.

You serious? Darren Aronofsky? You dont know Aronofsky?Pi? Requiem for a Dream? The

Fountain? The Wrestler? How can anyone (especially someone who is into films) not know

Aronofsky?

Ok. A confession. The Coen Bros, Nolan, Aronofsky, Fincher, Gus Van Sant. Five directors whose

works I respect, admire and adore. Five directors who have raised filmmaking standards over the

past two decades and directors whose films and happenings I generally love to keep track of. I can

say that I have watched every film that has come out of these camps over the last decade. Till

recently I was into a regular habit of going up on their IMDbs of these along with a few other

directors every now and then. But for reasons I am not aware of, I hadnt really done that in the

past six months. My three main sources of news streams these days BBC, NDTV and The Guardian

do talk about cinema- critiques, reviews, discussions and so on, especially The Guardian. But none

are very good at writing and talking about upcoming cinema.

So at the tube station I went- Aronofsky? Seriously? And I didnt know about it?

And that wasnt the biggest shock of the evening. Once in the tube, I mulled over whos done what

in the past few years, and which was better than which of those and which are the ones I like most

for a while. As soon as we crossed Queens Park and came overground, I took my iphone out and

opened the IMDB app.

8/8/2019 Me and The Social Network

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Lets do the routine round of the directors IMDBs I said to my friend.

Ok. So Nolans got yet another Batman thing coming up this year and Gus Van Sants got something

in 2011 as well. True Gritis out and I want to watch it. Just discovered that Aronofskys now got

Black Swan out. Whats Fincher doing?

Fuck! No!

The Social Networkis directed by Fincher. And I had missed this piece of information all along.

So what I had believed to be just another varsity picture all along, or thinking maybe its ok,

everyones watching it and recommending it and all that, was a film directed by Fincher? You know

how you suddenly start thinking of something in a completely different light, just because someone

you know and think highly of is associated with it? I dare to admit, the moment I got to know the

name of the director, The Social Networkjust got itself deserved to be watched!

There are films which are bad and you dont get to the end of. And there are good films which you

wait for the end of just to see what happens in the end. I got myself to watching The Social Network

and it has been one of the very few films that you feel should go on. Very well written, directed,

acted, shot and edited, it had me captivated for the entire length. The casting is just perfect. The

main guy is great. Andrew Garfield has delivered a tremendous performance. I had seen him before

in Boy A and The Imaginarium of..and he is really convincing. It is also quit refreshing to show the

protagonist in a darker light, if not in entirety. It just gives the film that touch of authenticity. The

tempo of the narrative is just so well crafted. The film runs at a very good pace. It is thrilling and it

gave me a lot of inspiration. The background score and cutting do excellent justice to the fervour

and excitement of invention, discovery and achievement portrayed in the story. And its not even a

fictional story!! It is something that has happened in this decade. It is not Troy or Cleopatra or Robin

Hood. Nor is it even Hitler and the Nazis. Its now. Its today. Its Facebook! Its Zuckerberg. When I

was doing TekdiPune in 2003 and feeling awesome about it, this guy was changing history for thefuture. He was sculpting the foundations of what has gone on to become a global phenomenon in

no time. By the time I had finished my graduation, he had already become a billionaire. I have just

entered the world of filmmaking and a film has already been made on him! Guy my age!

To be on Facebook and to enjoy all that it delivers to us is very easy. All reservations and scepticism

about networking aside for the moment, but how someone could come up with this revolutionary

idea and get it up and running in no time is extraordinary.

Moral of the day. Keep in touch with happenings in your field. Especially when its cinema. If not,

travel by tube often, so as to get up to speed with the posters and hoardings.

Many people, unlike myself till a few hours ago, have already watched the film. If you havent yet,

its highly recommended.

Best picture I have seen after Inception. Glad I watched it.

*****