Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake in the David Fincher movie ‘The Social Network’

The 2009 book The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook: A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal by Ben Mezrich was a large influence on attracting the screenwriting services of Aaron Sorkin to the table for the movie we’re reviewing. The David Fincher directed movie The Social Network (2010) earns our attention today.

(From left, Andrew Garfield as Eduardo Saverin and Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg in the David Fincher movie The Social Network).

The movie The Social Network begins in the fall of 2003 with the fictionalized Erica Albright, a student at Boston University as portrayed by Rooney Mara, dumping Mark Zuckerberg. Zuckerberg, portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg in the movie and feeling scorned, insults Albright on his LiveJournal blog. Fueled by that scorn and alcohol into doing something noteworthy, Zuckerberg creates a precursor to Facebook called Facemash wherein he hacks individual online databases at Harvard University for pictures of female students, later posting the photos online while asking fellow students to rate the girls on physical attractiveness.

(Armie Hammer and Josh Pence as Cameron Winklevoss and Tyler Winklevoss in the David Fincher movie The Social Network).

Many, many people took notice of the cynical tackiness of the approach in addition to the wild popularity of scheme led to a segment of Harvard‘s computer servers crashing not due to the initial breaches but due to the volume of people engaging in the ranking. Also taking notice were Cameron Winklevoss, Tyler Winklevoss and Divya Narendra, who had a vision for a social media network.

(From left, Max Minghella as Divya Narendra and Rooney Mara as Erica Albright in the David Fincher movie The Social Network).

The trio invited Zuckerberg to develop a social media network for them, with Zuckerberg seemingly agreeing to the proposition while immediately turning to his friend Eduardo Saverin for seed money to develop a social media platform that would grow into the modern day Facebook. Narendra was portrayed by Max Minghella. Saverin was portrayed by Andrew Garfield. A physical and digital combination of Armie Hammer and Josh Pence portrayed Cameron Winklevoss and Tyler Winklevoss.

(From left, Justin Timberlake as Sean Parker and Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg in the David Fincher movie The Social Network).

The introduction of Sean Parker as portrayed by Justin Timberlake was introduced to filmgoers through litigation brought in separate concurrent claims against Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook by Winklevoss, Winklevoss and Narendra on the one hand and Saverin on the other. Sy as portrayed by John Getz and Marilyn Delpy as portrayed by Rashida Jones were serving the Zuckerberg point of view. The drama for how the different interests of what became Facebook, in both scale and profitability, were at stake in the litigation. That very real human drama was dramatized in the movie was the cinematic point.

(From left, Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg, John Getz as Sy and Rashida Jones as Marilyn Delpy in the David Fincher movie The Social Network).

That the movie The Social Network did a solid job of communicating the drama of growth, ambition, substance use, sex and greed were all strongly in evidence in making a moving story for this movie. The acting met the task of conveying the story for me, with kudos from me on that level as well. I give the David Fincher movie The Social Network 4.25-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Saturday, January 6, 2024

Timothy Olyphant, Walton Goggins, Joelle Carter and Season Four of ‘Justified’

Having taken our first three looks into the FX television series Justified (2010-2015) back as early as 2019 with looks into seasons one, two and three, we resume our look today with season four of the Graham Yost created series. The fourth season originally aired from January through April of 2013, with Harlan, Kentucky being the center of our dysfunctional criminal series based in action and drama. Season four was the final season with novelist Elmore Leonard, whose story Fire in the Hole and other works provided source material for the series, still alive.

(From left, Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens, Walton Goggins as Boyd Crowder and Jim Beaver as Sheriff Shelby Parlow in the fourth season of the FX series Justified).

The fourth season balanced multiple storylines effectively, with series centerpieces Raylan Givens, Boyd Crowder, Ava Crowder and Art Mullen playing their parts with less prominence at points through the season. The prominence of other characters through the course of the season offered compelling storytelling while, by season’s end, delivering top notch drama including series regulars that really deliver.

(From left, Joseph Mazzello as Billy St. Cyr, Lindsay Pulsipher as Cassie St. Cyr and Ron Eldard as Colton ‘Colt’ Rhodes in season four of the FX series Justified).

Looming heavy through the season is the notion of reckoning with who characters really are. The notion starts with fallout for the murder of Delroy Baker from season three. Tangled up in this story is that of Ellen May, a prostitute with a complicated story tied to Ava and Boyd Crowder’s connection to Delroy’s death. Colton ‘Colt’ Rhodes story is heavily tied to Ellen May and the Crowders, overlapping with the past impulses of Boyd with the introduction of the ministry of Billy St. Cyr and Cassie St. Cyr. The decisive roles Tim Gutterson and Johnny Crowder offer in Colt’s story work really well on a human level. David Meunier portrayed Johnny Crowder.

(From left, Nick Searcy as Art Mullen, Jacob Pitts as Tim Gutterson and Erica Tazel as Rachel Brooks in season four of the FX series Justified).

Then there is the story of Drew Thompson, which in learning of of the hidden identity and the loyalty surrounding the protection of it, forms the central mystery for the season. The fates of Hunter Mosely and Arlo Givens gently weaving into this larger story, intersecting well with Raylan, lends strength to what attracted me to this season of Justified.

(From left, Abby Miller as Ellen May, Raymond J. Barry as Arlo Givens and Brent Sexton as Former Sheriff Hunter Mosley in the fourth season of the FX series Justified).

The Jody Adair, Randall Kusik and Lindsey Salazar introductory stories in the earlier episodes of the season, featuring Chris Chalk, Robert Baker and Jenn Lyon, respectively, set important groundwork in furthering the story of season four well. Giving us evidence that the two sides of Raylan Givens were tugging at him, with the story of being a law enforcement officer getting set against Raylan’s sense of family, professionalism, and the influences of his parents, parallels and points to a similar dynamic playing out for Ava and Boyd Crowder.

(From left, Mykelti Williamson as Ellstin Limehouse and Joelle Carter as Ava Crowder in the fourth season of the FX series Justified).

The ramping up of Ava Crowder’s involvement in Boyd’s heroin empire in Harlan brings together sense of family and loyalty, which in tying back to Ellen May, the Delroy Baker death, the church attempts of the St. Cyr siblings, and a road that brings in Ellstin Limehouse through Detroit, Michigan and the past of Drew Thompson, gives so many glorious layers of connection that I cannot help to love season four of Justified. The Michigan angle of course renews the stories of Wynn Duffy, Nicky Augustine and their sponsors in Theo and Sammy Tonin. While we do not see Alan Arkin nor William Mapother in their roles as Theo Tonin or Delroy Baker this season, we do see Max Perlich as Sammy Tonin at a crucial time in the revelation of Raylan Givens’ character.

(From left, Mike O’Malley as Nicky Augustine, Jere Burns as Wynn Duffy and Patton Oswalt as Constable Bob Sweeney in season four of the FX series Justified).

Notably, the stories of Rachel Brooks and Art Mullen were not offered revelation through this season in the way that stories for other characters were. We did get back in contact with Winona Hawkins, as portrayed by Natalie Zea, later in the season. To say that Brooks, Mullen or Hawkins were afterthoughts for this season is perhaps an overstatement for what was a strong season of revelation and meaningful ends for characters new and old. I give season four of Justified 4.75-stars on a scale of one-to-five.

Matt – Saturday, August 26, 2023

Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum in the Steven Spielberg film ‘Jurassic Park’

The blockbuster movie hit Jurassic Park (1993) brought together the book Jurassic Park written by Michael Crichton with director Steven Spielberg and stars Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum. To borrow from the line of Samuel L. Jackson as Ray Arnold, “hold onto your butts” as we dig into movie review starting now.

(From left, Martin Ferrero as Donald Gennaro, Richard Attenborough as John Hammond, Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm, Sam Neill as Dr. Alan Grant and Laura Dern as Dr. Ellie Sattler in the Steven Spielberg movie Jurassic Park).

The notion underpinning the story is that starts in earnest as lawyer Donald Gennaro invites mathematician and chaos-theorist Dr. Ian Malcolm to an island of the creation of industrialist John Hammond. Hammond had meanwhile invited paleontologist Dr. Alan Grant and paleobotanist Dr. Ellie Sattler. The voyage is to an island where Hammond had brought in clone theorists and practitioners to clone dinosaurs for a theme park.

(From left, Richard Attenborough as John Hammond, Samuel L. Jackson as Ray Arnold and Bob Peck as Robert Muldoon in the Steven Spielberg movie Jurassic Park).

The group travels to the island as the stage is set for the adventure of the movie with Dennis Nedry, the disgruntled lead programmer for the park, arranging to steal some of the DNA manufactured at the park off the island. This is unknown to everyone that matters at the time of the park demonstration by Hammond and his helpers. Ray Arnold as chief engineer of the system that runs the park with game warden Robert Muldoon tasked with managing the dinosaurs and their consumption of food, their exercise, and so forth.

(Wayne Knight as Dennis Nedry in the Steven Spielberg movie Jurassic Park).

As if the above was not sufficiently grand a narrative, the movement from fascinating yet mundane into the increasingly frightening and uncontrollable is heightened with the introduction of , Lex and Tim Murphy, grandchildren to industrialist John Hammond. The kids will tour the park with Hammond in the control room, watching the tour unfold as events happen around the park and within the control room around him.

(From left, Ariana Richards as Lex Murphy and Joseph Mazzello as Tim Murphy in the Steven Spielberg movie Jurassic Park).

The kids offer youthful curiosity, in addition to relationship depth to the romantic feelings that exist between Dr. Alan Grant and Dr. Ellie Sattler. Many layers of interesting intrigue ensue, making the movie enjoy to repeated viewings and, of course, the initial viewing for those yet to see the initial installment in the sequence of Jurassic Park movies.

(Director Steven Spielberg on set for the filming of the Steven Spielberg movie Jurassic Park).

Jurassic Park grossed over $400 million in the United States. The film was largely well received by reviewers and general audiences alike. The movie itself is fit for family viewing with sufficient action and emotional pull to satisfy young and mature audiences. My grade for Jurassic Park as directed by Steven Spielberg is 4-stars on a scale of 1-to-5.

Matt – Wednesday, May 19, 2021