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

Matthew Rhys, Juliet Rylance and Chris Chalk in season two of ‘Perry Mason’

The second season of the HBO Original Series Perry Mason (2020- ) premiered to eight weekly installments on March 6, 2023 through April 24, 2023. The season continues in the early 1930s, Great Depression era of Los Angeles, California. The aftermath of season one‘s Emily Dodson case influences the early story of season two. Jack Amiel, Michael Begler, Niko Gutierrez-Kovner, Elizabeth Baxa, Mauricio Katz and Pedro Peirano were writers for this season.

(From left, Shea Whigham as Pete Strickland and Matthew Rhys as Perry Mason in the second season of the HBO series Perry Mason).

As with season one, viewership gained as the season progressed. While reported viewership was sluggish in season two compared to the original season from nearly three years ago, the season opens with the Mason and Street practice unfocused. Mason, as portrayed by Matthew Rhys, seems particularly stuck about where he wants to take the practice. Rather than focusing on a murder case, as with season one, the beginning of the season sees the practice focusing on civil and estate planning law.

(From left, Justin Kirk as Hamilton Burger and Juliet Rylance as Della Street in the second season of the HBO series Perry Mason).

It is through correspondence that we learn the nature of what had been bothering Mason. The planting of where the new season is headed begins with delving further into the personal lives of characters including Della Street, Hamilton Burger, Paul and Clara Drake and Pete Strickland. The story developing outside this line has to do with murder that just may have to do with more than the immediate facts at hand. Juliet Rylance, Justin Kirk, Shea Whigham, Chris Chalk and Diarra Kilpatrick portray Street, Burger, Strickland, Paul Drake and Clara Drake, respectively.

(From left, Fabrizio Guido as Rafael Gallardo and Peter Mendoza as Mateo Gallardo in the second season of the HBO series Perry Mason).

Brooks McCutcheon, as portrayed by Tommy Dewey, had the ambition of bringing a baseball team to Los Angeles. The wealthy oil man winds up dead, with brothers Mateo and Rafael Gallardo, of Mexican heritage and young, accused for the murder. The contemporary stories of ruthless businessman Lydell McCutcheon and Camilla Nygaard, a McCutcheon family in the oil business, sharpen into focus along the way. Paul Raci, Hope Davis, Peter Mendoza and Fabrizio Guido portrayed Lydell, Camilla, Mateo and Rafael, respectively.

(From left and center of image, Diarra Kilpatrick as Clara Drake and Chris Chalk as Paul Drake in the second season of the HBO series Perry Mason).

The notions of family, professional ambition and leveraging private information for personal gain are three large themes explored through the course of the season. Who is guilty of what, and when, become crucial to how the season plays out. The lengths that individuals will go in defining and expressing just ends loom large among the stronger supporting elements that lend an uplift to the strength of the season as delivered. The means and the ends are points that I would focus on, should you reflect on the season or look to experience it afresh.

(From left, Katherine Waterston as Ginny Aimes and Matthew Rhys as Perry Mason in the second season of the HBO series Perry Mason).

What particularly struck me as appealing with this season were the intersections of personal stories through the season on multiple levels. Moving through questions that have stick with United States cultural and political trends through time strikes my fancy as well. For these reasons, coupled with the storytelling, I grant the second season of the HBO series Perry Mason 4.25-stars on a scale of one-to-five.

Matt – Wednesday, May 17, 2023