Welcome to The Queue — your daily distraction of curated video content sourced from across the web. Today, we’re watching a video that explores the prophetic The Social Network ten years after its initial premiere.
Back in 2010, no one could have predicted the full scope of Facebook’s impact on the 21st century. From the Big Tech antitrust hearing to the inexhaustible privacy concerns to the politically pernicious algorithms. That said, if anyone had an inkling of what was to come, it was David Fincher. Clearly, that man has a crystal ball he’s not telling us about.
A decade after the film’s release, The Social Network endures as a scalding character study of the social media site’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg (portrayed by Jesse Eisenberg), and as an enchanted art-artifact radiating a queasy sense of prophecy. As history unfolds (rather terrifyingly, I might add), Fincher’s film consistently re-reveals new and terrifying forms of prescience. Whether it’s the #MeToo movement or the innocuous evil of Silicon Valley, The Social Network continues to feel like a meticulously clinical and endlessly re-watchable preview of the apocalypse.
Watch “The Social Network – Ten Years Later“:
Who made this?
This video essay was put together by the Texas-based Royal Ocean Film Society, which is run by Andrew Saladino. You can browse their back catalog of videos on their Vimeo account here. If Vimeo isn’t your speed, you can give them a follow on YouTube here.
More Videos Like This
- For another sample of The Royal Ocean Film Society’s work, check this out: a look at Marc Webb’s endearingly twee first feature, (500) Days of Summer.
- Forgive The Royal Ocean Society, for they have sinned, it’s: “Confessions of a Christopher Nolan Fanboy”
- From Lessons From the Screenplay: a look at the function of Aaron Sorkin’s rapid-fire dialogue, how he uses non-linear structure to frame the story, and the critical role that collaboration played in the creation of The Social Network.
- You didn’t hear it from us, but someone put the entire making-of documentary for The Social Network up on YouTube.
- Here’s The Royal Ocean Society again with another look at Sorkin. This time, on why Molly’s Game is the writer’s weakest film.
- A supercut of Sorkinisms? Don’t mind if we do!
- Speaking of which (haha) here’s The Cinema Cartography on how Sorkin designs dialogue.
- Two Armie Hammers? In this economy? Here’s a VFX breakdown on how The Social Network made identical twins happen.