The Social Network (David Fincher, 2010)

[mfunk9786]

On the other hand though, Eduardo put down the (admittedly frugal) seed money for the project. I don't know of anyone who's willing to invest in something that they're not going to see a percentage of if it ends up making money. You know, a percentage that's actually an integer.

[perkizitore]

It's good that Eduardo got 6% percent after the lawsuit, but he wasn't definitely entitled to 30%.

[swo17]

You know, a percentage that's actually an integer.

I hate to destroy your entire argument, but technically, the only percentages that are integers are 0% and 100%.

[mfunk9786]

The hardest math problem in the world.

[cdnchris]

I didn't realize the twins were actually played by the same actor, actually thinking Fincher found real twins to play the roles (I never heard of Armie Hammer before.) I thought the film was fantastic beforehand but the fact the twin effects were so seamless to me and never called attention to themselves actually makes me love it all that much more. Admittedly I haven't seen many new films this year so my best-of list is very short but this one's so far ranking up there with The Prophet.

[Matt]

I think Fincher gets bored unless there is some special effects challenge for him to overcome (recreating 1970s San Francisco for Zodiac, everything in Benjamin Button). There's no reason he couldn't have cast real twins in the role.

[mfunk9786]

The fact that his special effects work is always meticulous and seamless makes me admire this attribute of his filmmaking, rather than abhor it.

[zedz]

Casting one person as twins is always a stunt (not that it hasn't made for some very fine movies and performances), but I do appreciate the fact that Fincher's use of CGI and other effects isn't just about 'money shots', but about integrating the technology into the basic repertoire of filmmaking tools. I'm sure most people who watch Zodiac figure there are only a couple of CGI shots in the film, and I reckon that's a measure of the film's success and Fincher's maturity.

[Matt]

I hope I didn't come off as saying something negative about Fincher's use of CGI. I'm just pressed for time right now. I actually think he's one of the best directors at integrating it well.

[zedz]

Not at all. I was telling myself exactly the same thing as your original post when I sat and sat through Benjamin Button.

[mfunk9786]

The impressive expertise on display in The Social Network is making me re-evaluate the Criterion-worthiness of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, if only as a display of the possibilities of contemporary special effects. Hell, I'd rather it be that than Avatar, anyway.

[zedz]

I think the "Criterion-unworthiness!!!" of Benjamin Button has been way overstated, even though I think the film is a big misfire. There's a decent enough movie on those discs, even if it's only the making-of. Like it or not, it's probably going to be considered some kind of special effects milestone in time, and it's odd enough in story terms to end up a dubious 'cult classic'.

[mfunk9786]

I found the overwrought script to be the problem with it in the first place, there's nothing aggressively with Fincher's direction considering the material that he's working with. He sort of embraced the bloat of the whole thing and if that sort of thing is your cup of tea, I'd imagine it's exactly what you're looking for.

[swo17]

I place 100% of the blame for Button on the cretin that wrote Forrest Gump. Fincher walks away unscathed.

[Mr Sausage]

I place 100% of the blame for Button on the cretin that wrote Forrest Gump. Fincher walks away unscathed.

The script is undoubtedly the major flaw of that movie; it's just so maudlin and drama-less. Pretty much the opposite of The Social Network.

[karmajuice]

So maybe this is just me, but every time I see the name Armie Hammer I can't shake the impression that it's some non sequitur pun on Arm and Hammer baking soda.

[Matt]

So maybe this is just me, but every time I see the name Armie Hammer I can't shake the impression that it's some non sequitur pun on Arm and Hammer baking soda.

In one of the last scenes of the film, Jesse Eisenberg is wearing an Arm & Hammer logo t-shirt. Armie Hammer is the great-grandson of Armand Hammer (of Occidental Petroleum). There is no connection between his name and the baking soda brand, but Armand Hammer did sit on the board of board of directors of Church & Dwight, the company that makes Arm & Hammer, and he did paint the logo on his yacht.

[lacritfan]

I didn't realize the twins were actually played by the same actor, actually thinking Fincher found real twins to play the roles (I never heard of Armie Hammer before.) I thought the film was fantastic beforehand but the fact the twin effects were so seamless to me and never called attention to themselves actually makes me love it all that much more. Admittedly I haven't seen many new films this year so my best-of list is very short but this one's so far ranking up there with The Prophet.

IMDB trivia says in a lot of scenes there were two actors and Fincher CGI'd A.H.'s face onto the other which seems harder than split screening to me.

[Andre Jurieu]

I didn't realize the twins were actually played by the same actor, actually thinking Fincher found real twins to play the roles (I never heard of Armie Hammer before.) I thought the film was fantastic beforehand but the fact the twin effects were so seamless to me and never called attention to themselves actually makes me love it all that much more. Admittedly I haven't seen many new films this year so my best-of list is very short but this one's so far ranking up there with The Prophet.

IMDB trivia says in a lot of scenes there were two actors and Fincher CGI'd A.H.'s face onto the other which seems harder than split screening to me.

Here's a bit more info.

Now if only you'd post more often.

Wish I could, but it's hard to find enough time (and sometimes, enough motivation).

[broadwayrock]

This month's American Cinematographer Magazine goes into detail on how they made the twin.

[eljacko]

This month's American Cinematographer Magazine goes into detail on how they made the twin.

These two were really amazing to watch. I knew the that they were played by the same actor, but the friend I saw the film with didn't, and when I told her she was really surprised and a little shocked.

Unrelated, but from the same article:

The crewing sequences, shot by the second unit aboard two-man racing sculls, posed another problem: the cameras were too heavy for the boats. Fincher asked Red if there was a way to somehow lighten the load. “The Empacher boats are fragile and flex a lot, so we needed lightweight camera mounts and bodies,” explains Cronenweth. “Red stripped the Ones down and gave them carbon-fiber bodies; they weighed less than 6 pounds each. That freed us to place them wherever we needed without interfering with the integrity of the boats or compromising the athletes’ performances.”

I don't know about the rest of you, but the idea of a six-pound Red One camera is just fabulous.

[Kellen]

I finally got to watch this a couple of hours ago. As I was headed into the theater I was worried if the flick was gonna live up to the praise it's been getting, It didn't disappoint me at all. Jesse Eisenberg was great, The opening scene in the bar when he's talking to his girlfriend there was one point when he got flustered and started to blink his eyes super fast. I don't know what stood out about that to me but it just seemed to fit his character this nerdy kid who lives through his blog/internet and seems to have trouble interacting. This is the second time i've seen Garfield(Saw him in Never Let Me Go) and so far i've been quite impressed with him; should be interesting to see what he does in the new Spider-Man movie. The twins were probably one of my favorite parts of the movie though. I didn't really care about Timberlake one way or the other. I heard so much about the boat race scene and I didn't know what to expect but after watching it I was pretty psyched. I enjoyed seeing all the different angles/shots they were using to show how close of a race it was. I also didn't think that there was going to be a couple of moments where we(the audience and I) laughed out loud, I got a nice chuckle out of the Bill Gates bit and some of the scenes with Brenda Song going from crazy girlfriend to wondering if Andrew Garfield was going back to California so soon. All in all I really enjoyed the picture, and I got really psyched when I seen the True Grit trailer on the big screen for the first time.

[gokinsmen]

I finally saw this as well. I was at Harvard while Zuckerberg and Facebook was happening (didn't know him personally), and the movie's depiction of Harvard culture made me laugh -- I'm guessing Yale alums feel the same way about The Skulls. Hey, I wish it was that badass and cutthroat! Well, not really.

Filmmaking-wise (and that's all that matters), Sorkin's script was delightfully and expertly overwrought and fun for its comedic value (both intentional and unintentional). I was kinda surprised that Fincher had such a dull, indifferent touch. It was edited like an episode of Gilmore Girls -- click-clack, click-clack, back-and-forth. Almost fell asleep.

Andrew Garfield was great, though.

[Jeff]

Sony has announced a comprehensive two-disc Blu-ray set for January to capitalize on the attention it will be receiving throughout awards season. Unfortunately, despite the great work done by Neil Kellerhouse, they have come up with the silliest, most obnoxious, contemptible cover imaginable.

[jojo]

Looks like Fincher streak of great DVD/BD covers has officially ended.