You can find Lindsay on Twitter @lindsay_fts.
 |
| frenchtoastsunday.com |
It was a difficult task trying to pick a movie moment to be a part of the prestigious Favorite Scene Friday feature. With no set genre or category to choose from, my head was running wild with ideas. But much like deciding what restaurant to eat at or T-shirt to wear, I figured it would be best not to over think my choice. I pulled from a film that I recently purchased on Blu-ray (about a year too late) that is one of my favorite films of the last decade. The engrossing masterpiece from director David Fincher and writer Aaron Sorkin: The Social Network. To briefly gush, this is a high stakes film to begin with. One of the most talented working directors collaborating with a screenplay king on a project about the world's youngest billionaire. It wasn't exactly "the Facebook movie" most people coined it early on. It was an achievement of filmmaking at every possible level from direction to script to performances to editing to score to ... you get the picture. I'm a big fan.
The part of the film I chose to highlight might be a semi-obvious selection to some, but it's an impressive moment nonetheless. Setting the scene: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (played by Jesse Eisenberg) is currently in the middle of two lawsuits surrounding the creation of the website. In this scene, he's in a deposition for the lawsuit filed by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, two twins that claim Mark stole their idea of a networking website based on exclusivity. Their lawyer has just made a point that Mark was increasingly aloof in communicating with the Winklevoss brothers about his lack of involvement in the site they contracted him to code. It's been a long day and Mark is fed up with sitting in a boardroom trying to even out fact from fiction. This happens:
FUCK. In a sea of verbal attacks throughout the film, nothing stings quite like this one. Again, all the film's elements are working at full force. The score creeping in is built to menacing perfection thanks to the now Oscar winning duo Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Unfortunately, there isn't interaction with the perfectly acted side characters but it's Eisenberg's show and he nails it. He is amazing throughout the film and this scene is a brilliant sneak peek at that. Of course, Aaron Sorkin’s writing shines as Mark delivers the classic "smart guy being a smart ass" lines that Sorkin uses frequently. The pays off is huge. I could have chosen any number of scenes from this film. There are so many well-crafted ones and others that I personally love, but this is an easy favorite. The bite left by Mark’s caustic statement gets me every time, no matter how many viewings I sit through. The setup and then Mark's delivery serve as a brilliant sucker punch to the audience. And did I mention that damn finger point?! I mime that shit right along with Jesse every single time.
