The Social Network could turn us into a fan
By The Prodigal Fool, published on 29 July 2010
Never let it be said that we don’t listen to our readers (both of them) here at The Prodigal Guide. Just yesterday, our Twitter buddy @Noodlefish dropped us a line with a little, eh, reader feedback. “Not seen much film-ic stuff on t’Guide recently…” he said. Well, @Noodlefish our friend, this one’s for you.
We’re not exactly fans of Facebook. In fact, we pretty much despise the stupid site for its annoying add-on apps that bring us irritation and boredom in equal measure, its inane poking and, most of all, its slapdash and arrogant approach to personal data privacy. We hate the design. We hate how hard it is to remove your profile from the site. We hate the embarrassing social corners it pushes us into on a regular basis (is it rude to refuse friend requests from people we never liked in the first place? Can we unfriend someone we’ve long since discarded in the real world?). And we hate the fact that, despite all of this, we’re still using the damn thing regularly simply because everyone else is. Hell, it’s often the only way to reach our parents.
All of that being said, have we ever told you how much we love The West Wing? We L.O.V.E. it! Everything about that series is perfection to our eyes: the acting, the cinematography, the series-long story arcs. But what elevates The West Wing above ordinary television – above most movies for that matter – is the extraordinary, genius writing of Aaron Sorkin. The man has the God-like ability to write dialogue that is poetic, funny, intellectual, witty, dramatic – simultaneously. The West Wing – or at least the first four seasons that he penned – is the greatest thing ever put on television.
So, it’s because of Sorkin’s name on the ticket and the considerable directing talents of David Fincher – and despite the fact that we pretty much loathe Facebook – that we’re so intrigued by the upcoming The Social Network.
The film tells the story of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg who, in 2003, as a Harvard undergraduate, sat down at his computer and created the world’s most popular social network. As the blurb from Columbia reminds us:
In a fury of blogging and programming, what begins in his dorm room soon becomes a global social network and a revolution in communication. A mere six years and 500 million friends later, Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest billionaire in history… but for this entrepreneur, success leads to both personal and legal complications.
If we’re honest, the trailer which we’ve embedded below, doesn’t exactly get us fired up. But we have full confidence in Sorkin and Fincher. We’ll be lining, cash in hand in, come October. In the meantime, we’re off to ‘Like’ the film on Facebook… Jesus, did we just write that!?
The Social Network could turn us into a fan
Never let it be said that we don’t listen to our readers (both of them) here at The Prodigal Guide. Just yesterday, our Twitter buddy @Noodlefish dropped us a line with a little, eh, reader feedback. “Not seen much film-ic stuff on t’Guide recently…” he said. Well, @Noodlefish our friend, this one’s for you. We’re [...]
11 Responses to “The Social Network could turn us into a fan”
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Ha! No I don’t. I do however have an irritating West Wing app on there that I can’t get rid of. It fires daily quotes at me. Even that, I don’t want.
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I loved West Wing, and have seen the fb film trailer but am not convinced to see it. I just can’t get my head around why there is a film about fb….
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You may dislike Facebook but you can’t argue that there isn’t a compelling story here: Zuckerberg is the youngest billionnaire in history. I’d be interested to know how he did it!
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Ian Skellern
29 July 2010
I am another big fan of The West Wing; but that doesn’t translate to me being impatient to see Facebook: The Film. I wonder if it will be in 3D?
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I’m expecting 3D and the ability for the audiance to have their status updates displayed on screen as they watch the movie. Anyting less and I’m calling it a complete #fail. And I’ll complain about it on Tweeter. Hourly. That’s the rough and tumble world of social media for you.
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Straight-Six
29 July 2010
Am gearing up to assassinate all FB creators/employers/users. Uh, including me…:)
Adore The West Wing and have the Fool to thank for introducing me and my beloved to it. Unsurpassed television. Although Toby does have some competition in Omar from The Wire!
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And Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip! Don’t forget about that little bone I threw your way, you dirty little mongrel.
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Thanks for the post! I tried (and failed) to leave a comment first thing, via FB. And an iPhone. But the fates conspired against me. Hey ho.
As soon as someone creates an App that’ll automatically update your Twitter status with a random quote from West Wing, we’re all dead. Until then, there’s always the “Ignore” button. Hopefully.
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First by way of disclaimer, I’m not sure whether it makes me more “Friends” than loses them here for me to confess that I have other interests in life, do other things beside study James Bond watches and write about ‘em.
“West Wing.” Yeah. Couldn’t agree more.
Remember that episode where Josh discovers the “Lemon-Limen” website, “dedicated to all things” about him. Signs in, posts. Then is promptly rebuked for not following the rules, not knowing government policy, and being utterly out of touch with the facts of Josh Limen!
Yup–.
Dell Deaton
JamesBondWatchesBlog.com
JamesBondWatches.com -
[...] What is it about @Noodlefish? This is the second time in a week that the man has kicked-off a post for us. So, yesterday we were chewing the fat with him [...]
carol galiano
29 July 2010
Do you follow The West Wing on Facebook?