David Fincher’s The Social Network is currently my second favourite film of 2010, and my pick (both prediction and preference) to take home this year’s Best Picture Oscar. As I wrote in my review back in November, the movie is “a stunningly absorbing and superbly acted drama with a flawless pace and mesmerizing aesthetic…a film that offers a brutal critique of one of its most influential figures of the internet age, and one that seems Fincher’s evolution as both a storyteller and an artist come magnificently to a head.”
But there is one moment in the film that even after three viewings has always left me wondering.
SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE THE SOCIAL NETWORK
So as I’m sure you remember, there’s a moment about two thirds of the way through the film where Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) moves out to California with a group of interns. And by a seemingly random chance, who should happen to be helping his friend move out from the house directly across the street but internet entrepreneur and all round douche-bag Sean Parker (Justine Timberlake). Both characters play it off as a happy coincidence and the movie proceeds from there without giving it much more thought.
But of course there’s no way this meeting was just a coincidence. We are talking about two of the most cunning characters in recent cinema history, both of whom have a serious interest in inserting themselves into the other ones life. I’ve read the script (available here thanks to Sony Pictures) and the scene is written in exactly same way as it is filmed – completely ambiguous. So the question remains: was it Zuckerberg who rented a house that “just happened” to be across from where Parker was crashing, or had Parker sussed out Zuckerberg’s whereabouts beforehand, choosing to use the sight of a collapsing chimney as a plausible excuse to ring the doorbell?
Thoughts anyone?
i know that scene feels ridiculous and you want to believe there was something else going on.
i got a copy of the Accidental Billionaires and if that is in there somehow, I’ll let you know
I felt the same way with that scene Tom, but my impression was that Zuckerberg purposely found a house on that particular street because he knew Parker was there. I have nothing to base that on except what I saw as pure hero worship coming from Zuckerberg, so it feels like he would do something exactly like that. Of course, this may also be me rationalizing an explanation to the scene because I love the rest of the film. Asking us to believe the coincidence would really be going beyond the rules of the film…
The way I interpreted it, I thought it was Sean Parker who sought out Zuckerberg. Parker initiates the contact. He doesn’t seem like the type of guy who would have a girlfriend like that, and certainly not someone who would help anyone move. Plus, instead of saying “This is my girlfriend” he says “This is my….. Sharon”.
To me, it comes off as the girl being an excuse to be in the neighborhood so he can get to Mark. The chimney incident is the perfect excuse to knock on his door.
I’m with Bob. It strike me as more in keeping with Zuckerberg’s logic to stalk Parker – and wait for an “opportunity” to bump into Parker to pop up. I don’t think Parker would have had the self-control to wait for the chimney to collapse if he wanted to “stumble across” Zuckerberg.
This is something in the movie that alway bugged me as well. But I get so wrapped up in everything else I forget about it almost instantly. I guess I read it as Parker seeking out Zuckerberg. But I think either way is plausible. And then of course there is the outside chance that actually is just coincidence. One of those things that was “just meant to be.”
It’s ambiguous and you should be able to deal with it.
I’m in the Zuckerberg camp – to me, he would be way more likely to seek out Parker, then lay low until the perfect “chance” opportunity. He is just so much more cunning and desperate than Parker, whose primary strength through the film seems to be to latch onto good things when they come along – like Zuckerberg and the Facebook project. To me, Parker just wouldn’t have the imagination or motivation to hatch such a plan and carry it out himself.
if i had to decide who was following who, I’d have to believe Parker was following Zuckerberg, because even though Zuckerberg was listening a lot to Parker, it was Parker who initiated their contact to begin with and had to seek Mark out.
Not to mention how would Zuckerberg know that Parker was going to be helping his friend move that week in that particular spot?
if Zuckerberg wanted to be near Parker, he’d be near Parker… not Parkers friend in the hopes that Sean helps people move.
Honestly I think it’s poor writing. As a whole the script is great, but this smacks of ‘lets just move into the second act already.’ All Zuckerberg would have to do is look him up in the phone book if he wanted to make contact. Why concoct some scheme. What is he? An evil genious?
Same with Parker. They’d already met hadn’t they? Why beat around the bush?
It’s just a scene that doesn’t work.
Its wacky, that is for sure.
This one moment bothered me so much that I did an internet search for “did Sean Parker really live across the street?” and found this discussion and now here I am. This is a truly amazing film but this moment does suck. At the very least, one of them in the context of the story would at least be truly surprised and keep acknowledging how much of an insane coincidence it is.