The Social Network: Open Spaces

David Liu | 20 December 2010

In David Fincher’s The Social Network, familiar geographic landmarks contextualize the film’s narrative within the fabric of history and modernity.

Greater Boston Area, Massachusetts. Seen from Cambridge, the Old North Church stands as a stark reminder of America’s own fabled creation saga. As per Revolutionary War lore, the signal “One if by land, and two if by sea…” was sent from the church’s bell tower, jumpstarting Paul Revere’s midnight ride.

As Zuckerberg jogs back to his dorm, the gentle piano notes of “Hand Covers Bruise” segues into a sinister synth rumble. Fincher and cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth portray the Harvard campus as a cloistered, foreboding landscape: a modern institution draped in Old World starkness.

As dawn breaks on the Charles River, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss are approximately five boat lengths ahead of everyone else on the Harvard Crew.

A Phoenix Club hazing ritual takes place in Harvard Yard. As prospective members (“punchers”) struggle to name the three lies surrounding John Harvard’s statue, the school’s iconic namesake looms like a disapproving gargoyle.

“It’s raining,” Zuckerberg remarks in a reverie, completely ignoring a deposition officer’s question. In the distance, thunder rumbles and the San Francisco Bay Bridge is barely visible through the rain-streaked window.

Taking place immediately before the nightclub rendezvous between Zuckerberg and Sean Parker, an exhilarating time-lapse of San Francisco illustrates both the passage of time and the seductive allure of new business ventures. It’s similar to the time-lapse of the Transamerica Pyramid in Fincher’s Zodiac, only framed here as a catalyst for progression instead of as a monument to frustration.

The English town of Henley-on-Thames was first settled in 1179; since 1851, it has been home to the Henley Royal Regatta, one of the world’s premier rowing competitions. Representing the Harvard team in 2004, the Winklevoss twins suffer a crushing last-second defeat at the hands of a powerful Netherlands squad. Fincher orchestrates the scene to the tune of a synthesized “In the Hall of the Mountain King,” evoking the primitive power of Soviet montage cinema.

555 California Street, formerly Bank of America Center; a notable landmark of San Francisco’s financial district. “You know this is where they filmed The Towering Inferno?” Parker gleefully informs Zuckerberg, referring to the 1974 Steve McQueen/Paul Newman disaster film. Zuckerberg replies: “That’s comforting.”

Empire State Building, New York City. Originally the source of Eduardo Saverin’s entrepreneurial dreams, the Big Apple comes to represent several obstacles in Saverin’s relationship with Facebook: a botched internship, a high-maintenance girlfriend and lost opportunities.

12 notes

Show

  1. littlefingercarcetti reblogged this from davidliu
  2. alsoran reblogged this from davidliu
  3. cherrietopdworld said: i can’t get over what a great, inspiring and poignant writer you are!!!
  4. intellectualbadass1 said: This is very insightful.
  5. davidliu posted this

Blog comments powered by Disqus