The Social Network Review (4/5)

But how do you get 500 million friends if your acting comes at the cost of a film's entertainment? At times, The Social Network borders on being something truly special, throwing in a mixture of comedy, drama and time shifts to keep the viewer engaged amongst the confusing figures and facts which are constantly sent their way, but the casting of such unknowns as Jesse Einenburg (though adequate given his protagonist's general awkwardness) and Armie Hammer might quickly put many off before the flick has even hit its halfway point. Having said that, Andrew Garfield- set to be the next Spider-Man when the Marvel revamp hits in 2012- and Brenda Song (famous for her role in Disney Channel hit The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) bring The Social Network out of its potential depths with some superbly emotional sequences near its climax, and these scenes easily prove the classic it could have been with different decisions by the casting director. If this factor proves the deciding point for your viewing of The Social Network and you come to the decision that it isn't worth watching, bear this in mind: amongst the bad acting and often overwhelming numbers, there is an intricately-directed flick with true reverence paid to Facebook's real-world creators that will easily serve to be educational for the majority of audience, and for the most part it's a totally enjoyable, not to mention intelligent movie.