GITS Script Reading & Analysis: “The Social Network”

Welcome to the GITS Script Reading & Analysis series, Volume 21. This week we will be analyzing the screenplay for the 2010 movie The Social Network [screenplay by Aaron Sorkin, book by Ben Mezrich]. It won an Academy Award and a Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, and a Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay.

You may download the shooting script here. It is 163 pages long.

Here is the movie’s trailer:

Some reviews of the film:

Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)

New York Times (Manohla Dargis)

Wall Street Journal (Joe Morgenstern)

The BoxOfficeMojo site for the film’s performance in theaters [grossed $225M worldwide].

An interview with Aaron Sorkin about the movie:

Let’s use this post today for your general reactions to the script.

Did you enjoy it? What aspects about it made the most impact on you? Would you consider it a ‘good read’? What struck you most about the writing?

Our analysis schedule for this week:

Monday, July 23: General discussion
Tuesday, July 24: Structure
Wednesday, July 25: Characters
Thursday, July 26: Themes
Friday, July 27: Dialogue

Also note we will have a live Tweet-Cast on Wednesday, July 25 at 8PM Pacific. You are invited to get your DVD or Netflix set to play the movie at precisely 8PM, then join professional screenwriters Tom Benedek [@TomBenedek], F. Scott Frazier [@ScreenWritten], John Gary [@johngary], and myself on Twitter for live commentary. This interactive approach to analyzing a movie in real-time is a lot of fun and has led to some great insights into the films we have reviewed. Hashtag: #TSOCIALN.

Also if you know of any more interviews or behind-the-scene videos related to the movie, please let me know.

See you in comments to discuss The Social Network.

NOTE: THE USE OF THE SCREENPLAY IS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY.

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