Sorkin’s ‘The Social Reckoning’ divides critics

Aaron Sorkin's return to Facebook, "The Social Reckoning," has drawn a divided response from critics ahead of its theatrical release. Some reviewers call it sharp journalism drama. Others find it familiar, preachy or late to its subject. The film is inspired by whistleblower Frances Haugen and opens in U.S. cinemas and other markets on October 9.techloy

Sony's Columbia Pictures is positioning the film as a companion to "The Social Network" rather than a direct sequel. Sorkin wrote and directed it, taking over from David Fincher. Mikey Madison plays Haugen, Jeremy Allen White plays The Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz, and Jeremy Strong replaces Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg.motionpictures+1

Praise and Pans

IGN India called the film "great drama." It said the screenplay is the movie's "biggest strength" and praised the chemistry between Madison and White, though it said some scenes push Strong's Zuckerberg toward open cruelty. The Hollywood Reporter India called it "efficient and overfamiliar." Its critic said Sorkin "could've done this in his sleep" and that Strong turns Zuckerberg into "a pale looney-tunes villain".ign+1

Slate's critic did not "like" it. The review faulted the film for repeating statistics such as the 64% of extremist-group joins that an internal 2016 report linked to Facebook's own algorithm. It also called Strong's performance "incandescently angry". The Wall Street Journal's review called the film a "quip-fest" set in "Sorkinland" and said it already feels dated. The Inlander called it "uneven" and "perfectly competent and watchable," but said Sorkin overlooks how Facebook's power has grown since the events shown.wsj+2

'Too Late' to the Story

Several critics questioned the timing. The Australian Financial Review gave it three stars under the headline "that horse has bolted." It noted the film arrives weeks after Meta ↗ 3.67% settled with 48 U.S. states for \$18 billion. Crikey's Charlie Lewis called the film's "happy-ish ending" "dishonest and uncommitted," though he praised Strong's "incredible rendering" of Zuckerberg.crikey+1

Sorkin's Account

Sorkin has been promoting the film, including an appearance on MS NOW's "Morning Joe". He told The Credits, the Motion Picture Association's publication, that he was going through "an epic period of writer's block" until Haugen told him a friend had been radicalized on Facebook. That conversation became the film's opening scene. Sorkin said the movie was shot in Vancouver for \$30 million after Canadian incentives, and that filming in California would have cost about \$10 million to \$12 million more.ms+1

"California needs to help us out or film production will go away," he said.motionpictures