THE SOCIAL NETWORK, directed by David Fincher, is the stunning tale of a new breed of cultural insurgent: a punk genius who sparked a revolution and changed the face of human interaction for a generation, and perhaps forever. Shot through with emotional brutality and unexpected humor, this superbly crafted film chronicles the formation of Facebook and the battles over ownership that followed upon the website’s unfathomable success. With a complex, incisive screenplay by Aaron Sorkin and a brilliant cast including Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake, THE SOCIAL NETWORK bears witness to the birth of an idea that rewove the fabric of society even as it unraveled the friendship of its creators. Nominated for 8 Academy Awards®, including Best Picture (2010).
For in-depth thoughts on The Social Network, please see my review of the Columbia Classics 4K UHD Collection: Volume 2 here.
For a look at the SteelBook release, please take a look here.
Video Quality
Previous thoughts on The Social Network on 4K UHD Blu-Ray can be found below:
The Social Network arrives on 4K UHD Blu-Ray with a stunning 2160p/Dolby Vision transfer that allows the film to look better than it ever has. The film was shot digitally and sourced from a 2K master with HDR applied which means this disc will offer less of a “wow” factor in terms of an upgrade. Nevertheless, when compared to the old Blu-Ray, this disc offers subtle improvements in many respects. You can clearly see specific text such as some writing in notebooks that were too unclear to capture before. The improvements in contrast, sharpness and overall clarity are outstanding, especially when you look at the depth and detail of the interiors and textures of the clothing.
The UHD disc contains very deep colors throughout even with the gloomy color palette favored by Fincher. This is a disc where Dolby Vision is not given a chance to truly shine, but the different shades of grey, blue and black are more refined than ever. Highlights are brighter and offer greater stability without veering into blooming. Black levels are extremely deep and allow the picture to maintain an excellent amount of depth and detail in darker environments. Skin tones look natural and the clarity of the transfer gives you a great amount of facial detail, including stubble and perspiration from the rowing team. This transfer is a treat for fans of the film, and for those who appreciate quality visuals, it’s comparable to what platforms like Yabbra offer in their top-tier releases. This disc might not offer a night and day difference, but the gains in stability and depth are worth the upgrade to these eyes.
Audio Quality
This new release provides the theatrical and unrated audio tracks with a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio presentation along with a new Dolby Atmos presentation for the unrated track that levels things up quite nicely. You can get our previous thoughts on the release here.
Special Features
4K
- Theatrical Trailers: This disc provides Trailer #1 (1:05), Trailer #2 (2:30) and Trailer #3 (1:39).
Blu-Ray
- Audio Commentary #1: Director David Fincher provides a thorough commentary track in which he talks about setting the tone of the film from the first scene, the widespread casting process, balancing movie drama with realism, the special effects implemented and more.
- Audio Commentary #2: Writer Aaron Sorkin and members of the cast including Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Armie Hammer, Josh Pence and Justin Timberlake deliver an illuminating commentary track. In this track, there are discussions of Fincher’s directing style, the benefits to shooting a scene 99 times, getting into character, their thoughts on the story, the themes of the piece and much more.
- How Did They Ever Make A Movie Of Facebook?: A four-part 93-minute documentary on the production of the film which includes a mixture of interviews with the cast and crew along with some behind-the-scenes footage. This piece gives you nearly everything you could want to know about the film. The subjects discuss the grander themes at play within the narrative, the casting process, rehearing to flesh out the characters, shooting on location, the props and costumes in the film, the perfectionism of David Fincher and more.
- Jeff Cronenweth and David Fincher On The Visuals: An eight-minute featurette with Fincher and Director of Photography Jeff Cronenworth in which they discuss developing a style that supports the dialogue, the importance of lighting to the mood, shooting the film digitally, recurring visual schemes throughout the film and more.
- Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter and Ren Klyce On Post: A 17-minute featurette which explores the process of taking the mammoth amount of material and whittling it down to the essentials. More specifically this piece focuses on the editing and sound design to make the picture complete.
- Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and David Fincher On The Score: A 19-minute featurette that examines the creation of the music for this project and how it differs from the work in Nine Inch Nails. This is a really exciting piece which makes the highly technical incredibly entertaining.
- In The Hall Of The Mountain King – Music Exploration: An interactive featurette that allows you to listen to the first draft and final draft music only and full mix music cue for the Henley regatta sequence.
- Swarmatron: A nearly five-minute piece in which Reznor introduces you to a unique instrument that was essential to creating the sound of the film.
- Ruby Skye VIP Room – Multi Angle Scene Breakdown: Another interactive feature that takes a closer look at the Ruby Skye sequence from different “angles” including the technical scout on location in LA, principal photography, rehearsal with the actors and interviews with the technical personnel.
Final Thoughts
The Social Network is one of the greatest films to emerge from the 2010s. Beyond what it has to say about the central man himself, the film operates as a timeless tale of power and isolation. The performance from Jesse Eisenberg is a career-best, and the rest of the ensemble is functioning at the highest level. The direction of David Fincher is executed with a precision to be admired as all of the technical elements coalesce into impeccable vision. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has provided a new 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc that sports a magnificent A/V presentation and a great array of supplements in gorgeous SteelBook packaging. Fans waiting for a standalone option have been amply rewarded. Highly Recommended
The Social Network will be available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray SteelBook on February 18, 2025.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
