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That is not a "review" so much as it is Lessig expressing hero-worship of Mark Zuckerberg and attempting to minimize the numerous substantive charges of unethic

That is not a "review" so much as it is Lessig expressing hero-worship of Mark Zuckerberg and attempting to minimize the numerous substantive charges of unethical behavior that have been directed at Zuckerberg. The summation paragraph begins "Zuckerberg is a rightful hero of our time. I want my kids to admire him." I don't have an opinion about the movie (haven't seen it), but reading this review has greatly reduced my opinion of Lawrence Lessig.

kevingadd 16y ago
You seem to have missed the half of the review where he talks about the importance of the internet and concepts like net neutrality. You might want to read that half too.
- mycroftiv 16y ago
  You seem to have missed the point I was trying to make. I am well aware that Lessig has been "one of the good guys" - in fact, before reading this review, he was more or less a hero to me. I am actually shocked that Lessig seems to care as little about ethics and personal privacy as his praise of Zuckerberg indicates.
  - chopsueyar 16y ago
    ..and the use of "bait-and-switch" headlines.
veemjeem 16y ago
I'm guessing you only read the first page of the article. The real meat and gist of what he was trying to convey was in the second page, where Facebook was compared to Nantucket Nectars. The movie "review" was just there to catch user attention, like authors do with the first few pages of a book. Here's the key quotes: "Instead, what’s important here is that Zuckerberg’s genius could be embraced by half-a-billion people within six years of its first being launched, without (and here is the critical bit) asking permission of anyone. The real story is not the invention. It is the platform that makes the invention sing. " ... "As “network neutrality” gets bargained away—to add insult to injury, by an administration that was elected with the promise to defend it—the opportunities for the Zuckerbergs of tomorrow will shrink. And as they do, we will return more to the world where success depends upon permission. And privilege. And insiders. And where fewer turn their souls to inventing the next great idea."
- DanielRibeiro 16y ago
  Another key quote for me was: No field of innovation is more burdened by the judgments of idiots in the middle than film
- lzw 16y ago
  In doing so, Lessig is reviewing the film he wishes was made about the internet, rather than reviewing this film based on the story it chose to tell. (Which is a compelling story.) This violates the first rule of movie reviewers-- we don't care how great of a film director you imagine you'd be if you were in a position to make movies, rather than just review them. I don't like slapstick comedies, but I'd never criticize one fro not being a scream sequel.
  - chopsueyar 16y ago
    Exactly. Mod parent up. I did see the movie this morning at 10am. Lessig faults the film for not telling the story of Chris Hughs and Sean Parker's utilization of the internet for nonprofits and the election of Obama. This is a platform that has made democratic innovation possible—and it was on the Facebook platform resting on that Internet platform that another Facebook co-founder, Chris Hughes, organized the most important digital movement for Obama, and that the film’s petty villain, Sean Parker, organized Causes, one of the most important tools to support nonprofit social missions. The tragedy—small in the scale of things, no doubt—of this film is that practically everyone watching it will miss this point. I think Lessing really misses the point of the movie. What I saw was a young guy able to take VC money and not lose his post as CEO. I didn't see Parker portrayed as a 'petty villian'. SPOILER ALERT: In the movie, Parker first learns of thefacebook after a one night stand with a Stanford undergraduate. He asks if he can check his email on her laptop and notices the site. At that point, Stanford was one of the few university .edu email addresses allowed on the site. He is so convinced, thefacebook will be the next big thing, he needs to find the creators of the site. Basically, Parker takes Fanning under his wing, suggesting he move to California. There is probably a 20 to 30 minute VC montage, where Parker helps thefacebook get funding, using his various connections. He also has Zuckerberg dress in his pajamas, (Parker drops him off in an Escalade and waits outside) and go to a specific VC, and has Zuckerberg tell the VC, Sean Parker says "Fuck you" and then leave. I own Startup.com (the movie, not the domain), and also E-Dreams. Watching both too many times, neither movie had a happy ending for the founders (within the context of those specific startups). Startup.com CTO is ousted by the CEO (the two founders were best friends). Kozmo.com's CEO got ousted by the VCs. This movie left me feeling icky at the ending. Not "Requiem for a Dream" soul fuck, but you really don't know who is a good guy and who is a bad guy. It really isn't black and white like that. It did, however, have one of the most cinematic uses of 'wget' I have ever seen. Also, kind of cheap headline there. I thought it would be a movie review, not an articulated rant. I expect more from that Harvard law dude. Also, I have never heard of Parker before this movie, I was only aware of Fanning as the Napster creator. EDIT: Changed ambiguous pronouns

kevingadd 16y ago

You seem to have missed the half of the review where he talks about the importance of the internet and concepts like net neutrality. You might want to read that half too.

mycroftiv 16y ago
You seem to have missed the point I was trying to make. I am well aware that Lessig has been "one of the good guys" - in fact, before reading this review, he was more or less a hero to me. I am actually shocked that Lessig seems to care as little about ethics and personal privacy as his praise of Zuckerberg indicates.
- chopsueyar 16y ago
  ..and the use of "bait-and-switch" headlines.

veemjeem 16y ago

I'm guessing you only read the first page of the article. The real meat and gist of what he was trying to convey was in the second page, where Facebook was compared to Nantucket Nectars. The movie "review" was just there to catch user attention, like authors do with the first few pages of a book. Here's the key quotes: "Instead, what’s important here is that Zuckerberg’s genius could be embraced by half-a-billion people within six years of its first being launched, without (and here is the critical bit) asking permission of anyone. The real story is not the invention. It is the platform that makes the invention sing. " ... "As “network neutrality” gets bargained away—to add insult to injury, by an administration that was elected with the promise to defend it—the opportunities for the Zuckerbergs of tomorrow will shrink. And as they do, we will return more to the world where success depends upon permission. And privilege. And insiders. And where fewer turn their souls to inventing the next great idea."

DanielRibeiro 16y ago
Another key quote for me was: No field of innovation is more burdened by the judgments of idiots in the middle than film
lzw 16y ago
In doing so, Lessig is reviewing the film he wishes was made about the internet, rather than reviewing this film based on the story it chose to tell. (Which is a compelling story.) This violates the first rule of movie reviewers-- we don't care how great of a film director you imagine you'd be if you were in a position to make movies, rather than just review them. I don't like slapstick comedies, but I'd never criticize one fro not being a scream sequel.
- chopsueyar 16y ago
  Exactly. Mod parent up. I did see the movie this morning at 10am. Lessig faults the film for not telling the story of Chris Hughs and Sean Parker's utilization of the internet for nonprofits and the election of Obama. This is a platform that has made democratic innovation possible—and it was on the Facebook platform resting on that Internet platform that another Facebook co-founder, Chris Hughes, organized the most important digital movement for Obama, and that the film’s petty villain, Sean Parker, organized Causes, one of the most important tools to support nonprofit social missions. The tragedy—small in the scale of things, no doubt—of this film is that practically everyone watching it will miss this point. I think Lessing really misses the point of the movie. What I saw was a young guy able to take VC money and not lose his post as CEO. I didn't see Parker portrayed as a 'petty villian'. SPOILER ALERT: In the movie, Parker first learns of thefacebook after a one night stand with a Stanford undergraduate. He asks if he can check his email on her laptop and notices the site. At that point, Stanford was one of the few university .edu email addresses allowed on the site. He is so convinced, thefacebook will be the next big thing, he needs to find the creators of the site. Basically, Parker takes Fanning under his wing, suggesting he move to California. There is probably a 20 to 30 minute VC montage, where Parker helps thefacebook get funding, using his various connections. He also has Zuckerberg dress in his pajamas, (Parker drops him off in an Escalade and waits outside) and go to a specific VC, and has Zuckerberg tell the VC, Sean Parker says "Fuck you" and then leave. I own Startup.com (the movie, not the domain), and also E-Dreams. Watching both too many times, neither movie had a happy ending for the founders (within the context of those specific startups). Startup.com CTO is ousted by the CEO (the two founders were best friends). Kozmo.com's CEO got ousted by the VCs. This movie left me feeling icky at the ending. Not "Requiem for a Dream" soul fuck, but you really don't know who is a good guy and who is a bad guy. It really isn't black and white like that. It did, however, have one of the most cinematic uses of 'wget' I have ever seen. Also, kind of cheap headline there. I thought it would be a movie review, not an articulated rant. I expect more from that Harvard law dude. Also, I have never heard of Parker before this movie, I was only aware of Fanning as the Napster creator. EDIT: Changed ambiguous pronouns