'The Social Reckoning' review: Facebook stokes fires in Sorkin's sharp exposé

MANILA, Philippines — "The Social Network" presented the inner workings of Facebook's creation, and now 16 years later, its writer Aaron Sorkin is back in "The Social Reckoning" to show how the platform has placed itself as a driver of culture.

"The Social Reckoning" revolves around the data and documents formed in "The Facebook Files," a series of reports by former Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White) with the help of whistleblower Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison).

Haugen is conflicted after witnessing a former liberal colleague succumb to right-wing ideologies within a couple of years, leaking to Horwitz how Facebook — still led by Mark Zuckerberg (Jeremy Strong) — was complicit in amplifying inflammatory activity and misinformation.

Sorkin's sharp Oscar-winning screenplay for "The Social Network" played a huge part in that film's status to becoming a hallmark of 21st century filmmaking. It is also as pivotal as the direction of David Fincher and his frequent editors, Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter.

How Fincher deconstructed the origins of what would become the world's biggest social platform was a tough act to follow — something that Sorkin eventually took on following the notoriety surrounding both Facebook and Zuckerberg.

With respect to Sorkin, his prowess as a screenwriter once again shines in "The Social Reckoning," date-like dialogues between Horwitz and Haugen over time serving as the catalyst for the movie.

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The screenplay also rises to the occasion, given how Strong portrays an older Zuckerberg. Strong presents the Meta CEO as cold and consumed by the power he now wields, demanding respect from subordinates, played by Wunmi Mosaku, Billy Magnussen, and Bill Burr, the latter surprisingly a voice of reason.

Another creative that rises to the challenge set before him is composer Alexandre Desplat, his work on the piano doing justice as successor to the Oscar-winning score of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.

However, as with past directorial outings like "Molly's Game," "The Trial of the Chicago 7," and "Being the Ricardos," Sorkin is still pushing to find a stable, credible identity in the director's chair able to match the words he pens.

It is a struggle that Sorkin has faced for a decade, but nonetheless deserves credit for the attempt. It is also a formidable undertaking that wants to revive conversations about Facebook's complicity — even though his new movie cites major global incidents but never mentions the personalities who incite the controversies.

Sorkin knows how to spark discussion even though he has conventional ways of starting them. Facebook was very much affected by Haugen leaking information, leading to it becoming Meta to help deal with the fallout.

At the very least, Sorkin and company show that an individual is enough to hold the most powerful men in the world to account, though much work still needs to be done.

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