The Antisocial Network (2024) User Reviews

When Harmless Jokes Turn Harmful Realities

[SonGoku540 · 7/10 · 8 April 2024]

Directors Arthur Jones and Giorgio Angelini take us on a chilling journey in "The Antisocial Network: Memes to Mayhem," a documentary exploring the dark underbelly of online culture and its unintended consequences.

The film tackles a highly relevant issue, tracing the evolution of memes from silly jokes to tools for manipulation and the erosion of truth. Millennial interviewees, once active participants, offer a unique perspective on how their online actions spiraled out of control. The documentary masterfully weaves early internet memes with news clips and social media posts, creating a vivid timeline of events.

While focusing on the rise of 4chan, the film could delve deeper into the broader impact of other anonymous platforms. Some interviewees seem to romanticize the early days of the internet, neglecting the inherent toxicity that always existed.

Editing is sharp, seamlessly transitioning between interviews, memes, and news footage. The score is subtle yet effective, adding tension without being overly dramatic. The interviewers guide the narrative effectively, drawing insightful commentary from participants.

"The Antisocial Network" is a must-watch for anyone interested in the internet's influence on society. Despite some limitations, the film serves as a stark reminder of the responsibility we hold online and the potential for memes to morph into real-world mayhem.

Harrowing

[johnspringer-95440 · 7/10 · 17 April 2024]

The internet's influence on culture, politics and media is ubiquitous. But who influences the internet? This documentary answers that question - or starts to - by focusing on the rise of 4chan, the anonymous imageboard website that served as a surrogate online community for grassroots activists and agitators on both the left and right. This documentary exposes (perhaps unintentionally) the harrowing fact that the 4chan community was full of the most wretched, hateful and inadequate people you're ever likely to encounter. If you met any of this documentary's interviewees in person you would dismiss them as pathetic crackpots or worse and you would promptly ignore them. But ensconced in the anonymity of a signal-boosting online echo chamber they were able to exercise a grossly outsized influence on the 2010s. The internet (supposedly a means of democratizing discourse by giving a globe-spanning voice to virtually anyone) has actually given the loudest and most prominent voices to cabals of unaccountable weirdos who spend all their time on the internet.

Excessive Rush of Images

[ZeddaZogenau · 6/10 · 7 April 2024]

Informative and enlightening documentation!

For people like me, who have only been able to delve deeper into the world of the Internet after a long period of family responsibilities, documentaries of this kind are helpful in understanding what has actually happened over the past two decades. The effects of the developments described in the film are visible to everyone in everyday and professional life. I didn't really like the excessive rush of images, but I admit that it fits the protagonists and their actions quite well.

The global streaming service NETFLIX certainly does educational work with such films. We should also remember the documentary about the CYBERBUNKER in the small German town of Traben-Trabach.

The question remains what to do now with the knowledge gained. The troll armies around the world remain active and have long been taking care of the next generation.

Not a Great Documentary

[atleverton · 6/10 · 28 April 2024]

But it managed to be educational and present its thesis quite well. The thesis is that the infamous 4chan led to such social movements as OccupyWallstreet, Anonymous, Gamergate, and the rise of Donald Trump and finally, to January 6th. It showed how these groups morphed together and separated. It shows very clearly how the alt-right latched onto meme culture and tried to hijack the political discourse. I was never on 4chan, but remember seeing their productions out in the wild. It's a cautionary tale about two things, the first about how just because you create something, that does not mean you can control it as the creator of 4chan discovered, and the second is never to underestimate the stupidity of the masses. They will beieve anything as long as its in a visual form with some white text.

Interesting

[sljmakio · 8/10 · 12 April 2024]

As one could expect, a documentary about people on the Internet gets very mixed reviews from people on the Internet.

This documentary raises many thoughts when it goes through some of the history of 4chan, Anonymous, Qanon, and MAGA, and how they link together. I found it personally very interesting, well-made, and I learned some new information. As a viewer, however, you need to remember that this is still just an edited Netflix documentary about the Internet and, well, you can never really know the whole truth about that. Do some people make themselves seem more important than they truly were? Who knows. Maybe, maybe not.

In whole, this is an important topic especially in today's world and I'm glad I decided to watch it. And you conspiracy theorists, you live in a made-up world.

Old Fashioned and Goofy

[drael64 · 4/10 · 13 April 2024]

This is a tired, narrative driven, very one sided documentary that would not have been out of place ten years ago, but today feels rather quaint in it's transparent narrative pitch, political lean and lack of nuance or honesty.

Many of the subjects covered in this documentary were complex with people being drawn to them for a variety of reasons, certainly not all of which had anything to do with, as the documentary would have you believe, bigotry or misinformation. It's reduction of these subjects to almost cartoonish proportions is not so much offensive or important in any way, as it is just plain silly.

This sort of narrative based politically orientated story telling at this point is almost as quaint as your grandma's cupboard full of antique plates. Lol, bless their hearts :P.

Losers and very unethical people are elevated to heroes

[colomba87 · 2/10 · 22 April 2024]

The documentary tries to tell a story that is not true. 4Chan has always been considered an unethical platform by "normal" people. The documentary not only trivializes the behavior of the members but also gives them even more supposed influence in the historical narrative. They show trolling of the first 4Chan generation as a relatively harmless practice. But remember these are the people who had fun by for example spamming homepages which are meant to help people suffering form epilepsy by posting pictures that could actually trigger an epileptic seizure, which is life-threatening. All this is totally trivialized in this documentary. Only half-truths are told. Everything that doesn't fit into the "storytelling" is ignored.

Sympathy for the Devilish

[theknownames · 8/10 · 10 April 2024]

Imdb is review site not an opinion about content site. As a documentary should document facts, this does well ( just go fact check it ..it takes a while though) so anyway ,however, it is presented as the the inception of mass misinformation when another angle is how certain sites and practices can incite and we're proven to do so. How internet use blew up during the pandemic at a rate that could not have come with enough warning . Yet another angle would be the human psychology of how often we see false information factors into how we process credibility and so on. No doubt people are offended ( especially as beliefs are challenged) the real concern should be our own mental health and the effects on young minds going forward if there is anything to be done.

Its not a surprise. No one dismisses the Pam and Tommy tapes or JLo dress or the blue white dress and the developments of our internet but they aren't the whole story . So this felt rushed and packaged into a bow when it really could have been a series and with careful attention to the audience, it could have been presented in a way that was less divisive or more coddling.

The leap to the election and Q and Trumpers made sense and even earned the movement some sympathy yet anyone already there may just see propaganda and miss the point as there is in incredible amount of misinformation including medical and DYI , even hair color remover as the unregulated 'wild west' of the information highway ( not long ago) continues into the now.

Where is it headed? Have we been warned ?

Even this review , the minute I wrote Trumper I am sure people tapped out .

History teaches us so much but most of us need to make our own mistakes to learn no matter the costs. I liked the optics and the progression of this documentary and overall it delivers on thought provoking and hopefully pushes fact checking rather than adamant appall.

I started this review with how the emphasis here should be on the quality of the film and not content however the reviews got under my skin insofar as the emphasis on content ( which did give me more to look into, yet in the end, appear gravely misinformed....which i think reflects the point of the documentary )

Very interesting, even if it's a bit too much.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 16 April 2024]

It's an interesting history lesson for someone like me, who was a bit of a technophobe until probably about 2010.

It charts the early years of the internet and perhaps the infancy of social media, I honestly had no idea that memes about so early on.

Amazing to see how politics plays such a big in the story, I nicely had very little idea, so there is a lot here to learn.

I didn't know a huge deal about Anonymous, so learning was a real eye opener, you can work out whether you think they were a force for change, for good, or for something else.

On the downside, it's too much, don't watch it if you have a headache, it'll make it ten times worse, it's relentless images, it's too much to take in.

I'm someone that feels quite strongly about changing anonymity rules online, maybe before anything happens, people need to realise and understand the origins, this would be a good place to start.

8/10.

One Sided Propaganda Movie

[amirkhan536 · 1/10 · 11 May 2024]

Remember that this is still just an edited Netflix documentary about the Internet and, well, you can never really know the whole truth. So Take It As Another Trolling Movie Try By Some Profasional Memer Kids Who Think They Were Super In Past

This is a tired, narrative driven, very one sided documentary that would not have been out of place ten years ago, but today feels rather quaint in it's transparent narrative pitch, political lean and lack of nuance or honesty.

This sort of narrative based politically orientated story telling at this point is almost as quaint Amazing to see how these memer Kids involved politics in their Childish story step by step and try to brain washed peoples politics views to against just one party.

A little funny

[waggs-ny · 9/10 · 6 April 2024]

Well I will say it's got to be pretty obvious anyone that's reading this documentary at less than 5 is clearly doing their very best to embody the trolling the movie highlights so well. Even if it wasn't intentional I do hope you can recognize the irony in your attempt to troll and otherwise reasonably well done documentary

Some all I did well this movie could do with quite a few improvements it does absolutely shine a spotlight on something that either a new far more about than I actually did. I had no idea the Nexus of so many right-wing conspiracies were actual troll moves. While funny and ironic, it is massively disappointing and problematic but really not for me to figure out.

Surprising and smartly done

[kerryisbest-911-567910 · 10/10 · 14 April 2024]

The bulk of the Netflix slickness subsides after about minute three (streamers gotta grab those viewers!) and then the film settles into a well-crafted and insightful piece of journalism. The story is a great primer if you're new to the topic, but it also fills in a lot of gaps even if you think you're well-versed. 4chan history is an elusive and contentious subject, but the filmmakers managed to carve out a narrative and tone that is clear, incisive and fair, especially considering the story spans a couple decades - from its roots in Japan's 2channel to recent events we all watched spill out into the real world. This film would be great for media studies students.

this explained...

[ops-52535 · 10/10 · 5 April 2024]

A lot to me, a post boomer gen, that use all my spare time staring into the air(goat stare) instead of mulching my brain and eyes into a symbiosis with the digital world, aka youth trilling their babywagons with eyes glued to a smartphone, racing of with 5 dogs in a chain, pushing the cart with the breastbone ( i guess some of you know what i mean)

whats great about this film is the absence of the typical knowhowers, the psychologists and analysts. It made purely on the words of the babyhackers of the era of social mediaism, that eventually has grown up at least physiologically to tell why 2chan, 4chan,8chan,anonymous, qanon, maga etc etc came to exist, and came to grab the attention of the world that is presented in their world view, used by others to back another world view and so on.

So whos dr who, that fakes whoever i shall not say, but the grumpy old man got a lot more wise on ''new words'' and gen z lingo.

Therefore, i ''meme'' you to have a look at this documentary, its meant to explain the trolls that became trolls due to the trolls, and a pile lot more of that anarchyistic soup.

Mindblowing

[evanzimmer · 10/10 · 5 April 2024]

"The Antisocial Network" not only captivates with its compelling narrative and artistic brilliance but also shines a spotlight on the unsung heroes of our society-the janitors. These individuals, often overlooked and underappreciated, carry out their duties with unwavering dedication, despite receiving no pay or bonuses for their efforts. Their silent contributions form the backbone of the story, underscoring the resilience and selflessness that define their character. Through their portrayal, the film pays homage to the countless janitors who toil tirelessly behind the scenes, embodying the spirit of service without expectation of reward. Their portrayal adds a layer of authenticity and depth to the narrative, serving as a poignant reminder of the quiet heroes who enrich our lives in ways we may never fully comprehend.

Great takes and expositions on how our world works

[marceloalmeida_a · 10/10 · 2 May 2024]

Also really funny to see right-winged people around here so willingly confirm that they're ignorant/blind to the ammount of damage that their political views / conservative ways / prejudiced minds do to everyone.

This movie does a well rounded analysis of the most important internet phenomena, taking in incredibly intelligent interviewees who show how rotten and brilliant the internet can be, when regarding the social sphere of life affecting others. Particularly interesting is how well exposed the rotten structures of our system blatantly repress and supress, in the most violent ways possible, any attempt of real change.

If only people would wake up. Really sad to see people around here thinking its "left-leaned" because it showed irrevocable truth on political events that happened.