As the Lincoln Center equivalent of the Big Dig inches toward its conclusion (next year will see the advent of some new screening rooms to go with the venerable Walter Reade Theater), Alice Tully Hall will tonight host not one but two premiere screenings of this year’s splendidly-chosen New York Film Festival curtain raiser, “The Social Network,” a critical and probably commercial success that is the hottest ticket in town. A little while ago I dropped by the site and crossed paths with the film’s scowly producer Scott Rudin (Harvey Weinstein + good taste) and “Emma” writer-director Douglas McGrath, who had evidently just bought himself an iPad at the new space-age Apple store and looked like he couldn’t wait to unbox it. The area was sizzling with anticipation. How often do you get to see a talent like McGrath in the flesh? I was too shy to ask him to autograph my poster of “Company Man.”

I wonder if the programming poo-bahs are noticing the distinct advantages of kicking off the New York Film Festival with a commercial American crowd pleaser instead of a dire Frenchy arthouse film like the one they picked last year. Hey, just because people actually want to see a movie doesn’t mean it’s beneath you, you krazy kahiers du cinema kooks!