One of my favorite experiences of CPAC was attending the "BlogBash" on Thursday night and seeing the world premiere of the trailer for the new Atlas Shrugged movie.
I've loved Ayn Rand's book for a long time, and often said that it should be required reading for elected officials. (Apparently FreedomWorks agrees with me, but Congressman Keith Ellison does not.) It has puzzled me that no one had adapted this great book to film before now, but I can see how it might be challenging, especially today.
In 1949, Hollywood managed to get Ayn Rand right, with the film version of The Fountainhead. However, Rand herself wrote the screenplay, King Vidor was the director, and Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal excelled in the starring roles. I highly recommend adding it to your Netflix queue or catching it the next time it's shown on Turner Classic Movies.
Atlas Shrugged is admittedly a denser and more complicated book than The Fountainhead. It's Rand's longest book and the last one she published, with, let's face it, a theme that is a bit more complicated than the standard "boy meets girl" schlock that Hollywood is accustomed to producing now. Without Rand to guide the screenwriting and production, I honestly did not have very high expectations for this new movie.
Well, my pessimism was misplaced. The people responsible for bringing this film to the big screen have created a wonderful, amazing, and powerful work. This is a top-quality, lush, visually-stunning production. Judge for yourself, and view the trailer here:
YouTube| AtlasShruggedPart1 | Atlas Shrugged Trailer
We were also shown a few selected scenes from the movie. The actors appear very well suited for their roles, even the minor characters...I was a huge fan of the TV show Friends and the casting of Christina Pickles (she played Ross and Rachel's mother) as Mother Rearden, was spot-on. I have to admit getting slight chills upon hearing certain lines brought to life ("Who is John Galt?") and seeing Dagny Taggart wearing a bracelet of Rearden metal.
The movie is currently planned to be a trilogy. Part 1 premieres on April 15th, 2011.
For more information about the Atlas Shrugged Movie:
Official Movie Website
Atlas Shrugged Movie on Facebook
@_AtlasShrugged on Twitter
Atlas Shrugged Part 1 YouTube Channel
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| Official movie poster. The movie premieres on April 15th, an appropriate date! |
In 1949, Hollywood managed to get Ayn Rand right, with the film version of The Fountainhead. However, Rand herself wrote the screenplay, King Vidor was the director, and Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal excelled in the starring roles. I highly recommend adding it to your Netflix queue or catching it the next time it's shown on Turner Classic Movies.
Atlas Shrugged is admittedly a denser and more complicated book than The Fountainhead. It's Rand's longest book and the last one she published, with, let's face it, a theme that is a bit more complicated than the standard "boy meets girl" schlock that Hollywood is accustomed to producing now. Without Rand to guide the screenwriting and production, I honestly did not have very high expectations for this new movie.
Well, my pessimism was misplaced. The people responsible for bringing this film to the big screen have created a wonderful, amazing, and powerful work. This is a top-quality, lush, visually-stunning production. Judge for yourself, and view the trailer here:
YouTube| AtlasShruggedPart1 | Atlas Shrugged Trailer
We were also shown a few selected scenes from the movie. The actors appear very well suited for their roles, even the minor characters...I was a huge fan of the TV show Friends and the casting of Christina Pickles (she played Ross and Rachel's mother) as Mother Rearden, was spot-on. I have to admit getting slight chills upon hearing certain lines brought to life ("Who is John Galt?") and seeing Dagny Taggart wearing a bracelet of Rearden metal.
The movie is currently planned to be a trilogy. Part 1 premieres on April 15th, 2011.
For more information about the Atlas Shrugged Movie:
Atlas Shrugged Movie on Facebook
@_AtlasShrugged on Twitter
Atlas Shrugged Part 1 YouTube Channel
Oh wow that movie looks cool. Can't wait to see it.
ReplyDeleteHopefully they'll leave John Galt's inane droning diatribe against Christianity out of the movies... that aside, and the needless worshiping of self-serving greed as a (or the only) virtue, I can't wait to see it. (Unfortunately, Rand seemed to always think that the only two choices in the world were (1) utter base socialism, i.e., rule by the looters, or (2) the exaltation of not only personal property and personal initiative, but of rank greed, as a virtue... Doesn't mean we right-wingers can't read her to get fired up, though!)
ReplyDeleteAh, Wade, you miss the point. The "rank greed" of Dagny Taggart, Hank Rearden, and the other "producers" creates better quality products and life for the rest of us.
ReplyDeleteIt fully in compliance with my beliefs as both a conservative *and* a Christian to say that people can be evil. Showing them strategically-designed incentives (whether that's tax breaks/lower regulation or comfort to your soul during life/eternal salvation after life) to get better results is just fine.
And there is a great love story intertwined in the narrative. Dagny and Hank looked downright electric on the screen in the scenes we were shown.
...but yeah, I have no flippin' idea how they will handle Galt's radio address. It was tough to tolerate on the written page. They are making a trilogy out of the movie so they have a little more time to figure out what to do with it!