Atlas Shrugged (film)
Encyclopedia
Atlas Shrugged: Part I is a 2011 American film adaptation of part of Ayn Rand
’s 1957 novel Atlas Shrugged
, intended as the first film of a trilogy
encompassing the entire book. After various treatments and proposals floundered for nearly 40 years, investor John Aglialoro
initiated production in June 2010. The film was directed by Paul Johansson
and stars Taylor Schilling
as Dagny Taggart and Grant Bowler
as Hank Rearden.
The film begins the story of Atlas Shrugged, set in a dystopian United States where John Galt
leads innovators, from industrialists to artists, to go on strike
, "stopping the motor of the world" to reassert the importance of the free use of the mind and of free market capitalism.
Politician Wesley Mouch—nominally Rearden's lobbyist in Washington, D.C.—is part of a crowd that views heads of industry as persons who must be broken or tamed. James Taggart uses political influence to ensure that Taggart Transcontinental is designated the exclusive railroad for the state of Colorado. Dagny is confronted by Ellis Wyatt, a Colorado oil man angry to be forced to do business with Taggart Transcontinental. Dagny promises him that he will get the service he needs. Dagny encounters former lover Francisco d'Anconia, who presents a façade of a playboy
grown bored with the pursuit of money. He reveals that a series of copper mines he built are worthless, costing his investors (including the Taggart railroad) millions.
Rearden lives in a magnificent home with a wife and a brother who are happy to live off his effort, though they overtly disrespect it. Rearden's anniversary gift to his wife Lillian is a bracelet from the first batch of Rearden Metal, but she considers it a garish symbol of Hank's egotism. At a dinner party, Dagny dares Lillian to exchange it for Dagny's diamond necklace, which she does.
As Dagny and Hank rebuild the Rio Norte line, talented people quit their jobs and refuse all inducements to stay. Meanwhile, Dr. Robert Stadler of the State Science Institute puts out a report implying that Rearden Metal is dangerous. Taggart Transcontinental stock plummets because of its use of Rearden Metal, and Dagny leaves Taggart Transcontinental temporarily and forms her own company to finish the Rio Norte line. She renames it the John Galt Line, after the phrase "Who is John Galt?"—which has become a meme
for any question to which it is pointless to seek an answer.
A new law forces Rearden to sell most of his businesses, but he retains Rearden Steel for the sake of his metal and to finish the John Galt Line. The line opens and completes its first run safely. Hank and Dagny celebrate the success of the line at the home of Wyatt, now a close friend. That night, Dagny and Hank make love. The next morning, they begin investigating an abandoned prototype of an advanced motor that could revolutionize the world. They realize the genius of the motor's creator and Dagny tracks down Dr. Hugh Akston, working as a cook at a diner
; he understands whom Dagny is seeking and says she will never find him.
Another new law limits rail freight and levies a special tax on Colorado. When Dagny hears that Wyatt's oil fields are on fire, she rushes to his home but finds a handwritten sign that reads, "I am leaving it as I found it. Take over. It's yours." The film closes with an answering machine
voice-over of Wyatt declaring that he is on strike.
on NBC
. Michael Jaffe hired screenwriter Stirling Silliphant
to adapt the novel and he obtained approval from Rand on the final script. However, in 1979, with Fred Silverman
's rise as president of NBC, the project was scrapped.
Rand, a former Hollywood screenwriter herself, began writing her own screenplay, but died in 1982 with only one third of it finished. She left her estate, including the film rights to Atlas Shrugged, to her student Leonard Peikoff
, who sold an option to Michael Jaffe and Ed Snider
. Peikoff would not approve the script they wrote and the deal fell through. In 1992, investor John Aglialoro bought an option to produce the film, paying Peikoff over $1 million for full creative control.
In 1999, under John Aglialoro's sponsorship, Albert Ruddy negotiated a deal with Turner Network Television
for a four-hour miniseries, but the project was killed after the AOL Time Warner merger. After the TNT deal fell through, Howard
and Karen Baldwin obtained the rights while running Phillip Anschutz's Crusader Entertainment
. The Baldwins left Crusader and formed Baldwin Entertainment Group in 2004, taking the rights to Atlas Shrugged with them. Michael Burns
of Lions Gate Entertainment
approached the Baldwins to fund and distribute Atlas Shrugged. A two-part draft screenplay written by James V. Hart
was re-written into a 127-page screenplay by Randall Wallace
, with Vadim Perelman
expected to direct. Potential cast members for this production had included Angelina Jolie
, Charlize Theron
, Julia Roberts
, Anne Hathaway
, Russell Crowe
, and Brad Pitt
. Between 2009 and 2010, however, these deals came apart, including studio backing from Lions Gate, and therefore none of the stars mentioned above appear in the final film, Wallace did not do the screenplay, and Perelman did not direct. Aglialoro says producers have spent "something in the $20 million range" on the project over the last 18 years.
and Aglialoro wrote a screenplay, intent on filming in June 2010. While initial rumors claimed that the films would have a "timeless" setting—the producers say Rand envisioned the story as occurring "the day after tomorrow"—the released film is set in late 2016. The writers were mindful of the desire of some fans for fidelity to the novel, but gave some characters, such as Eddie Willers, short shrift and omitted others, such as the composer Richard Halley. The film is styled as a mystery, with black-and-white freeze frame
s as each innovator goes "missing". However, Galt appears and speaks in the film, solving the mystery more clearly than in the first third of the novel.
, he made it clear in an interview that with regard to who is John Galt in the film, the answer was, "Not me." He explained that his portrayal of the character would be limited to the first film as a silhouette
d figure wearing a trenchcoat and fedora, suggesting that another actor will be cast as Galt for the subsequent parts of the trilogy.
was initially set to direct, he was replaced by Paul Johansson
nine days before filming was scheduled to begin. With the 18-year-long option to the films rights set to expire on June 15, 2010, producer Aglialoro began principal photography on June 13, 2010, thus managing to retain the rights. Shooting took five weeks, and the total production cost of the movie came in on a budget around US$10 million.
composed the score for the film. Peter Debruge wrote in Variety that "More ambitious sound design and score, rather than the low-key filler from composer Elia Cmiral and music supervisor Steve Weisberg, might have significantly boosted the pic's limited scale."
, the project was promoted throughout the Tea Party movement
and affiliated organizations such as FreedomWorks
. The National Journal
reported that FreedomWorks, the Tea Party-allied group headed by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey
, (R-Texas), had been trying to get the movie opened in more theaters. FreedomWorks also helped unveil the Atlas Shrugged movie trailer at the February 2011 Conservative Political Action Conference
. Additionally, it was reported that Tea Party groups across the country were plugging the movie trailer on their websites and Facebook
pages. Release of the movie was also covered and promoted by Fox News TV personalities John Stossel
and Sean Hannity
.
1,676,917 in its opening weekend, finishing in 14th place overall. Producers announced expansion to 423 theaters several days after release and promised 1,000 theaters by the end of April, but the release peaked at 465 screens. Ticket sales dropped off significantly in its second week of release, despite 165 additional screens; after six weeks, the film showed on only 32 screens and total ticket sales had not crossed the $5 million mark, recouping less than a quarter of the production budget.
and Blu-ray Disc
on November 8, 2011 by 20th Century Fox
Home Entertainment. More than 100,000 DVD inserts were recalled within days due to the jacket's philosophically incorrect description of "Ayn Rand’s timeless novel of courage and self-sacrifice."
reports that 5 of 41 written reviews from all critics (12%) were positive — with an average
score of 3.6 out of 10, including only 1 of 17 Top Critics' reviews (6%) being positive. It summarized the critical reaction: "Passionate ideologues may find it compelling, but most filmgoers will find this low-budget adaptation of the Ayn Rand bestseller decidedly lacking." Metacritic
gives the film a "generally unfavorable" rating of 28%, as determined by averaging 18 professional reviews. Some commentators noted differences in reaction to the film from professional critics as compared to audience members.
Roger Ebert
of the Chicago Sun-Times
gave the film only one star, calling it "the most anticlimactic non-event since Geraldo Rivera broke into Al Capone’s vault." Libertarian columnist Cathy Young
in The Boston Globe
gave the film a negative review. Chicago Tribune
published a predominantly negative review arguing the film lacks Rand's philosophical theme, while at the same time saying "the actors, none of them big names, are well-suited to the roles. The story has drive, color and mystery. It looks good on the screen." Kyle Smith
in the New York Post
gave Atlas Shrugged a marginally positive review, grading it at 2.5/4 stars, criticizing its "stilted dialogue and stern, unironic hectoring" and calling it "stiff in the joints", but also adding that it "nevertheless contains a fire and a fury that makes it more compelling than the average mass-produced studio item."
Unlike the general press, reviews in the conservative press were mixed. American economist Mark Skousen
praised the film and wrote in the Human Events
, "The script is true to the philosophy of Ayn Rand’s novel". The Weekly Standard
senior editor Fred Barnes
noted that the film "gets Rand’s point across forcefully without too much pounding," "fast-paced" when compared with the original novel's 1200-page length, and "at least as relevant today as it was when the novel was published in 1957." Jack Hunter
, contributing editor to The American Conservative
, wrote "If you ask the average film critic about the new movie adaptation of Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” they will tell you it is a horrible movie. If you ask the average conservative or libertarian they will tell you it is a great movie. Objectively, it is a mediocre movie at best. Subjectively, it is one of the best mediocre movies you’ll ever see." Columnist Jo Piazza noted in FoxNews.com, "Critics may hate it, but audiences seem to love it." Peter Foster in the National Post
credited the movie for the daunting job of fidelity to the novel, wryly suggested a plot rewrite along the lines of comparable current events, and concluded, "if it sinks without trace, its backers should at least be proud that they lost their own money."
, he said he was continuing with plans to produce Part II and Part III for release on April 15 in 2012 and 2013, respectively. In a later interview with The Boston Globe
, Aglialoro was ambivalent: "I learned something long ago playing poker. If you think you’re beat, don’t go all in. If Part 1 makes [enough of] a return to support Part 2, I’ll do it. Other than that, I’ll throw the hand in."
In July 2011, Aglialoro planned to start production of Atlas Shrugged: Part II in September, with its release timed to coincide with the 2012 U.S. elections
. In October, producer Harmon Kaslow stated that he hopes filming for Part II begins in early 2012, "with hopes of previewing it around the time of the nominating conventions." Kaslow anticipated that the film, which would encompass the second third of Atlas Shrugged, would "probably be 30 to 40 minutes longer than the first movie." Kaslow also stated his intent that Part II would have a bigger production budget, as well as a larger advertising budget.
Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand was a Russian-American novelist, philosopher, playwright, and screenwriter. She is known for her two best-selling novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and for developing a philosophical system she called Objectivism....
’s 1957 novel Atlas Shrugged
Atlas Shrugged
Atlas Shrugged is a novel by Ayn Rand, first published in 1957 in the United States. Rand's fourth and last novel, it was also her longest, and the one she considered to be her magnum opus in the realm of fiction writing...
, intended as the first film of a trilogy
Trilogy
A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected, and that can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, or video games...
encompassing the entire book. After various treatments and proposals floundered for nearly 40 years, investor John Aglialoro
John Aglialoro
John Aglialoro is an American businessman and film producer. He has been profiled by Forbes and Fortune magazines and was praised in a Forbes blog post....
initiated production in June 2010. The film was directed by Paul Johansson
Paul Johansson
Paul Joseph Otto Johansson is an American-born Canadian actor, writer and director, best known for playing Dan Scott on the WB/CW television series, One Tree Hill, and for his role as Nick Wolfe on the short lived Highlander: The Series spin-off Highlander: The Raven...
and stars Taylor Schilling
Taylor Schilling
Taylor Schilling is an American actress.She is the daughter of Robert Schilling, a prosecutor, and Tish Schilling. She grew up in West Roxbury and Wayland, splitting time between her parents, who are divorced....
as Dagny Taggart and Grant Bowler
Grant Bowler
Grant Bowler is a New Zealand actor who has worked in American, Australian and New Zealand films and television.He is known for playing the role of Constable Wayne Patterson in Blue Heelers and also appeared as Wilhelmina Slater's love interest Connor Owens in Ugly Betty.In November 2010, he was...
as Hank Rearden.
The film begins the story of Atlas Shrugged, set in a dystopian United States where John Galt
John Galt
John Galt was a Scottish novelist, entrepreneur, and political and social commenter. Because he was the first novelist to deal with issues of the industrial revolution, he has been called the first political novelist in the English language.-Life:Born in Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland, Galt was...
leads innovators, from industrialists to artists, to go on strike
Capital strike
Capital strike refers to the withholding of new investment in an economy. A capital strike can occur when banks decide to raise lending standards or minimum loan requirements to individuals and business entities, and decide to sit on cash reserves, rather than take many loan risks, until a later...
, "stopping the motor of the world" to reassert the importance of the free use of the mind and of free market capitalism.
Plot
It is 2016 and the United States is in a sustained economic depression. Industrial disasters, resource shortages, and gasoline at $40/gallon have made railroads the primary mode of transportation, but even they are in disrepair. After a major accident on the Rio Norte line of the Taggart Transcontinental railroad, CEO James Taggart shirks responsibility. His sister Dagny Taggart, Vice-President in Charge of Operation, defies him by replacing the aging track with new rails made of Rearden Metal, which is claimed to be lighter yet stronger than steel. Dagny meets with its inventor, Hank Rearden, and they negotiate a deal they both admit serves their respective self-interests.Politician Wesley Mouch—nominally Rearden's lobbyist in Washington, D.C.—is part of a crowd that views heads of industry as persons who must be broken or tamed. James Taggart uses political influence to ensure that Taggart Transcontinental is designated the exclusive railroad for the state of Colorado. Dagny is confronted by Ellis Wyatt, a Colorado oil man angry to be forced to do business with Taggart Transcontinental. Dagny promises him that he will get the service he needs. Dagny encounters former lover Francisco d'Anconia, who presents a façade of a playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
grown bored with the pursuit of money. He reveals that a series of copper mines he built are worthless, costing his investors (including the Taggart railroad) millions.
Rearden lives in a magnificent home with a wife and a brother who are happy to live off his effort, though they overtly disrespect it. Rearden's anniversary gift to his wife Lillian is a bracelet from the first batch of Rearden Metal, but she considers it a garish symbol of Hank's egotism. At a dinner party, Dagny dares Lillian to exchange it for Dagny's diamond necklace, which she does.
As Dagny and Hank rebuild the Rio Norte line, talented people quit their jobs and refuse all inducements to stay. Meanwhile, Dr. Robert Stadler of the State Science Institute puts out a report implying that Rearden Metal is dangerous. Taggart Transcontinental stock plummets because of its use of Rearden Metal, and Dagny leaves Taggart Transcontinental temporarily and forms her own company to finish the Rio Norte line. She renames it the John Galt Line, after the phrase "Who is John Galt?"—which has become a meme
Meme
A meme is "an idea, behaviour or style that spreads from person to person within a culture."A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural ideas, symbols or practices, which can be transmitted from one mind to another through writing, speech, gestures, rituals or other imitable phenomena...
for any question to which it is pointless to seek an answer.
A new law forces Rearden to sell most of his businesses, but he retains Rearden Steel for the sake of his metal and to finish the John Galt Line. The line opens and completes its first run safely. Hank and Dagny celebrate the success of the line at the home of Wyatt, now a close friend. That night, Dagny and Hank make love. The next morning, they begin investigating an abandoned prototype of an advanced motor that could revolutionize the world. They realize the genius of the motor's creator and Dagny tracks down Dr. Hugh Akston, working as a cook at a diner
Diner
A diner, also spelled dinor in western Pennsylvania is a prefabricated restaurant building characteristic of North America, especially in the Midwest, in New York City, in Pennsylvania and in New Jersey, and in other areas of the Northeastern United States, although examples can be found throughout...
; he understands whom Dagny is seeking and says she will never find him.
Another new law limits rail freight and levies a special tax on Colorado. When Dagny hears that Wyatt's oil fields are on fire, she rushes to his home but finds a handwritten sign that reads, "I am leaving it as I found it. Take over. It's yours." The film closes with an answering machine
Answering machine
The answering machine or message machine, also known as the telephone answering machine in the UK and some Commonwealth countries) and previously known as an ansaphone, ansafone, or telephone answering device is a device for answering telephones and recording callers' messages.Unlike voicemail,...
voice-over of Wyatt declaring that he is on strike.
Cast
- Taylor SchillingTaylor SchillingTaylor Schilling is an American actress.She is the daughter of Robert Schilling, a prosecutor, and Tish Schilling. She grew up in West Roxbury and Wayland, splitting time between her parents, who are divorced....
as Dagny Taggart - Grant BowlerGrant BowlerGrant Bowler is a New Zealand actor who has worked in American, Australian and New Zealand films and television.He is known for playing the role of Constable Wayne Patterson in Blue Heelers and also appeared as Wilhelmina Slater's love interest Connor Owens in Ugly Betty.In November 2010, he was...
as Henry "Hank" Rearden - Matthew MarsdenMatthew MarsdenMatthew Marsden is an English actor and singer. In the United Kingdom he is widely remembered for playing the character Chris Collins in the popular soap opera, Coronation Street. However, he is best known in the USA as a film actor. He has played the roles of Paris in Helen of Troy, Dr...
as James Taggart - Graham BeckelGraham BeckelGraham S. Beckel is an American character actor. He is known for his prolific guest appearances on television but has had prominent roles in several major films as well. Most recently he played Jack Fisk on Battlestar Galactica and Hal Sanders on Heroes...
as Ellis Wyatt - Edi GathegiEdi GathegiEdi Mue Gathegi is a Kenyan-American film, stage and television actor. He is best known for his recurring character Dr. Jeffrey Cole in the television series House, as Cheese in the 2007 film Gone Baby Gone and as Laurent in the films Twilight, its sequel The Twilight Saga: New Moon and Darwin in...
as Edwin "Eddie" Willers - Jsu GarciaJsu GarciaJsu Garcia is an American film and television actor, and film producer. In his earlier years, he was credited under the name Nick Corri. Together with author John-Roger, he runs the production company Scott J-R Productions....
as Francisco Domingo Carlos Andres Sebastian d'Anconia - Michael LernerMichael Lerner (actor)-Life and career:Lerner was born in Brooklyn, New York of Romanian Jewish descent, the son of Blanche and George Lerner, who was a fisherman and antiques dealer. He was raised in Bensonhurst and Red Hook. His brother, Ken Lerner, is also an actor...
as Wesley Mouch - Jack Milo as Richard McNamara
- Ethan CohnEthan Cohn-Movie:Cohn starred in the films Cry Wolf, Rubber, The Experiment and Lady in the Water.He portrays Owen Kellogg in Atlas Shrugged , the film adaptation of Ayn Rand's novel of the same name.-Television:...
as Owen Kellogg - Rebecca WisockyRebecca WisockyRebecca Wisocky is an American film, television and stage actress. Her last name pronounce VI-saw-tskee.- Filmography :*True Blood .... Queen Mab*90210 .... Principal Nowack*Atlas Shrugged .... Lillian Rearden...
as Lillian Rearden - Christina PicklesChristina PicklesChristina Pickles is an English actress, best known for her long-running role of Nurse Helen Rosenthal in the hospital drama St. Elsewhere, for which she was nominated for four Emmys.-Life and career:...
as Mother Rearden - Neill BarryNeill BarryNeill Barry is an American film, television and stage actor, as well as an occasional screenwriter. His films have grossed collectively over $90,000,000....
as Philip Rearden - Patrick FischlerPatrick FischlerPatrick Fischler is an American actor best known for his roles as Jimmy Barrett on the drama series Mad Men, Dharma Initiative worker Phil on the drama series Lost and Detective Kenny No-Gun on the police drama Southland...
as Paul Larkin - Sylva KelegianSylva KelegianSylva Kelegian is an American actress of Armenian origin. She was born in New York City on February 22, 1962. She appeared in such television shows as Law & Order, Desperate Housewives, Invasion, Prison Break, and NYPD Blue....
as Ivy Starnes - Jon PolitoJon PolitoJon Polito is an American actor and voice artist, who is known for working with the Coen Brothers, most notably in the major supporting role of Italian gangster Johnny Caspar in Miller's Crossing. He also appeared in the first two seasons of Homicide: Life on the Street and on the first season of...
as Orren Boyle - Michael O'KeefeMichael O'KeefeMichael Raymond O'Keefe is an American film and television actor.- Early life :O'Keefe was born Raymond Peter O'Keefe, Jr. in Mount Vernon, New York, the oldest of seven children in a devoutly Roman Catholic Irish American family. His father was a law professor at Fordham University, as well as...
as Hugh Akston - Geoff PiersonGeoff PiersonGeoff Pierson is an American actor known for his role on The WB series Unhappily Ever After as Jack Malloy, the father of a dysfunctional family whose best friend is a stuffed animal rabbit named Mr. Floppy...
as Midas Mulligan - Armin ShimermanArmin ShimermanArmin Shimerman is an American actor. Shimerman is best known for playing the Ferengi bartender Quark in the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Principal Snyder in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Kramer's caddy Stan on Seinfeld, voicing Dr. Nefarious in the Ratchet & Clank series, and Andrew...
as Dr. Potter - Paul JohanssonPaul JohanssonPaul Joseph Otto Johansson is an American-born Canadian actor, writer and director, best known for playing Dan Scott on the WB/CW television series, One Tree Hill, and for his role as Nick Wolfe on the short lived Highlander: The Series spin-off Highlander: The Raven...
as John Galt (only in Part 1 as silhouetteSilhouetteA silhouette is the image of a person, an object or scene consisting of the outline and a basically featureless interior, with the silhouetted object usually being black. Although the art form has been popular since the mid-18th century, the term “silhouette” was seldom used until the early decades...
d figure wearing a trenchcoat and fedora)
Development
In 1972, Albert S. Ruddy approached Rand to produce a cinematic adaptation of Atlas Shrugged. Rand insisted on having final script approval, which Ruddy refused to give her, thus preventing a deal. In 1978, Henry and Michael Jaffe negotiated a deal for an eight-hour Atlas Shrugged television miniseriesMiniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. Michael Jaffe hired screenwriter Stirling Silliphant
Stirling Silliphant
Stirling Dale Silliphant was an American screenwriter and producer. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, moved to Glendale, California as a child, graduated from Hoover High School, and was educated at the University of Southern California...
to adapt the novel and he obtained approval from Rand on the final script. However, in 1979, with Fred Silverman
Fred Silverman
Fred Silverman is an American television executive and producer. He worked as an executive at the CBS, ABC and NBC networks, and was responsible for bringing to television such programs as the series Scooby-Doo , All in the Family , The Waltons , and Charlie's Angels , as well as the...
's rise as president of NBC, the project was scrapped.
Rand, a former Hollywood screenwriter herself, began writing her own screenplay, but died in 1982 with only one third of it finished. She left her estate, including the film rights to Atlas Shrugged, to her student Leonard Peikoff
Leonard Peikoff
Leonard S. Peikoff is a Canadian-American philosopher. He is an author, a leading advocate of Objectivism and the founder of the Ayn Rand Institute. A former professor of philosophy, he was designated by the novelist Ayn Rand as heir to her estate...
, who sold an option to Michael Jaffe and Ed Snider
Ed Snider
Edward M. Snider is the American Chairman of Comcast Spectacor, a Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment company that owns the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL, the Wells Fargo Center, the Spectrum, the regional sports network Comcast SportsNet and Global Spectrum, an international facilities...
. Peikoff would not approve the script they wrote and the deal fell through. In 1992, investor John Aglialoro bought an option to produce the film, paying Peikoff over $1 million for full creative control.
In 1999, under John Aglialoro's sponsorship, Albert Ruddy negotiated a deal with Turner Network Television
Turner Network Television
Turner Network Television is an American cable television channel created by media mogul Ted Turner and currently owned by the Turner Broadcasting System division of Time Warner...
for a four-hour miniseries, but the project was killed after the AOL Time Warner merger. After the TNT deal fell through, Howard
Howard Baldwin
Howard Baldwin is an American entrepreneur and film producer. He is the CEO of Baldwin Entertainment, which has produced films such as the Academy Award-nominated Ray. Baldwin founded the New England Whalers ice hockey franchise in the WHA and has also owned part of the Minnesota North Stars and...
and Karen Baldwin obtained the rights while running Phillip Anschutz's Crusader Entertainment
Walden Media
Walden Media is a children's film production and publishing company best known as the producers of The Chronicles of Narnia series. Its films are based on notable classic or award-winning children's literature, compelling biographies or historical events, documentaries and some original...
. The Baldwins left Crusader and formed Baldwin Entertainment Group in 2004, taking the rights to Atlas Shrugged with them. Michael Burns
Michael R. Burns
Michael R. Burns joined Lions Gate Entertainment's Board of Directors in 1999 and became Vice Chairman in March 2000.Previously, Burns served for nine years as managing director and head of Prudential Securities’ Los Angeles investment banking office. While at Prudential, he specialized in raising...
of Lions Gate Entertainment
Lions Gate Entertainment
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation is a North American entertainment company. The company was formed in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1997, and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California...
approached the Baldwins to fund and distribute Atlas Shrugged. A two-part draft screenplay written by James V. Hart
James V. Hart
James V. "Jim" Hart is an American screenwriter and author.-Career:He wrote the 2005 children's novel Capt. Hook: The Adventures of a Notorious Youth, a prequel depicting J. M. Barrie's villain Captain Hook, the nemesis of Peter Pan, when Hook was a youngster...
was re-written into a 127-page screenplay by Randall Wallace
Randall Wallace
Randall Wallace is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and songwriter who came to prominence by writing the screenplay for the 1995 film Braveheart. His work on the film earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay and a Writers Guild of America award for Best...
, with Vadim Perelman
Vadim Perelman
Vadim Perelman is a Ukrainian-American film director. Perelman made his feature film directorial debut in 2003 with House of Sand and Fog, following a successful career as a commercial director. The film, nominated for three Academy Awards, also marks his first screenplay credit...
expected to direct. Potential cast members for this production had included Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie is an American actress. She has received an Academy Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards, and was named Hollywood's highest-paid actress by Forbes in 2009 and 2011. Jolie is noted for promoting humanitarian causes as a Goodwill Ambassador for the...
, Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron is a South African actress, film producer and former fashion model.She rose to fame in the late 1990s following her roles in 2 Days in the Valley, Mighty Joe Young, The Devil's Advocate and The Cider House Rules...
, Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...
, Anne Hathaway
Anne Hathaway (actress)
Anne Jacqueline Hathaway is an American actress. After several stage roles, she appeared in the 1999 television series Get Real. She played Mia Thermopolis in The Princess Diaries...
, Russell Crowe
Russell Crowe
Russell Ira Crowe is a New Zealander Australian actor , film producer and musician. He came to international attention for his role as Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius in the 2000 historical epic film Gladiator, directed by Ridley Scott, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor, a...
, and Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt
William Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
. Between 2009 and 2010, however, these deals came apart, including studio backing from Lions Gate, and therefore none of the stars mentioned above appear in the final film, Wallace did not do the screenplay, and Perelman did not direct. Aglialoro says producers have spent "something in the $20 million range" on the project over the last 18 years.
Writing
In May 2010, Brian Patrick O'TooleBrian Patrick O'Toole
Brian Patrick O'Toole is an American film producer and screenwriter. O'Toole's work includes co-producing the 2002 horror film Dog Soldiers and his screenwriting debut Cemetery Gates...
and Aglialoro wrote a screenplay, intent on filming in June 2010. While initial rumors claimed that the films would have a "timeless" setting—the producers say Rand envisioned the story as occurring "the day after tomorrow"—the released film is set in late 2016. The writers were mindful of the desire of some fans for fidelity to the novel, but gave some characters, such as Eddie Willers, short shrift and omitted others, such as the composer Richard Halley. The film is styled as a mystery, with black-and-white freeze frame
Freeze frame
- Film and Television :*Freeze frame shot, a cinematographic technique*Freeze frame television, a technique making use of freeze frame shots*Freeze Frame, a game on The Price is Right...
s as each innovator goes "missing". However, Galt appears and speaks in the film, solving the mystery more clearly than in the first third of the novel.
Casting
Though director Johansson had been reported as playing the pivotal role of John GaltJohn Galt
John Galt was a Scottish novelist, entrepreneur, and political and social commenter. Because he was the first novelist to deal with issues of the industrial revolution, he has been called the first political novelist in the English language.-Life:Born in Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland, Galt was...
, he made it clear in an interview that with regard to who is John Galt in the film, the answer was, "Not me." He explained that his portrayal of the character would be limited to the first film as a silhouette
Silhouette
A silhouette is the image of a person, an object or scene consisting of the outline and a basically featureless interior, with the silhouetted object usually being black. Although the art form has been popular since the mid-18th century, the term “silhouette” was seldom used until the early decades...
d figure wearing a trenchcoat and fedora, suggesting that another actor will be cast as Galt for the subsequent parts of the trilogy.
Filming
Though Stephen PolkStephen Polk
Stephen Boyd Polk is an American actor, director, writer, and producer. He is the founder of Providence Productions LLC, an independent film development, production, and finance company.- Biography :...
was initially set to direct, he was replaced by Paul Johansson
Paul Johansson
Paul Joseph Otto Johansson is an American-born Canadian actor, writer and director, best known for playing Dan Scott on the WB/CW television series, One Tree Hill, and for his role as Nick Wolfe on the short lived Highlander: The Series spin-off Highlander: The Raven...
nine days before filming was scheduled to begin. With the 18-year-long option to the films rights set to expire on June 15, 2010, producer Aglialoro began principal photography on June 13, 2010, thus managing to retain the rights. Shooting took five weeks, and the total production cost of the movie came in on a budget around US$10 million.
Score
Elia CmiralElia Cmiral
Elia David Cmíral is a film composer. He was born in Czechoslovakia and emigrated to Sweden, moving to the United States in 1987. There, he attended the University of Southern California and scored for an independent film entitled Apartment Zero...
composed the score for the film. Peter Debruge wrote in Variety that "More ambitious sound design and score, rather than the low-key filler from composer Elia Cmiral and music supervisor Steve Weisberg, might have significantly boosted the pic's limited scale."
Marketing
The film had a very low marketing budget and was not marketed in conventional methods. Prior to the film's release on the politically symbolic date of Tax DayTax Day
In the United States, Tax Day is a colloquial term for the day on which individual income tax returns are due to the federal government. The term may also refer to the same day for states, even where the tax return due date is a different day....
, the project was promoted throughout the Tea Party movement
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement is an American populist political movement that is generally recognized as conservative and libertarian, and has sponsored protests and supported political candidates since 2009...
and affiliated organizations such as FreedomWorks
FreedomWorks
FreedomWorks is a conservative non-profit organization based in Washington D.C., United States. FreedomWorks trains volunteers, assists in campaigns, and encourages them to mobilize, interacting with both fellow citizens and their political representatives....
. The National Journal
National Journal
National Journal is a nonpartisan American weekly magazine that reports on the current political environment and emerging political and policy trends. National Journal was first published in 1969. Times Mirror owned the magazine from 1986 to 1997, when it was purchased by David G. Bradley...
reported that FreedomWorks, the Tea Party-allied group headed by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey
Dick Armey
Richard Keith "Dick" Armey is a former U.S. Representative from Texas's and House Majority Leader . He was one of the engineers of the "Republican Revolution" of the 1990s, in which Republicans were elected to majorities of both houses of Congress for the first time in four decades. Armey was...
, (R-Texas), had been trying to get the movie opened in more theaters. FreedomWorks also helped unveil the Atlas Shrugged movie trailer at the February 2011 Conservative Political Action Conference
Conservative Political Action Conference
The Conservative Political Action Conference is an annual political conference attended by conservative activists and elected officials from across the United States....
. Additionally, it was reported that Tea Party groups across the country were plugging the movie trailer on their websites and Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
pages. Release of the movie was also covered and promoted by Fox News TV personalities John Stossel
John Stossel
John F. Stossel is an American consumer reporter, investigative journalist, author and libertarian columnist. In October 2009 Stossel left his long time home on ABC News to join the Fox Business Channel and Fox News Channel, both owned and operated by News Corp...
and Sean Hannity
Sean Hannity
Sean Hannity is an American radio and television host, author, and conservative political commentator. He is the host of The Sean Hannity Show, a nationally syndicated talk radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks. Hannity also hosts a cable news show, Hannity,...
.
Box office
The U.S. release of Atlas Shrugged: Part I was regarded as a "flop". It opened on 300 screens on April 15, 2011, and made $United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1,676,917 in its opening weekend, finishing in 14th place overall. Producers announced expansion to 423 theaters several days after release and promised 1,000 theaters by the end of April, but the release peaked at 465 screens. Ticket sales dropped off significantly in its second week of release, despite 165 additional screens; after six weeks, the film showed on only 32 screens and total ticket sales had not crossed the $5 million mark, recouping less than a quarter of the production budget.
Home media
Atlas Shrugged: Part I was released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
and Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
on November 8, 2011 by 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
Home Entertainment. More than 100,000 DVD inserts were recalled within days due to the jacket's philosophically incorrect description of "Ayn Rand’s timeless novel of courage and self-sacrifice."
Critical response
The film received overwhelmingly negative reviews. Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reports that 5 of 41 written reviews from all critics (12%) were positive — with an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 3.6 out of 10, including only 1 of 17 Top Critics' reviews (6%) being positive. It summarized the critical reaction: "Passionate ideologues may find it compelling, but most filmgoers will find this low-budget adaptation of the Ayn Rand bestseller decidedly lacking." Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
gives the film a "generally unfavorable" rating of 28%, as determined by averaging 18 professional reviews. Some commentators noted differences in reaction to the film from professional critics as compared to audience members.
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
of the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
gave the film only one star, calling it "the most anticlimactic non-event since Geraldo Rivera broke into Al Capone’s vault." Libertarian columnist Cathy Young
Cathy Young
Cathy Young is a Russian American journalist and writer whose books and articles, as well as columns which appear in the libertarian monthly Reason, and also weekly in The Boston Globe, primarily espouse equality feminism and libertarianism.-Life and Career:Born in Moscow, the capital of what was...
in The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
gave the film a negative review. Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
published a predominantly negative review arguing the film lacks Rand's philosophical theme, while at the same time saying "the actors, none of them big names, are well-suited to the roles. The story has drive, color and mystery. It looks good on the screen." Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith is an American critic, novelist and essayist. He is a staff film critic for the New York Post. His film reviewing style has been called "an exercise in hilarious hostility" by Entertainment Weekly....
in the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
gave Atlas Shrugged a marginally positive review, grading it at 2.5/4 stars, criticizing its "stilted dialogue and stern, unironic hectoring" and calling it "stiff in the joints", but also adding that it "nevertheless contains a fire and a fury that makes it more compelling than the average mass-produced studio item."
Unlike the general press, reviews in the conservative press were mixed. American economist Mark Skousen
Mark Skousen
Mark Skousen is an American economist, investment analyst, newsletter editor, college professor and author of more than 25 non-fiction books.- Early life, education and family :...
praised the film and wrote in the Human Events
Human Events
Human Events is a weekly American conservative magazine. It takes its name from the first sentence of the United States Declaration of Independence...
, "The script is true to the philosophy of Ayn Rand’s novel". The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard is an American neoconservative opinion magazine published 48 times per year. Its founding publisher, News Corporation, debuted the title September 18, 1995. Currently edited by founder William Kristol and Fred Barnes, the Standard has been described as a "redoubt of...
senior editor Fred Barnes
Fred Barnes (journalist)
Frederic W. Barnes is an American political commentator. He is the executive editor of the news publication The Weekly Standard and regularly appears on the Fox News Channel program Special Report with Bret Baier...
noted that the film "gets Rand’s point across forcefully without too much pounding," "fast-paced" when compared with the original novel's 1200-page length, and "at least as relevant today as it was when the novel was published in 1957." Jack Hunter
Jack Hunter (radio host)
Jack Hunter , also known as the Southern Avenger is a conservative radio host and political commentator in the United States. He appears every Tuesday and Friday morning on WTMA News-Talk 1250 AM...
, contributing editor to The American Conservative
The American Conservative
The American Conservative is a monthly U.S. opinion magazine published by Ron Unz. Its first editor was Scott McConnell, his successors being Kara Hopkins and the present incumbent, Daniel McCarthy....
, wrote "If you ask the average film critic about the new movie adaptation of Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” they will tell you it is a horrible movie. If you ask the average conservative or libertarian they will tell you it is a great movie. Objectively, it is a mediocre movie at best. Subjectively, it is one of the best mediocre movies you’ll ever see." Columnist Jo Piazza noted in FoxNews.com, "Critics may hate it, but audiences seem to love it." Peter Foster in the National Post
National Post
The National Post is a Canadian English-language national newspaper based in Don Mills, a district of Toronto. The paper is owned by Postmedia Network Inc. and is published Mondays through Saturdays...
credited the movie for the daunting job of fidelity to the novel, wryly suggested a plot rewrite along the lines of comparable current events, and concluded, "if it sinks without trace, its backers should at least be proud that they lost their own money."
Planned sequels
The poor reception of Atlas Shrugged: Part I made Aglialoro reconsider his plans for the rest of the trilogy. In an interview with The Hollywood ReporterThe Hollywood Reporter
Formerly a daily trade magazine, The Hollywood Reporter re-launched in late 2010 as a unique hybrid publication serving the entertainment industry and a consumer audience...
, he said he was continuing with plans to produce Part II and Part III for release on April 15 in 2012 and 2013, respectively. In a later interview with The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
, Aglialoro was ambivalent: "I learned something long ago playing poker. If you think you’re beat, don’t go all in. If Part 1 makes [enough of] a return to support Part 2, I’ll do it. Other than that, I’ll throw the hand in."
In July 2011, Aglialoro planned to start production of Atlas Shrugged: Part II in September, with its release timed to coincide with the 2012 U.S. elections
United States elections, 2012
The 2012 United States elections will be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012. The 57th quadrennial presidential election will be held on this date, coinciding with Senate elections where 33 races will occur, as well as House of Representatives elections to elect the members for the 113th Congress...
. In October, producer Harmon Kaslow stated that he hopes filming for Part II begins in early 2012, "with hopes of previewing it around the time of the nominating conventions." Kaslow anticipated that the film, which would encompass the second third of Atlas Shrugged, would "probably be 30 to 40 minutes longer than the first movie." Kaslow also stated his intent that Part II would have a bigger production budget, as well as a larger advertising budget.