In honor of the recent release of Atlas Shrugged - Part 1, I went back and viewed the first Ayn Rand movie to hit the big screen - 62 years before Atlas Shrugged. In fact, The Fountainhead premiered in movie theaters in 1949, 8 years before Rand's more famous work was even published.
Disclaimer - I have not read The Fountainhead. I will make no attempt to reconcile the novel to the film.
The Fountainhead stars Gary Cooper as the protagonist, Howard Roark. Roark is an
Archives for Movie Commentary
The Beaver—A Complicated Film that Calls for an Open Mind
by Samantha Glavin May 10th, 2011 | Drama, Independent Movie, Movie Commentary, Movie Reviews
I hadn’t set out to see The Beaver. The movie we planned on seeing wasn’t playing anymore, so we took a gamble. I sure did have some reservations of my own. I knew little of the movie except from what I had seen on the movie poster—a man who talks through a beaver puppet. This concept alone would make someone question its viability to become a quality full-length feature, but I was convinced to take a chance and have an open mind. I found that The Beaver (2011) actually surprised me, in some, but not all ways, for the
Atlas Shrugged Part 1
by Ronald A. Rowe May 6th, 2011 | Independent Movie, Movie Commentary
I wrote about the political influence and near-universal critical panning of Atlas Shrugged Part 1 on our sister site, Camp Campaign, some time before the movie came out. Now that the film is in theaters – a limited number mind you, but still in theaters – it is time to treat the film on its artistic merits and leave the politics aside.
The film is neither as great as the far-Right Ayn Rand disciples and Objectivists would have you believe. Nor is it anywhere near as bad as the credential-carrying Left-leaning Hollywood critics would lead you
The film is neither as great as the far-Right Ayn Rand disciples and Objectivists would have you believe. Nor is it anywhere near as bad as the credential-carrying Left-leaning Hollywood critics would lead you
The Over/Under on SciFi
by Ronald A. Rowe April 20th, 2011 | Movie Commentary, Movie Reviews, Sci-Fi
Avatar has got to be the most overrated Sci-Fi movie of all time. Overrated doesn't necessarily mean bad, just as underrated doesn't particularly denote greatness. Either term simply implies that the merits of the film are out of proportion with the acclaim it received. The special effects in Avatar were groundbreaking. The film was visually spectacular, even in plain old 2D. But the story was so banal, so uninspired that it would not have been even moderately noteworthy without the hoopla surrounding James Cameron and his gazillion dollar special effects monstrosity.
With talk of a sequel coming in
With talk of a sequel coming in
The Greatest Movie Ever Sold
by Zac Sheffer May 13th, 2011 | Movie Commentary, Movie ReviewsWhile there are some funny scenes and entertaining moments, The Greatest Movie Ever Sold is not really about anything. The movie follows Spurlock though presentations, interviews with celebrities (who are familiar with