Howard and Karen Baldwin, who are producing the movie of Ayn Rand’s novel Atlas Shrugged, have agreed to speak at The Atlas Society/Objectivist Center Summer Seminar. In consequence of this development, TOC is extending the early registration deadline (which entitles you to an 18% discount) by one week, to May 15th.
The Baldwins, who co-produced the Oscar-winning movie “Ray,” will be at the TOC event on Friday, July 7, and will likely be in the afternoon according to current information. TOC will be rearranging their schedule to accomodate this, so be sure to check for updates at their site.
Category: Atlas Shrugged Movie
Update on Oliver Stone's Fountainhead Movie
The Variety article that has sparked so much discussion about an Atlas Shrugged movie also provided this update on the prospects of a new Fountainhead movie:
Oliver Stone was attached to direct a remake of “Fountainhead” for Warner Bros. and Paramount, but the project has languished in development. Along the way, Pitt expressed interest in playing Roark.
Too bad the project has been languishing; in many ways it’s a much easier novel than Atlas Shrugged to adapt for film.
Plans for an Anthem movie have also been bandied about in recent years, although there seems to be little news about its progress.
In other Fountainhead-movie-related news, Kentucky.com has an article that provides a handy overview of the career of Patricia Neal, who played Dominique in the 1949 Fountainhead movie.
Atlas Shrugged Movie to Come in Multiple Parts?
More on the development of an Atlas Shrugged movie, in an announcement from the Objectivist Center:
“Atlas” Movie One Step Closer! The Inside Scoop
April 27, 2006 — The effort to film Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged has just taken a big step forward. Daily Variety reports a leaked story that Lionsgate, the independent studio whose movie “Crash” recently won the Oscar for best picture, will be distributing the film.
We’ve confirmed today that a deal is going forward under which Lionsgate will take an option to finance and distribute the film. The executive producers are John Aglialoro, a Trustee of The Atlas Society and The Objectivist Center, and Howard Baldwin, whose movie “Ray” won an Oscar for best actor (Jamie Foxx). Lionsgate will put around $35 million into the film.
The film will be based on a script of the first part of the novel, written by Jim V. Hart and reviewed by David Kelley, founder of The Atlas Society-The Objectivist Center. Hart also penned the script for the film “Contact,” based on the novel by astronomer Carl Sagan. It is anticipated “Atlas” will be a multi- part film.
So far no actors have been cast; that will be done by the director, once one is chosen, in conjunction with the executive producers and Lionsgate.
Variety also reports that stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are interested in parts in the film. This will come as no surprise to subscribers of The New Individualist. The current issue features the two on the cover, and in an article by the publication’s editor, Robert Bidinotto, which looks at the interest in Rand’s works among Hollywood’s elite.
The New York Post is also reporting today on these same developments.
UPDATE: The original story in Variety, which spawned much of the media chatter on this topic over the past few days, gives a lot of useful background, including this:
In 2003, [producers Howard and Karen Baldwin] acquired the film rights to the novel from Aglialoro, a New York businessman, after launching Crusader Entertainment with Philip Anschutz. [Writer James V.] Hart was hired at that time to adapt.
Anschutz, however, ultimately decided not to make the movie.
The Baldwins then took the project with them when they left Crusader and formed the Baldwin Entertainment Group.
“What we’ve always needed was a studio that had the same passion for this project that we and John have,” said Baldwin.
Generally speaking, Lionsgate keeps production budgets below $25 million. “Atlas” is likely to cost north of $30 million, but the studio will reduce its exposure through international pre-sales and co-financing partners. Actors would likely take less money upfront — a common practice for the indie.
Atlas Shrugged Movie: Lionsgate Moving Forward
New Individualist editor Robert Bidinotto reports that Lionsgate is moving forward with its plans to produce the Atlas Shrugged movie:
According to Variety, “Ray” producers Howard and Karen Baldwin believe they’ve cracked the challenge of turning the 1,100 page novel “Atlas Shrugged” into a manageable feature. Lionsgate has acquired worldwide distribution.
And reportedly both Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are very interested in the project:
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have been linked to the film adaptation of Ayn Rand’s bestselling novel ‘Atlas Shrugged’.
Variety reports that the couple are rumoured to be considering starring as lead characters Dagny Taggart and John Galt.
‘Atlas Shrugged’ tells the story of the economic collapse of the US in the future when American industrialists go on strike and retreat to a hideaway in the mountains.
The book espouses Rand’s philosophy of objectivism, which the author described as: “the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute.”
Both Pitt and Jolie are fans of Rand’s work.
Lionsgate Films, who like to keep their films under a $25M budget, are looking to spend north of $30M for Atlas Shrugged.
Bidinotto promises that “The New Individualist WILL have exclusive, behind-the-scenes news and interviews with the principals about this coming project in the very near future. (John Aglialoro, who owns the screen rights, is a co-executive producer on the project, and also serves on the Board of The Objectivist Center — the publisher of The New Individualist.)”
Atlas Shrugged Movie Update: Synopsis Available
Baldwin Entertainment has provided a synopsis of their Atlas Shrugged movie they have under development:
ATLAS SHRUGGED
Written by: Jim V. Hart
Based on the novel ATLAS SHRUGGED by Ayn Rand
GENRE: Action Drama
LOG LINE: Dagny Taggart, one of the great heroines of modern literature, struggles to fulfill her great-grandfatherâ??s legacy as she steers her familyâ??s railroad conglomerate through the triple threat of government corruption, international terrorism and a mysterious force that is silencing the great thinkers of the day.
SYNOPSIS: Ayn Randâ??s groundbreaking novel foresees an American future eerily similar to the future that America faces today. The politics of fear embodied by stringent government regulation and irresponsible foreign policy have driven American society to the brink of collapse. Against this backdrop, Dagny Taggart wrestles her corrupt and dissolute brother for control of their great-grandfatherâ??s railroad conglomerate. Determined to live up to her ancestorâ??s name, Dagny steers the railroad through a minefield of government sabotage, domestic disintegration, and international terrorism. All the while the destruction of the American way is hastened by a mysterious force that is silencing the great thinkers of the day. Their disappearance inspires a universal sense of fatalistic dread that is summed up by the new popular catchphrase: â??Who is John Galt?â?
TIME PERIOD/LOCATION: Near future â?? United States
Atlasphere member Diana Hsieh points out what could be some potential problems with this approach to the plot.
Atlas Shrugged Movie Update
From Variety.com (the second to last paragraph):
Scribe James V. Hart, who recently adapted Clive Cussler’s bestselling novel “Sahara” for ParPar and Baldwin Entertainment, also is adapting Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” for Baldwin Entertainment.
And, from a May 3, 2004 Atlasphere posting, the The Atlas Society wrote:
The Atlas Society received a note just two days ago from the Baldwin Entertainment Group. This is the company that is now producing the Atlas Shrugged movie (Howard Baldwin founded the company after the shakeup at Crusader). This is what he says: “…everything is on track and [the movie] hasn?t been held up one bit…. I assure you that this will be a big movie and IT WILL GET MADE.”
Of course, there have been many attempted projects in the past, but this is the same group that produced the movie Ray, and so one can hope for a successful outcome this time around!
The Fountainhead Soundtrack, by Max Steiner
The soundtrack for The Fountainhead movie has been recently released on audio CD, with a lavish 32-page color booklet.
Chris Sciabarra wrote an insightful review of the recording for Navigator, including this excerpt from the liner notes:
Steiner’s score suggests that he felt a strong affinity for The Fountainhead. There is, to be sure, no documentary evidence to prove this (indeed, all that we have on paper are Steiner’s notes to his orchestrator, Murray Cutter). However, the music, especially the heroic Roark theme, so perfectly conveys the feel of a Rand novel, it is hard not to think that Steiner was personally moved by the story, and its message. Steiner uses his music to convey important information to the audience. For example, he establishes subtle “links” between characters through the music…. Steiner demonstrates an insight into the metaphysical nature of the “evil” that opposes Roark…. His use of the “redemption theme” is carefully placed and always conveys what Rand intends. There is even a musical link made between Dominique’s malevolent sense of life, and Wynand’s tragic flaw. All in all, the evidence suggests that Steiner had a strong, intuitive insight into what Rand was up to.
Check out Sciabarra’s full review for additional information.
More Atlas Shrugged Movie News
As noted earlier, there have been reports that the Atlas Shrugged movie is now an “open question.” A more optimistic outlook is reported by The Atlas Society.
According to this report, the recent reorganization of Anschutz Film Group will not derail the Atlas Shrugged project.
Read the full article…
Atlas Shrugged Movie is 'an Open Question'
The Rocky Mountain News has reprinted the Wall Street Journal article we mentioned earlier this week titled “The Reel Life of Phil Anschutz.” From the article:
For a brief time, Anschutz and Baldwin were excited about the prospect of filming Ayn Rand’s epic novel Atlas Shrugged. They snapped up the movie rights for more than $200,000 in 2003, only to discover that the 1,075-page book’s sprawling nature, long speeches and many subplots made it an extremely problematic film project. Anschutz insiders say it’s an open question whether they will press on.
The entire article is worth reading, if only for a close look at one wealthy man who believes Atlas belongs on the big screen. From the intro:
Some people know Phil Anschutz, co-founder of Qwest Communications International Inc., as a hard-charging financier who has amassed a $5 billion fortune in oil, railroads and telecommunications. But a very different side of him emerged two years ago, in a late-night phone call.
The call was to Angelo Pizzo, a Hollywood screenwriter known for creating the movie Hoosiers in the 1980s. Anschutz had hired him to help craft a $30 million inspirational film about soccer’s World Cup. Crews in Brazil were about to film a scene of the U.S. coach exhorting his underdogs in a locker-room pep talk. Even though Anschutz had seen the script many times, he was bursting with ideas about what needed to be in that speech.
“Phil wouldn’t stop,” Pizzo recalls. ” ‘Tell them, This is about pride,’ he said. ‘When we go out there, nobody knows who we are, but this is how we will remember ourselves for the rest of our lives.’ He wasn’t just making this movie to entertain people. He desperately wanted it to teach young people about how to deal with life.”
Atlas Shrugged Movie Update
From Don Hauptman:
People often ask me about the status of the Atlas Shrugged movie project, as if I have insider knowledge, which I do not.
On the front page of today’s Wall Street Journal (April 22, 2004) is a profile of Philip Anschutz, an entrepreneur who has invested large sums to make wholesome, family-oriented films. The article mentions that he is closing Crusader Entertainment, one of his movie divisions. Crusader is the company that acquired the rights to film Atlas last year. (That came about due to the USA Today article, but that’s another story.)
Deep in the Journal article, a paragraph notes that Anschutz and his colleagues had difficulty adapting the novel. With Crusader’s closing, whether Atlas will now be filmed is described as “an open question.”
This is a sad but familiar tale. I was overseas in the Navy in 1970 or ’71 when I saw the news about Godfather producer Al Ruddy obtaining the rights. Numerous attempts have fallen through since then.
I have a print subscription to the Journal, but not online access, and so can’t provide a link. The Journal is on sale for a dollar at finer newsstands everywhere.