# Atlas Shrugged Part I **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 17, 2011, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722 "2011-04-17T13:41:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/81 "2011-04-23T22:00:53Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Well, _Atlas Shrugged_ isn’t a “hardcore religious” film, either. Lot’s of authors have devoted fans, but the book appealed to a very wide audience, so there is no reason to think that a film version couldn’t as well. And there is no reason to think that a cable series would have the same audience as a theater version. No reason, that is, unless you just want to paint Ayn Rand and/or the people who enjoy her work in a negative light. Many people see Objectivism as a “religion”. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2011, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/82 "2011-04-23T22:11:34Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > Many people see Objectivism as a “religion”. Sure. But Objectivists make up a tiny minority of people who read and enjoyed her books. So no, I don’t buy **Dio** ’s classification of this film as a “hardcore religious movie”. Whether _The Passion of The Christ_ is one… I’ll leave that for a thread about that film. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2011, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/83 "2011-04-24T07:32:59Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Randians I just wanted to say this term always messes with me. I always think it means followers of James Randi. Oh, and my interpretation of Rand’s philosophy comes from what I’ve seen her followers say it means. Her philosophy leads to people believing that anything not in your own self interest is wrong. If you can convince yourself that giving to others isn’t moral, you remove the one thing that keeps people giving. She is trying to abolish the inner conflict between selfishness and selflessness, when that very conflict is what we need to survive. It is that conflict that makes giving something that makes you happy. It does eventually wind up meaning what **Dio** says it means. Also, I’ve never met anyone who enjoyed her books who did not agree with her philosophy. It seems to be one of those things that you can’t even enjoy “ironically.” ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2011, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/84 "2011-04-24T07:35:42Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > From fundies. That’s silly. Even the most nominal Christians go to church on Easter. The only Christians I know who would not watch this film were fundies: they either didn’t believe in R-rated movies, movies altogether, or didn’t want to subsidize an “evil” Catholic. ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2011, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/85 "2011-04-24T07:43:46Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I just wanted to say this term always messes with me. I always think it means followers of James Randi. I always confuse it with the [Raelians](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ra%C3%ABlism), especially since Rands detractors usually use it while describing her followers as a cult. I’ve read entire paragraphs of text thinking a Randian refered to a type of UFO worshiper before the context finally made it clear I was confusing the two. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2011, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/86 "2011-04-24T09:49:19Z")
> [@Trans Fat Og](#): > > One might suspect that fans of Rand would be too prejudiced in favor of the message to be at all objective about the quality of production. I don’t think so. I think they’d be hyper-critical of anything that wasn’t true to the novel. If the quality of production is so low that it adversely affects the message (and it sounds like this is the case), there’ll be hell to pay. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2011, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/87 "2011-04-24T12:05:43Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > I don’t think so. I think they’d be hyper-critical of anything that wasn’t true to the novel. If the quality of production is so low that it adversely affects the message (and it sounds like this is the case), there’ll be hell to pay. Hell hath no fury like an Objectivist scorned. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/88 "2011-04-25T01:54:49Z")
The movie expanded into 465 theaters this weekend, more than double what it played in last week, but the gross dropped by an estimated 47 percent to $879,000. > **[Domestic 2011 Weekend 16 - Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/2011W16/)** ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/89 "2011-04-25T02:06:09Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > The movie expanded into 465 theaters this weekend, more than double what it played in last week, but the gross dropped by an estimated 47 percent to $879,000. > > [http://boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=2011&wknd=16&p=.htm](http://boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/?yr=2011&wknd=16&p=.htm) Even with DVD sales, I can’t see that they’re going to even break even making less then a million per weekend. They’ve only grossed 3 million so far with a 20 million production budget. I think my initial prediction was right, we aren’t going to see a Part II. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/90 "2011-04-25T02:07:41Z")
The people shrugged…and went on with their lives. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/91 "2011-04-25T02:52:20Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Even with DVD sales, I can’t see that they’re going to even break even making less then a million per weekend. They’ve only grossed 3 million so far with a 20 million production budget. I think my initial prediction was right, we aren’t going to see a Part II. I agree. This doesn’t bode well for the following parts. They _might_ drum up investors for the second part, partly among true believers who might be willing to take a loss for the message, but it doesn’t seem likely. Condensing the second two parts into a second movie might be a wise move-- that might allow finishing the story, which would save face. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/92 "2011-04-25T05:08:09Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > I agree. This doesn’t bode well for the following parts. They _might_ drum up investors for the second part, partly among true believers who might be willing to take a loss for the message Wouldn’t taking a loss for the message be completely contradictory to the message? ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/93 "2011-04-25T05:15:37Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Wouldn’t taking a loss for the message be completely contradictory to the message? _golf clap_ well played ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/94 "2011-04-25T05:36:44Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > She is not anti-charity, nor is she against supporting the less fortunate. No? She expressed contempt for “today’s mawkish concern with and compassion for the feeble, the flawed, the suffering, the guilty…” She said “selfless service…is not a virtue.” ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/95 "2011-04-25T05:54:34Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > He is in the cast list at IMDb, anyway. When I read the book, years ago, I always pictured Francisco as played by Antonio Banderas. That’s awesome, because so did I. > [@Neidhart](#): > > The book has a real 1930s feel to it; they should have set the film in an alternate 1940s where Hitler never rose to power, all of Europe went Communist, and the Great Depression just kept getting worse. I think it gave the director more room for creativity to not be encumbered by having to deal with historical consistencies, even if it’s staged in an alternate past, which is why he chose to go with the distant future, the year 2016. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/96 "2011-04-25T06:51:33Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Wouldn’t taking a loss for the message be completely contradictory to the message? No, though its telling that you think so. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/97 "2011-04-25T08:55:48Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Wouldn’t taking a loss for the message be completely contradictory to the message? Only if you have a very superficial understanding of Objectivism. ---
**Author:** ![mr.jp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@mr.jp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mr.jp)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/98 "2011-04-25T08:58:49Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Wouldn’t taking a loss for the message be completely contradictory to the message? The philosophy is more about doing the thing you believe is right, than it is about profit optimization. For instance, in the Fountainhead, the hero makes architecture the way he believes it should look, even though few people will hire him for that. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/99 "2011-04-25T12:32:55Z")
It has nothing to do with “doing right.” The whole thing is a rationale for selfishness. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722/100 "2011-04-25T13:02:38Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > It has nothing to do with “doing right.” The whole thing is a rationale for selfishness. Is it possible that anyone ever honestly believes that doing what is best for self is ultimately what is best for society? Or is everyone who claims to believe that only rationalizing selfishness. I liked this movie. The book gave me trouble, but the movie, I ate up with a spoon. Parts of it were so contrived as to be laughable (the way they talked Reardon and Dagney spoke to eachother when they found the motor stuff was so obviously one of those things where the actors take time to explain things to the audience as if they were idiots.) But, I was entertained. I regret to hear murmurings in this thread that they may not make the other films. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atlas-shrugged-part-i/578722.md?page=6)