I've just spent a hugely-enjoyable day watching Ayn Rand's prophetic economic-disaster Atlas Shrugged, on DVD. The 3-disc trilogy is a very intelligent and handsome work, with excellent scripts, lush sets and good acting and photography. It's a punch in the mouth to the parasites who drag down the true producers and job creators.

Ever wondered what happens if governments nationalize their economy? Watch Rand's terrifying trek into unbridled governments and their unthinkable damage at all levels, all in the name of the public good. Watch "justice" and "science" get perverted before your eyes into a surreal alternate reality we would easily recognize from today's crop of looters.

Atlas Shrugged offers no apologies for someone enjoying the fruits of their success. They give no quarter against a government which seizes patents and copyrights, and forbids companies from firing anyone or expanding (or shrinking) a business. This is a horror story in Armani suits, a Frankenstein monster with unbridled power against the true producers who now choose to fight back.

The story and all usual factors are good, and the only real complaint I have is that for whatever reason, entire casts changed for each film. A small matter considering the strength of everything else involved. I do recommend you just devote a whole day to this, to keep details clearly in mind as events unfold. It's well worth that length of time.

They don't talk down to you, not once, that each of us can not and must not allow others to run our lives and our dreams.

All three films are PG-13 and the trilogy is available for about $18 at Amazon or other sources.

Toy and I did a marathon last month, though we bought the disks as they came out.
Yes, I too had a weeee bit of time with the changing of the guard, made it hard to follow, considering they didn't even resemble the previous character.

The story line is flawless (thank you Anne) though the final movie in the set seemed to be a bit rushed, or rather compressed, in that they seemed to have cut quite a bit of filler info for the sake of time.
All in all, it was a great way to spend the day and reflect on the slow decline our nation is experiencing.

With that said....I believe we still have a chance o right this great vessel.

Quote from: Solar on June 16, 2015, 06:30:28 AM
Toy and I did a marathon last month, though we bought the disks as they came out.
Yes, I too had a weeee bit of time with the changing of the guard, made it hard to follow, considering they didn't even resemble the previous character.

The story line is flawless (thank you Anne) though the final movie in the set seemed to be a bit rushed, or rather compressed, in that they seemed to have cut quite a bit of filler info for the sake of time.
All in all, it was a great way to spend the day and reflect on the slow decline our nation is experiencing.

With that said....I believe we still have a chance o right this great vessel.

Directors changed and one of the producers as well. The visual tone changed, although they did have interesting cinematic shots and attempts at special effects. The plane crash was under-budgeted, so "rushed PLUS cash-strapped" is probably closer...but footage of how modern railroad beds and tracks are repaired is 100% fascinating --- as is Rand's message about how chokepoints in rail traffic can starve entire regions.

This is thought-provoking and argument-starting kind of moviemaking which has been sorely ignored through Hollywood's hypocritical corporate-structure history. It's worth watching for its bold insistence that producers MUST be allowed to produce, and that government regulation ALWAYS harms business and our economy at all levels.

The CD set offers a much-better-than-expected interview with the man who got the project started. Without saying it, one of the reasons for changing casts MAY have been due to outside pressure by leftist Hollywood, which had long refused to help pro-business films.

Five stars, y'all. Money very well-spent.

Quote from: Solar on June 16, 2015, 06:30:28 AM
Toy and I did a marathon last month, though we bought the disks as they came out.
Yes, I too had a weeee bit of time with the changing of the guard, made it hard to follow, considering they didn't even resemble the previous character.

The story line is flawless (thank you Anne) though the final movie in the set seemed to be a bit rushed, or rather compressed, in that they seemed to have cut quite a bit of filler info for the sake of time.
All in all, it was a great way to spend the day and reflect on the slow decline our nation is experiencing.

With that said....I believe we still have a chance o right this great vessel.

Yes, I too thought the underlying message was stellar but the trilogy lacked much in scripting.

Actually this was a movie that should have  been made decades ago.  It was difficult to overlay the 50s into modern discourse.  The railroad empire was a misfit IMHO.  It would have been much more effective to update the characters and venue to a modern era.  Then the message would have had a stronger impact upon the younger crowd.

Quote from: kroz on June 16, 2015, 07:18:35 AM
Yes, I too thought the underlying message was stellar but the trilogy lacked much in scripting.

Actually this was a movie that should have  been made decades ago.  It was difficult to overlay the 50s into modern discourse.  The railroad empire was a misfit IMHO.  It would have been much more effective to update the characters and venue to a modern era.  Then the message would have had a stronger impact upon the younger crowd.

Then you're into post-apocalyptic After the EMP Wiped Out My iPhone era.

Good luck moving freight and feeding entire regions. It don't gotta be modern to be pertinent. Without rails we are crippled. Without petroleum we are crippled. Without business to employ and sustain us, we as a nation are crippled.

Quote from: quiller on June 16, 2015, 07:28:04 AM
Then you're into post-apocalyptic After the EMP Wiped Out My iPhone era.

Good luck moving freight and feeding entire regions. It don't gotta be modern to be pertinent. Without rails we are crippled. Without petroleum we are crippled. Without business to employ and sustain us, we as a nation are crippled.

Rails and petroleum have their place in today's economy.  But we live in the space/technology age.  Younger viewers could not really identify with the script IMHO.

Quote from: kroz on June 16, 2015, 09:24:10 AM
Rails and petroleum have their place in today's economy.  But we live in the space/technology age.  Younger viewers could not really identify with the script IMHO.

If younger viewers ever thought about how that same iPhone came into being, and how it reached their sweaty little hands....

...they'd realize we can live without a cell phone. We cannot live without markets for the goods we produce, or ways to reach those markets. You can deal all you like electronically, but the actual DELIVERY and follow-through are still firmly rooted in non-electronic reality.