The Fountainhead (1949)

From my favorite movies..

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

King Vidor made The Crowd and Our Daily Bread. It's impossible that he couldn't smell a faschist from a mile away - so why did he do this Movie? I guess he desperately needed Money or maybe it was a deal, similar to that that made Elia Kazaan betray his friends a few years later. Who knows? What we know for sure however is that Ayn Rand was a real Stinko and her views only possible in a deeply fascist society, which the US society Always was and still is. I refuse to explain further because it is impossible to explain the self-evident without dirtyin one's hands in the process.

What the Hell? Oh my God, what a God damned piece of crap this was. I mostly know Ayn Rand in a secondhand manner (I read Anthem in 8th grade but don't remember it being anything more than a 1984 retread), so I guess I'm kind of glad I finally got to experience her peculiar sense of morality (which should be easily identifiable to anyone with a shred of intelligence as evil). What particularly strikes me about this film (whose screenplay she did write, for the record) is not just that her morality is repugnant, but that she's an unbearably awful writer. First off, the dialogue that's spouted off doesn't sound like anything that could ever possibly come out of a human being's mouth. It's three steps beyond clunky and overly expository. Screw subtext, right? We're just gonna say everything on our minds, thank you very much. Second, I mean, how egotistical is Rand here? Clearly, at least part of the protagonist (Howard Roark, played by Gary Cooper) is autobiographical, you have to imagine, and we just think we're the hottest thing ever, don't we Ms. Rand? Oh, you're an individual and such a genius that the only reason anyone can ever disagree with you is because they think mediocrity is the way to go. And, finally, you all saw that he did it, right? He blew the Hell out of that building and surrendered right next to a plunger. It's a pretty open and shut case. I don't care how awesome your courtroom speech is - it's not, by the way - it has nothing to do with the case at hand and I'm surprised there wasn't one objection raised, especially given how much movie lawyers love to do so. And then there's some really dumb stuff with the Raymond Massey character too, but I was too flabbergasted by what had just happened in court to care about that. King Vidor, who was personally chosen by Rand, does what he can with the material, but it's utterably unsalvageable. Patricia Neal is quite attractive and it was nice seeing Cat People's Kent Smith in the film, but it's objectively garbage.

King Vidor outdid himself in fashioning Legendary Ayn Rand's philosophical novel for the screen. Generally misunderstood and under appreciated on its initial release, "The Fountainhead" has gained a great amount of respect as time goes on.Gary Cooper was challenged to the hilt in playing Howard Roarke, as was Patricia Neal in projecting Dominique Francon. Still, their work is constantly intriguing and fascinating.The way Rand saw the world and society is totally unique and courageously revealing. Given the usual level of philosophical insight of most American films, Rand--and Vidor--projected genuine daring in revealing clandestine societal truths.This is a film for the ages to be devoured and cherished.

I have never read the book or any of Ayn Rand's literature. This film adaptation is strange because its more philosophical and literary than anything else. Everybody is giving speeches about beliefs and views. I don't get the meaning about Rand's work. The movie is about an architect, Roark, (played fine by Gary Cooper). He is unusual in his vision of building whether homes or skyscrapers. Patricia Neal plays his love interest. I just don't understand why Roark's visions were at odds with society. The film is long and not very entertaining overall. Ayn Rand may have been a brilliant philosopher but her storytelling is a lot to be desired.