Well, my version is based on others that have been circulated before, but I added about 25% new original material and updated many of the references. I did cut and paste the Francisco d'Anconia quote from the novel. Upon further investigation, it does appear, other than being a bit updated in the setting, the movie closely follows the book quite well. Though there could be a little more realism with respect to some details like bridges, I think the dystopian concepts in the novel are brought to life rather well.

If you check out the scene where Hank Rearden comes home after work to find Lillian, his brother, his mother, and, I think it was Balf Eubank, in the sitting room socializing, it was done rather well and conveyed the same impressions and emotions that reading the novel does.

I suppose the limited scope of the budget may have dictated the updated storyline to some degree, but the images of Dagney Taggart in her private car behind steam powered trains, the evocative thoughts of Penn Station or Grand Central as the Taggart Transcontinental Terminal, the upgrading of narrow-gauge branch lines, moving 4-4-0's or 4-6-0's and wooden coaches to the Mexican line (a new starring role for Sierra #3), and many others would certainly have been magnificent for those of us with ferroequous attachment. I wonder who their railroad coordinator/consultant was?

Really looking forward to this one. I think it may be a "Blair Witch" level success. I am also looking forward to hearing more of parts 2 and 3.

Gary, I don't listen to the famous radio duo, but am sure that, based on their general political tendencies, that the material had a similar source.

Best,
Mike in Literalville

"I swear by my life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine." - John Galt

"The question isn't who is going to let me; it's who is going to stop me." - Ayn Rand

"...conceived Dagny Taggart under the spell of throbbing 567's..."

Now THAT is a great comment!!! This discussion could use a little humor....

Howard P.

A bit off subject, but while we're discussing a movie thirty some odd years in the making, I thought I'd mention another film that's been languishing for about the same amount of time.

Though the book Confederacy of Dunces is bereft of railroad action, it does have one hilarious scene in which the main character, Ignatius Reilly, has a hilarious confrontation with a Perley Thomas streetcar.

I hope Hollywood can sort out film rights issues and bring this very funny novel to the screen.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Confederacy_of_Dunces

Sloan

Well, I still haven't had the time to read the book (wonder if I ever will given its length), but I did look up the Wikipedia article on it, and was particularly intrigued with the setting, as noted below:

Setting

Atlas Shrugged is set in an alternate dystopian United States at an unspecified time, in which the United States has a "National Legislature" instead of Congress and a "Head of State" instead of President. Writer Edward Younkins noted, "The story may be simultaneously described as anachronistic and timeless. The pattern of industrial organization appears to be that of the late 1800s...the mood seems to be close to that of the depression-era 1930s. Both the social customs and the level of technology remind one of the 1950s."[21] Many early 20th-century technologies are available, and the steel and railroad industries are especially significant; jet planes are described as a relatively new technology, and television is a novelty significantly less influential than radio. While many other countries are mentioned in passing, there is no mention of the Soviet Union, no reference to World War II or the Cold War. It is implied that the countries of the world are converting to big government statism, along vaguely Marxist lines, in references to "People's States" in Europe and South America. Great Britain, for example, is now the "People's State of England", it is implied that the monarchy has been abolished, but Scotland is mentioned separately. There are also plot elements that refer to nationalization of businesses in these "People's States", as well as in America. The "mixed economy" of the book's present is often contrasted with the "pure" capitalism of 19th century America, wistfully recalled as a lost Golden Age.

I have to agree with earlier posters, this alternative world begged for portrayal in the steam era. Too bad that's not what we will see.

Looking at other portions of this summary, I also have to wonder what Rand would think of the Wall Street crowd of today.

I am quite certain Ms. Rand would have had no sympathy for the Wall Street crowd, save the problems created by government intervention (like the Community Reinvestment Act) and would have decried TARP as absolute anathema to the long term health of the free market. Had there been no GSE's to push risky underwriting practices and gaurantee those risky mortgages, then investment bankers, equities brokers, and securities holders would have likely never leveraged themselves to such precarious levels. Further, without the interventionist "easy money" monetary policy by the Fed (ironically run by one of her earliest followers - Alan Greenspan), leveraging would have been held back by market driven interest rates rather than Fed driven interest rates.

Frankly, if Wall Street makes risky investments, then Wall Street needs to pay the price - there will be short term severe pain, but recovery would be well under way (it's not if you haven't noticed) and long term outlook would be sunny. As it is, now we have an economy shackled by partially shifting the leveraging from the market to the government and have not had nearly the deleveraging that needs to occur for long term economic prosperity. This is what happens when there is crony capitalism as is well portrayed in Atlas Shrugged.

Mike in Literalville

[quote="Newriver400"] Frankly, if Wall Street makes risky investments, then Wall Street needs to pay the price - there will be short term severe pain, but recovery would be well under way (it's not if you haven't noticed) and long term outlook would be sunny. As it is, now we have an economy shackled by partially shifting the leveraging from the market to the government and have not had nearly the deleveraging that needs to occur for long term economic prosperity. This is what happens when there is crony capitalism as is well portrayed in Atlas Shrugged./quote]

I say, old chap, must we further endure the mention of crass, ignoble politics in this place of respite from our daily travails? Shifting the leveraging is such hard work these days for we tycoons that lately I've not even had time at lunch for my third martini. "Wall Street needs to pay the price" - egad! As it is, my cronies are only barely willing to give up the odd weekend of polo at the Club and instead help me preserve my heavyweight Pullman car - should they now chance to read such disgraceful things on RyPN, I'll be left with no choice but to scrap it!

Ah, the old free market at work - imagine the efficiencies to be gained and the fortunes to be made if only the romantic saps who inhabit this forum hadn't leveraged scrapyard assets into 'railroad museums,' thanks to the interventionist, free money tax code! 'Not for profit' - indeed! What a fountainhead of humbug.

G.J.C.

V:XI GBC,
Connecticut

Terrible thing, the National Gallery, or all those universities and libraries, medical research centers, the B&O Museum, the Santa Fe and PRR collections, and countless other things that were never saved or created because the Byzantine tax code with charitable deductions hadn't been written or amended to that point yet. Further, all those "greedy rich" folks don't need a tax break anyway, right? I'm sure if we soak the rich so they pay their "fair share," then the government can fund all of your choo-choo museums? What a font of ecomonic genius, indeed!

Mike in Literalville (where they actually teach economic law, not Keynesian and Marxist theory)

BTW, if you'd give up the liquid lunch and put your time to good use, you'd likely be able to earn what you needed to pay your weekend help for that Pullman AND, if you can't figure out that "ignoble politics" will be discussed in the thread entitled "Who Is John Galt?" regarding Atlas Shrugged so that you can escape your daily travails, then you really need to read the book!

Mike, I suspect that Mr. Churchward has his tongue planted firmly in cheek.....

Howard P.
Ironyton, CT

(bourbon in hand)

A pleasant discussion of literature, and a interesting depiction of railroads in one book has deteriorated to an economic debate and name calling.

The discussion of economics stops now... The name calling stops, and those involved can consider themselves warned.

Your always friendly moderator...

The intent of the thread was to inform those interested in the topic, which, by it's very nature, included discussion of a 54 year old book which detailed nicely the workings of a railroad in the early part of the twentieth century. The political side of the discussion was a sure thing yet I must state I am very impressed how well it's been handled.

What a witty and intelligent bunch we have here. And special thanks for those with their unique brand of humor and sarcasm - all in good stride and some of the most hilarious material I can ever recall reading!

11 days to go - when leaving the forums on RYPN and venturing outside, be sure to bring your flame retardant suits.

/Mitch

Reviews of this movie, and enough libertarian politics for anyone, can be found at the Reason Magazine web site www.reason.com

If you want to see this, don't delay if it appears in your town. I predict this to have a run of almost a week, and I further expect to be the only one in the theater. (Which has happened twice before, once for the one where Bill Murray played Hunter S. Thompson; and once for the first movie titled "Crash," for which my review was too obscene for the old-Lincoln car-club magazine).

Aarne Frobom
Galt House, Kentucky

Who called anyone anything? Did I miss something?

I think the moderator's warning is just that, a warning shot, and in my opinion well-placed if technically preemptive. People who get into things like this can get overheated rather easily, and this thread may have been going in that direction. The moderators certainly would have no reason to live through a repeat of the discussion of a certain favored PRR classic.

In other topics in reference to this, an earlier poster thought modern high-speed rail could use some "steampunk" influence. Turns out there is a "dieselpunk" school of literature and art, too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyberpunk_ ... Dieselpunk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Piecraft/Dieselpunk

http://www.dieselpunks.org/

Is this, and steampunk too, something our movement can take some advantage of?

In reference to the movie itself, Reason didn't have much that I would consider useful as a review (about all that was said was that they liked it), but a linked article in Slate went into more details:

http://www.slate.com/id/2287075/

Most interesting item--according to the Slate review, the movie is set in 2016, and the rising cost of oil has made railroads the only viable form of overland transport. To at least a certain extent, this seems to be panning out now, and would certainly be a reason for the producers to consider a reset of the time period of the book. Yet there is a great irony in this in that the "conservative" movement, in its current form, is very anti-rail, particularly passenger rail, with some notable (and usually younger) exceptions.

Best advice I can come up with--Go see the movie if you want, and just judge it at that.

Now, if anyone can offer some useful advice on how to sell a good TV series set in the steam era, or how to market and get produced a really good adaptation of "Held For Orders," "The Long Trains Roll," "The General Manager's Story," or "One Way to Eldorado," that would be interesting. . .I can use the money!

"Now, if anyone can offer some useful advice on how to sell a good TV series set in the steam era, or how to market and get produced a really good adaptation of "Held For Orders," "The Long Trains Roll," "The General Manager's Story," or "One Way to Eldorado," that would be interesting. . .I can use the money!"

Getting a major studio to produce a film/video requires a combination of connections and luck. As one who has interacted with Hollywood and TV types, I can tell you that studios are gun-shy about accepting scripts or story ideas from outsiders. This is because there is a risk of future lawsuit over intellectual property rights.

The best way to get Hollywood to do a steam train story is to approach a member of the Writers Guild of America—the screenwriters union—and get him/her excited about the project. If he/she agrees to develop a script, then the concept goes to a producer. The producer will either reject the plan, pay off the writer for rights but hold the script for several years, or go into production.

You could go to an independent studio or to a freelance filmmaker looking to break into the business....but the expectation would be for you to provide all or some of the production capital. If you personally can't come up with the cash, you could approach an"angel" (a wealthy individual or venture capitalist).

Making a film is a gamble because nobody knows how great public acceptance will be until after expending millions of dollars in preparing the opus. Studios like other businesses hate to lose money, that's why they need box office winners to offset "dogs."

That said, I suggest, the best course of action for a museum is to build a close relationship with state and local film bureaus. These agencies have connections to producers. If your museum has on-going liaison with these agencies then your chances of connecting with Hollywood are better than if you tried on your own.

Not very encouraging I know, but I hope this information has some value.

Sloan