Atlas Shrugged: Part I (2011), Atlas Shrugged: Part II (2012), and Atlas Shrugged: Part III (2014)

People say that money can’t buy happiness, but in a world where capitalism is the key to survival, that happiness can’t come without a monetary price. Even if you’re trying to do something for free, some monetary investment went into it. Gas money to go from one place to another. Clothing bought so you aren’t naked all the time. Board games cost money, music costs money, movies cost money, video games cost money, going to the gym costs money, sports cost money… I could keep going, but you understand me. It costs money to do everything.

That’s all because of the capitalism that became the default form of government in most countries. People can say, as much as they want, that certain countries are democracies. They can call other countries socialists or communists. Everything comes down to money, though. The rich rule. They buy their way into government positions by spending on elaborate election campaigns. When they get into power, they enact laws that will feed the rich and bury the poor. Big corporations can do almost anything they want to make more money. If they run into financial problems, a bailout could be on the way. The government is all about money, whether you choose to believe it or not.

Now, in a world where capitalism is king, people are starting to fight back against it. There’s no reason that prices should inflate on a whim without minimum wage rising with it. College and university costs have skyrocketed, leaving many people in debt. Why not avoid college and just enter the work force? Well, you see, many places won’t hire unless a person has some higher education. It means they have to go into debt to earn any form of money. Housing costs have soared, as has technology and the associated devices.

In 1957, Ayn Rand released her ode to capitalism, Atlas Shrugged. I don’t know too much about the novel. I haven’t read it. What I do know is that it became her most well-known work. It was her final novel. It was her longest novel. Rand thought of it as her masterpiece. Looking at the Wikipedia page for the novel, Atlas Shrugged “has been cited as an influence on a variety of libertarian and conservative thinkers and politicians.” So, yeah, a capitalist government liked a capitalist book. Who knew?

Atlas Shrugged: Part I was the first film in a trilogy of films based on Ayn Rand’s novel. It covered, I’m assuming, the first third or so of the book’s story. The movie took place in a dystopian world where capitalism was pushed aside for a communism sort of world. Independent businesses were under pressure from the government to fairly distribute their products to everyone, regardless of how much money they would lose, rather than choosing which commissions would create the most profit. Dagny Taggart (Taylor Schilling) ran the Taggart Transcontinental Railroad with her brother James (Matthew Marsden). After a bunch of politics and an accident in Colorado, she teamed up with Henry Rearden (Grant Bowler) to create The John Galt Line, named after a mysterious figure that independent capitalists kept mentioning before disappearing. The John Galt Line ran on a rail of Rearden metal, a new metal Henry Rearden discovered. The government did whatever they could to stop the success of the rail and to tarnish Rearden’s name.

The first movie in the Atlas Shrugged trilogy didn’t feel quite as capitalist as I thought it would, going in. There were capitalist moments, for sure, but they weren’t as overwhelming as I expected. It was mostly just some railroad politics. Dagny tried to run a railroad. Everyone was working against her. She pushed her way through with The John Galt Line and proved them wrong. The big moment came when a bullet train crossed a wide canyon on a bridge built with Rearden metal. There were hints at mysteries that would be solved later, as well. Things like the static electricity engine, John Galt, and the missing industry leaders were a big source of vague intrigue throughout the movie. Those things would be expanded upon in the sequels.

Capitalism reared its ugly head during scenes where the industrialists were being given restrictions by the government. Atlas Shrugged was a trilogy that was built around the government being bad and capitalism being heroic. We know that, in reality, the government and the capitalists are the same people. This movie pitted the two against each other, however. One of the laws that was thrown at the industrial leaders was that they could only own one business. Capitalism peaked in the movie when Henry Rearden was told about his reputation as someone whose “only goal is to make money” by one of his confidantes, Paul Larkin (Patrick Fischler). Henry replied by saying “My only goal is to make money.” He was a capitalist, through and through. Where Dagny had a secondary motive of keeping a family business afloat, Henry was only in it for the money.

Atlas Shrugged: Part II came out the next year and brought the capitalist ideals to the forefront. Dagny Taggart (Samantha Mathis) and Henry Rearden (Jason Beghe) were two of the only remaining industrialists to fight against the government’s control on the economy. Dagny was looking for the inventor of an engine that could help her rail company flourish, while Henry was went to trial over new laws. Some of the laws included fulfilling government orders first, not being able to fire anyone, and fixed incomes. They were also trying to uncover the most important question. Who is John Galt?

The train stuff wasn’t as big a part of Atlas Shrugged: Part II as it was of Atlas Shrugged: Part I. It still played a semi-important role, what with The John Galt Line being dismantled and some train accidents. Dagny was no longer focused on her position in charge of Taggart Transcontinental Railroad. She, instead, chose to chase after John Galt and the static electricity engine she discovered he was behind. She hired Quentin Daniels (Diedrich Bader) to recreate the engine, though he came to believe the same things as John Galt and ran off to join the people who disappeared.

Much of the focus was put onto the government’s attempts to crush capitalism. That’s what Henry Rearden was experiencing as the government came after his company and his metal. Henry had a deal with Ken Danagger (Arye Gross) and his coal mining company. Any orders that Ken put in would be given priority because of this deal. Henry also chose not to sell to the government, which they didn’t like. They enacted a fair share law that forced companies to sell to everyone. Henry defied that order and was brought to court.

That was where Atlas Shrugged: Part II really hit home on how the capitalists were supposed to be heroes. The problem was that the movie did it in such a way that it felt like the heeliest heel turn I’ve witnessed since Veck Simms revealed that he was the leader of the criminals in Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Henry Rearden was in court and the judge questioned him about his capitalist ways. Henry said that he wanted it understood that he only worked for profit. He didn’t care about the good of others or their worth. All he cared about was making money. It was much the same rant he gave in the first film, though now in court in a much blunter way.

The other bit of dialogue I want to bring up was where the title of the movies and book was alluded to. Henry was talking to the owner of a mine, Francisco d’Anconia (Esai Morales), about the government trying to shut down any form of capitalism. Francisco went into a diatribe about meeting Atlas, and what they would say to him. Henry didn’t know what he would say and asked Francisco for his answer. Francisco said he’d tell Atlas “to shrug.” Basically, neither of them liked the way the government was controlling the economy, though they were having trouble finding a way to do something about it, other than defying mandates. Things needed to be burned down to start fresh with a successful capitalist world.

Atlas Shrugged: Part II ended on a crucial moment for the trilogy. Quentin Daniels flew off to wherever the other industrial minds had fled to. Dagny pursued in her plane. I’m not sure where she got the skills to fly the plane, since she was simply a railroad magnate, but that’s beside the point. That doesn’t matter. What mattered was that, while in pursuit, she crashed through some invisible barrier in the sky and her plane hit the ground hard. She was in and out of consciousness among a plane wreck when John Galt showed up and offered help. The movie ended on her first face-to-face meeting with the man whose name had been on so many tongues.

Atlas Shrugged: Part III picked up right where the previous installment ended. John Galt (Kristoffer Polaha) rescued Dagny Taggart (Laura Regan) from the wreck of her plane. He brought her into his community where the brightest capitalist minds were hiding out. They had created their own place, separate from America, where they were free to think how they wanted. There were no government restrictions. They wanted Dagny to join, but she chose to go back into the world where the fight was most important. John Galt also went back into the world to… I don’t know. Get captured and become a martyr, maybe?

It was fairly easy to follow the first two Atlas Shrugged movies. Atlas Shrugged: Part I was all about railroad politics and the government putting restrictions on capitalist activities. It was a straight-forward narrative. Atlas Shrugged: Part II was much more focused on the government restrictions and the few people who remained to fight against it. Again, that was a straight-forward premise.

Atlas Shrugged: Part III, however, was a mess. I don’t know what to make of the movie. There were more government restrictions, obviously. They demanded that all patents be public. Anyone could access and recreate whatever was under patent. Nobody could keep their intellectual property any longer, meaning there was no way to make money off it. The government was ending capitalism. John Galt left his community to do some domestic terrorism sort of stuff. He took control of a television channel to broadcast his manifesto. That’s really it, I guess. Then he got captured and his followers broke him out of torture. I don’t know how else to describe the movie. I could barely follow it.

Let’s talk about the capitalist messaging of Atlas Shrugged: Part III. As I’ve already said, the government was trying to end capitalism. They had put in the ultimate restrictions through the three films. People couldn’t leave their jobs, change their wages, or monetize their intellectual property. Nobody could make any more money than they were already making. They weren’t allowed to spend more than their typical spending. The economy would essentially be shut down. In Galt’s Gulch, the community where all the industrialists were, the mentality was much different. It made sense. The community was founded on John Galt leaving his job at 20^th Century Motor Company because they had decided to pay people based on financial need, rather than based on capitalist mentality. He was going to “stop the motor of the world,” and so were the people hiding in his Gulch.

One other thing that should be mentioned about the Atlas Shrugged movies before I move on is the casting. Each movie utilized a different cast. As you could see from my descriptions, Dagny Taggart was recast for each movie. The other characters were, as well. Maybe that added to the confusion of the story in each movie. Perhaps it was intentional, to better illustrate how the characters changed throughout the three-movie arc. Whatever the case, it just made things a bigger mess, as it was hard to connect with someone who looked completely different every time you saw them. Especially characters like Midas Mulligan, who was played by the recognizable Geoff Pierson for about thirty seconds of the first film before disappearing and reappearing in the third film as an entirely different looking Mark Moses. The disappearances probably could have been more effective had they kept the same cast through three movies.

The trilogy of Atlas Shrugged films tried to make capitalism look good by painting the government in a bad light. For the most part, the government isn’t the greatest. You know that. I know that. Ayn Rand knew that when she wrote her most popular novel. The strange thing was that they tried to paint the government as anti-capitalist. That’s strange because of how welcoming the government has been to capitalism. In our world, the government loves money. They spend a whole lot of it on things like the military, the police, and keeping big corporations happy. Atlas Shrugged was a fictional world, so maybe I’m putting too much focus on this strange victimization of capitalists. The thing is, fictional dystopias like this are usually inspired by some sort of perceived reality. One group forcing another group down. That sort of thing. I just don’t see the government pushing down capitalism.

Ayn Rand’s novel Atlas Shrugged led to the spread of objectivism, which then helped build the capitalist world in which we live. It was about people caring about their own happiness before caring about others. The best way to find this happiness was through material achievements. Money, companies, and all that sort of stuff was the best way to find happiness. Maybe the sixty-something years since the book’s release has given enough time for objectivism to reach the government, which is why it feels like the conflict in the book isn’t realistic. Many of the Conservatives in power followed objectivism, so they have become the Atlas Shrugged heroes, instead of the villains. That would explain the selfishness of their votes when it comes to health care, gun restrictions, and budgets. They don’t care about the average person. They care about their money and power.

I’m spiraling a little bit here, so it’s probably about time I wrapped things up. We live in a capitalist society where we can’t have happiness unless we’re willing to pay for it. The government has pushed for capitalism to be everything. You want fun? You have to pay for it. You want food? You have to pay for it. You want health care or a family? It’s time to pay some more. A few people find their happiness in gathering money, and they feel the need to exploit anyone else to get it. The people being exploited are forced to spend their money to have any happiness, which makes it tougher to simply survive. It’s an unfair world. That’s what capitalism and objectivism have done. That’s what Ayn Rand has done. Meh.

I’m ready to get out of here, but I have to give you some notes first:

• Michael Gross made his sixth Sunday “Bad” Movies appearance this week in Atlas Shrugged: Part II. He was previously seen in Cool as Ice (week 348), Tremors (week 360), Tremors II: Aftershocks (week 360), Tremors 3: Back to Perfection (week 360), and Ground Control (week 474).
• Atlas Shrugged: Part II also saw the fifth appearance of Diedrich Bader in Sunday “Bad” Movies. He was in Space Buddies (week 270), Balls of Fury (week 349), The Search for Santa Paws (week 420), and Santa Paws 2: The Santa Pups (week 420).
• Christopher Karl Johnson is now at four Sunday “Bad” Movies appearances. He was in Anneliese: The Exorcist Tapes (week 60), Nazisat the Centre of the Earth (week 73), Mega Shark vs. Kolossus (week 300), and Atlas Shrugged: Part I.
• David Dustin Kenyon was in Atlas Shrugged: Part I. He was also in A Nanny for Christmas (week 3), Sharknado (week 190), and Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster (week 390).
• Michael Lerner had a major role in Atlas Shrugged: Part I. He could also be seen in Godzilla (week 282), The Beautician and the Beast (week 429), and Maniac Cop 2 (week 480).
• Ray Wise popped up in Big Ass Spider! (week 61), God’s Not Dead 2 (week 230), Brother White (week 379), and Atlas Shrugged: Part II.
• Rex Linn was also in Atlas Shrugged: Part II. He could be seen in Drop Zone (week 132), Zombeavers (week 142), and Sniper (week 430) before that.
• Moving onto the three-timers, let’s start with Matthew Marsden. He was in Anacondas: Hunt for the Blood Orchid (week 80), DOA: Dead or Alive (week 191), and Atlas Shrugged: Part I.
• Then there was Marissa Welch. She was in Atlas Shrugged: Part I, as well as Jack and Jill (week 101) and A Haunted House 2 (week 274).
• John Robert was in Nic and Tristan Go Mega Dega (week 272), All About Steve (week 409), and Atlas Shrugged: Part II.
• Jeff Yagher was the only three-timer to appear in multiple Atlas Shrugged movies. He was in View from the Top (week 83), Atlas Shrugged: Part II, and Atlas Shrugged: Part III.
• Larry Cedar is our first person from Atlas Shrugged: Part III. He was also in The Gingerdead Man (week 69) and Son of the Mask (week 207).
• If you noticed Tim DeZarn in Atlas Shrugged: Part III, you may have also noticed him in Steel (week 127) and Too Young to Die? (week 441).
• Louis Herthum appeared in Road House 2: Last Call (week 200), 12 Rounds (week 460), and Atlas Shrugged: Part III.
• Finishing off the three-timers was Brent Briscoe. He was in Zombeavers (week 142), Say It Isn’t So (week 481), and Atlas Shrugged: Part III.
• Mel Fair made appearances in Atlas Shrugged: Part I and Atlas Shrugged: Part II.
• Three other people were in Atlas Shrugged: Part II and Atlas Shrugged: Part III. They were Rebecca Dunn, Sean Hannity, and Jonathan Hoenig.
• Now we’re onto the simple two-time repeaters. Let’s start with two people from Jack and Jill (week 101) who were in Atlas Shrugged: Part I. They were Geoff Pierson and January Welsh.
• Mercedes Connor was in Atlas Shrugged: Part I and Beverly Hills Chihuahua (week 70), while J.P. Manoux was in Atlas Shrugged: Part II and Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta (week 70).
• View from the Top (week 83) featured Jon Polito from Atlas Shrugged: Part I and Stephen Tobolowsky from Atlas Shrugged: Part III.
• Paul Johansson from Atlas Shrugged: Part I and Scott Klace from Atlas Shrugged: Part III were each in Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies (week 410).
• Mega Shark vs. Crocosaurus (week 300) featured both Robert Picardo of Atlas Shrugged: Part II and Nicola Lambo of Atlas Shrugged: Part III.
• Armin Shimerman was in Atlas Shrugged: Part I and Delgo (week 148).
• Paul Edney was in Balls of Fury (week 349) before showing up in Atlas Shrugged: Part I.
• Jsu Garcia was a key part of Atlas Shrugged: Part I. He was also in Gotcha! (week 357).
• Ron Perceval appeared in both Atlas Shrugged: Part I and Scooby-Doo: Curse of the Lake Monster (week 390).
• Atlas Shrugged: Part I featured Janis Jones from All About Steve (week 409).
• Daisy McCrackin had a small role in Atlas Shrugged: Part I, but had a much bigger role in Halloween: Resurrection (week 413).
• Finishing off Atlas Shrugged: Part I was Michael O’Keefe from Too Young to Die? (week 441).
• James Jordan and Damian Forest Light were both in Best Night Ever (week 285) and Atlas Shrugged: Part II.
• Samantha Mathis took over the lead role in Atlas Shrugged: Part II. She played Daisy in Super Mario Bros. (week 248).
• Kim Rhodes was a big part of Atlas Shrugged: Part II. She was also a big part of A Crush on You (week 51).
• Bug Hall was a kid when he was in The Stupids (week 188). He was all grown up when he appeared in Atlas Shrugged: Part II.
• Famous magician Teller was in Atlas Shrugged: Part II and Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! (week 190).
• Patricia Tallman popped up in Road House (week 200) and Atlas Shrugged: Part II.
• Arye Gross from Soul Man (week 354) appeared in Atlas Shrugged: Part II.
• Jordana Capra was in Atlas Shrugged: Part II and Street Corner Justice (week 391).
• Finishing off Atlas Shrugged: Part II was Stephen Macht, the lead actor from Galaxina (week 432).
• Now we’re onto the last movie, Atlas Shrugged: Part III, which featured Scott Levy from Metal Man (week 79).
• Shon Lange has been featured in two Sunday “Bad” Movies. They were Atlas Shrugged: Part III and Budz House (week 198).
• Theodore Rex (week 223) had an actor named Peter Mackenzie, who reappeared in Atlas Shrugged: Part III.
• You might have recognized Mark Moses in Atlas Shrugged: Part III. He was in Ice Twisters (week 329).
• Finally, Eric Allan Kramer was in The Incredible Hulk Returns (week 335) and Atlas Shrugged: Part III.
• Have you seen the Atlas Shrugged movies? Have you read the novel? What did you think of either of them? Tell me your thoughts on Twitter or in the comments.
• I always appreciate suggestions about what I should watch for Sunday “Bad” Movies. If you have any movies you would like to suggest, you can get a hold of me on Twitter. You can also leave suggestions in the comments.
• Make sure to visit Instagram and check out Sunday “Bad”Movies there.
• Next week, we’re back to just one movie. It’s going to be an interesting one. The movie I’ll be checking out is a futuristic sports movie starring a television star of the time. I’ll be checking out a little something called Futuresport. I don’t know much about it, but I’m up for some future sports. See you next week with another post.