2011 saw the release of the low-budget adaptation of Ayn Rand's best-selling novel Atlas Shrugged, but despite the book's recurring relevance in political debates over the years, both critics and audiences shunned the production that Peter Travers of Rolling Stone described as "flapping on screen like a bludgeoned seal." The $20 million movie was a huge flop at the box office, earning less than $5 million in its small run that managed only 299 theaters. And yet producers are soldiering on with plans to complete the trilogy they set out to create.
Earlier this year, we shared the teaser for Atlas Shrugged: Part 2, which showed no footage from the film but rather snippets of footage of the likes of Glenn Beck, Geraldo Rivera, Sean Hannity, and Dennis Miller mentioning Rand in their roles as political pundits. It was then that producers promised their sequel would hit in the thick of election season, presumably where its political allegory could get the best traction from the frenzy of campaign season. And now we have a first look at Atlas Shrugged: Part 2.
With its ominous music and all-consuming big government with aims of aiding "the common good," Atlas Shrugged: Part 2 appears to play upon conservative fears, rolling out a dystopian vision of the future that's sure to send a chill down the spine of admitted Rand enthusiast and Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan. "I think everyone agrees that capitalism doesn't work," sneers a snide villain to Atlas Shrugged steely-faced and defiant heroine Dagny Taggart (Taylor Schilling). Basically, it's all about as subtle as a sledgehammer, and it's coming soon.
Atlas Shrugged: Part 2 will roll into theaters October 12th.
