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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD EAN: 9781929732845 Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC ISBN: 1929732848 Label: Showtime Ent. Languages: Manufacturer: Showtime Ent. MPN: 1035 Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: Showtime Ent. Region Code: 1 Release Date: February 20, 2001 Running Time: 105 minutes Studio: Showtime Ent. Theatrical Release Date: 1999 Editorial Review: Amazon.com: Passion is not one of those words usually associated with the controversial author Ayn Rand, unless one is speaking of her controversial ideas. Her novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged made egoism a virtue, and her philosophy of objectivism, which she defiantly trumpeted in the face of criticism, proclaimed self-interest was a patriotic virtue. For 15 years she also used her philosophy to justify an affair with her "intellectual heir" (as she proclaimed him) Nathaniel Branden. This made-for-cable drama, based on the memoir by Barbara Branden (Nathaniel's wife), hones in on this clash between her ideas and her emotions. Helen Mirren is sharp and intense as the demanding, often icy Rand, playing down her striking features to become severe and plain. Eric Stoltz brings an insidious mix of charm and calculation to Nathaniel, a sycophantic devotee who espouses the gospel of intellectual honesty while compromising himself at every turn. Peter Fonda and Julie Delpy are the wounded spouses who endure their open affair. It's an unusually handsome film for a cable production, and the cool jazz score beautifully sets both the era and the mood of the film. Director Christopher Menaul, who previously directed Mirren in the brilliant British miniseries Prime Suspect, is fascinated by the hypocrisies justified by love and jealousy. While he's critical of Rand's philosophy and the cultlike following it spawns, he is nonetheless respectful of her intellect and devotion to her ideas, contradictions and all. --Sean Axmaker Average Rating:
 Rating:  - The other side of ObjectivismHaving read "The Fountainhead", "Atlas Shrugged" and "Anthem", I found Ayn Rand's ideas (which can basically be summed up as selfishness is good) to be of interest, but I always wondered about how they would work outside the artificial environment of fiction. "The Passion of Ayn Rand" answered this question for me. Through this film it is possible to see the consequences of living a life following the principles set out by Rand, and watching it confirmed my suspicions that Objectivism (Rand's philosophy) ... Read More Rating: - Not for the Ayn Rand enthusiastIf you are a true, die-hard, Ayn Rand fan, and are familiar with the details of her life, then you will find this perspective a bit hard to take in spots. Definitely a TV drama program...where all of the emphasis is on her personal love affairs, and not much on her as an author, or a prophetic genius of phylosophy. However, if you are willing to objective, and allow yourself to weed through the drama, there are little tid-bits of good film making...but mostly, it is a love story as has been told many, many ... Read More Rating:  - Not my favorite version of Ayn RandAyn Rand wrote some of my favorite books: The Fountain Head and Atlas Shrugged. Born at the beginning of the 20th Century Russia, in the beautiful city of St. Petersburg, Ayn Rand started to read from the early age of six. By the age of nine, it is said that she knew she wanted to dedicate her life to writing and to philosophy. Russia of the times was focused in collectivism, something Ayn Rand despised. After reading the works of Victor Hugo her character starts to shape. She lived ... Read More Rating: - Excellent character dramaDespite the hagiographic-sounding title, this film is not a work in praise of the novelist-philosopher Ayn Rand. Instead, it is a biopic, based on a book of the same title, written by Barbara Branden, an erstwhile close friend and high-ranking follower of Rand. Two attractive young students, Nathaniel Blumenthal (who later changes his name to Nathaniel Branden) and Barbara Weitman (Eric Stoltz and Julie Delpy), are invited, following an enthusiastic letter, to meet their idol, Ayn Rand, at the home ... Read More Rating: - The Passionate IndividualistWhile I have been an Ayn Rand fan for a short time and have not read Barbara Branden's book, this was one of the first movies about Ayn Rand I picked up. The chemistry between the actors and the charachters they play is excellent and all of the actors, especially Hellen Mirren, are very good in their roles. The script is good and so are the sets and production. Hellen Mirren won an Emmy for her portayal of Rand and, after seeing this film, one can see why she did. Mirren's portayal of Ayn Rand is superb! ... Read More |
