The Fountainhead

Starring: Gary Cooper, Patricia Neal, Raymond Massey, et al.

Product Description

"Do you want to stand alone against the whole world?" Architect Howard Roark has heard the voices of safety, convention, compromise. But Roark is a man as unyielding as the mighty structures he builds. And he will sacrifice everything -- the woman he loves or the project he dynamites when others interfere with his design -- to maintain his individuality in a world of lockstep conformity. Gary Cooper portrays Roark and Patricia Neal plays the troubled beauty whose desire for him almost destroys her in this emotionally and intellectually searing film scripted by Ayn Rand from her own novel. From a granite quarry to Manhattan skyscrapers to a thrilling courtroom finale with his freedom on the line, Roark does stand alone against the whole world. And that is his most towering achievement.

• Format: DVD
• Language: English
• UPC: 012569571624
• Release Date: May 2003
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Publisher: WarnerBrothers
• Director: King Vidor
• Starring: Gary Cooper, Patricia Neal, Raymond Massey, Kent Smith, Robert Douglas, Henry Hull, Ray Collins, Moroni Olsen, Jerome Cowan, Paul Harvey
• Runtime: 1 hour, 54 minutes
• Number of Disks: 1
• Other Video Info: Multiple Formats; Closed-captioned; Black & White; Dubbed; Original recording remastered; NTSC
• Weight: 0.19 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 7.5"

Customer Reviews

Enjoy this movie for what it is; ain't gonna get no better.

Howard Roark, an independent architect, is determined to do it his way or not at all. To make ends meet during lean times, he gets a day job at a rock quarry. There he meets his match and is beaten by the boss’s daughter, Dominique Francon (Patricia Neal). They both seem to know more of the world than most people do. She works for a newspaper and punishes herself for falling in love with Howard, and marries her boss, Gail Wynand (Raymond Massey). This does not deter Howard from building Gail and Dominique their dream house. Eventually getting the chance of a lifetime to build low-income housing through another architect, he jumps at the chance if it means only doing it the Howard Roark way. Watch the movie to find out what happens and why he is such a stickler for the work of the individual. You can argue about film versus book until the cows come home. You could say, "Let’s make this with Helen Mirren and Mel Gibson." You can even have Turner colorize it. Well, folks, it is not going to happen; so, do not waste your time wishing, and look at this movie. This is a faithful summary (as opposed to an adaptation). In that, you get the essence of the book with a few saved speeches. All the actors get their point across to you: this includes Gary Cooper as Howard Roark (he purposely looks stoic and amused) and Patricia Neal as Dominique (looking frustrated and aloof). The scenes, black and white with exaggerated camera angles, portray the story very well. The Frank Lloyd Wright architecture adds to the period. The tone of the movie gives the impression that this was copied from a stage play where one person at a time talks and no one overlaps until the first person is finished. All in all, the entire movie is worth viewing. And viewing again for the details.