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Movies Showing Objectivist Philosophy

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Felix

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One independent film of the early 1990s that I feel has some Objectivist themes is Ruby in Paradise. The movie was the film debut of Ashley Judd. What the movie is about is a girl who escapes from a dead end existence in some small Southern town to resort town in Florida. There she finds a job and gradually starts to sets up a life for herself. The movie is a deceptively simple story about self-reliance and has some really good acting in it.

Tomato-meter for "Ruby in Paradise"

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I remember reading in the press a while back that Chalize Theron was going to try to have "The Husband I Bought" made into a movie but I never heard any more after the initial reports. <_< It was always one of my favorite short stories by Rand.

Hm. I never heard of the movie or the short story. But I think I found it here.

Edited by Felix
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  • 3 weeks later...
I'd like to add Love Actually. That movie makes me feel so good every time I watch it. Does anyone else agree?

My best friend was just telling me about this movie. She loved it. I usually dismiss her movie recommendations, because she likes a lot of overly sentimental touchy-feely crap, but now that I've seen it mentioned here, I might check it out.

That said, here are my choices:

Envy

The Incredibles

Batman Begins

Serenity

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No one mentioned 'Shane' which is a surprise to me. The hero is the sodbuster Starrett who will not give up his land even at the risk of his life. Shane is the instrument of ultimate western justice.

You just reminded me about Shenandoah. I don't know if it's already been mentioned but it's a 1965 Jimmy Stewart film. I've heard good things.

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Flight of the Phoenix was pretty good, with values about as close to Objectivist ones as you will likely see coming out of mainstream Hollywood.

I looked all over for the "The Husband I Bought" movie today, a local video store, Hollywood video, and Best Buy, and couldn't find it anywhere. Are you guys sure it got made? Is it called something else in movie form?

Edited by EC
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I looked all over for the "The Husband I Bought" movie today, a local video store, Hollywood video, and Best Buy, and couldn't find it anywhere. Are you guys sure it got made? Is it called something else in movie form?

As far as I knew and ever heard, Charlize Theron was shopping the story around to be made but it never went from there.

Edited by scottkursk
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The United States of Leland.

Anyone here seen it?

It's about a guy named Leland obviously, and the way he notices that almost no one is happy. My favorite part is when he describes the young woman he meets on his trip to New York. I apologize for the vague description, I've only seen the movie once.

Edit: Man, but after reading the tagline and description I found online it sounds like crap. Try it anyway, I still remember it being a good movie.

Edited by Ravane
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Not to mention all the irrationalities in the idea of 'Supernatural-powers'.

I suggest you consider the role that supernatural powers play in any movie you watch. I'm not saying your conclusion is wrong about this particular movie. What I am saying is that supernatural powers can be insignificant when compared to other aspects of a movie, particularly when it is very life-affirming. There's an article about Harry Potter from ARI you should read, from which I quote the following relevant passage:

"Harry Potter lives in a world where hats and paintings speak, broomsticks fly and goblins run banks--but these are non-essential details. The essential element is the inspiring depiction of a boy's triumphant struggles."

As far as movies with Objectivist-like themes go, I strongly agree with those recommending The Shawshank Redemption. I also strongly recommend Braveheart, a fantastic story about a man who fights bravely and without moral compromise in his quest to achieve freedom. If you are not inspired by the protagonist's strength and courage, I'd suggest doing some "soul searching."

Another good one is Rudy, in which the main character ignores his physical limitations and those who try to stop him from pursuing his goal of making the Notre Dame football team.

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I really liked "The Neverending Story." I've seen it a long time ago, but I thought that it portrayed very well what's going on with art today (when people with lack of imagination become self-proclaimed SF or fantasy writers, when many movies are made by templates and stereotypes, when music artists are made by "remaking" another artist's work, and when painters or sculptors are great if they create something that resembles nothing).

Ooh! I missed this on my first read through this thread. I'll add this one to my list as well! It pits the realm of ideas, Fantasia, represented by the Ivory Tower (think of what we call the ivory tower in real life), against an evil called The Nothing, whose only describable characteristic is that it destroys Fantasia. The real triumph is that the hero who saves Fantasia is a little boy, who saves it by doing nothing more than believing in it.

I interpret the theme as being: The onslaught of nihilism will never succeed, as long as someone still believes in the power of ideas.

I've heard that the book fleshes out this theme a little more explicitly, but I haven't read it (although I totally should!), so maybe somebody else can chime in.

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Surprisingly (to me), I'm the first to mention High Noon with Gary Cooper (many Cooper films, in fact; Mr. Deeds Goes To Town is another), and The Princess Bride. I also recommend Destry Rides Again with Jimmy Stewart, and The Unforgiven with Clint Eastwood (though I'm less than certain of strict adherence to Objectivist principles in this last one).

It seems to me that Objectivist principles will be found more in Westerns and Sci-Fi/Fantasy than other genres, on the whole. And older films, in general, seem to have less altruistic sentiment. For that matter, try any Clark Gable movie, he was the ultimate rational male egoist; It Happened One Night is good.

Also (in spite of the religious beliefs of the characters), A Man For All Seasons is a great film.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

How about the inclusion of a documentary to this thread?

Recently I saw the movie In The Face of Evil: Reagan's War in Word and Deed, a fantastic documentary that presents a perspective on totalitarian ideologies in general, and communism specifically, that many Objectivists here would agree with.

Here's a link to the website of the film:

In The Face of Evil

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My best friend was just telling me about this movie. She loved it. I usually dismiss her movie recommendations, because she likes a lot of overly sentimental touchy-feely crap, but now that I've seen it mentioned here, I might check it out.

That said, here are my choices:

Envy

The Incredibles

Batman Begins

Serenity

I thought the same thing when a girl I knew made me go see it with her. Every guy I know has gone in expecting to hate it just because it's a chick flick, but the only person I know who actually doesn't like it is my fiancee (a girl). It's not a typical chick flick and it's very hard to walk away from this movie without feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. Plus it's hilarious...I think part of the reason it's funny is because most of the characters are British...the British just have this humorous air about them, for some reason.

I'd like to add Secondhand Lions to the list. It stars the kid from the Sixth Sense and it's about the summer he spends with his 2 war hero uncles. When they were younger, they had all kinds of heroic adventures together and they use their stories to teach him how to become a man. Excellent movie with some very optimistic tones about heroic deeds that everyone has the potential to accomplish.

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Shawshank Redemption is also what comes to mind. Andy Dufrense is comitted fully to justice. While there are some contradictory parts in the movie, I love all the ways he helped people get around the income tax.

There is also a certain quote that I doubt I'll ever be able to forget: Either get busy living or get busy dying.

Not to mention the fact that is one of the greatest movies ever made.

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