10 questions with the producer of ‘Atlas Shrugged’ John Aglialoro


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But Mozart in the Hank-Dagny love scene?? Whoa!

Ugh, what piece? Well, may as well have fun with it, here was my instant reaction, my guess what piece it is:

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Did John Aglialoro, by any chance, party with Charlie Sheen :wacko: the night before he did this interview? :unsure:

(Or is he trying to give Leonard a stroke?) :o

On the cusp of success, why not gamble it all with a musical version of Part Three?

Hey, John Galt hasn't been cast yet, how about Charlie Sheen? :rolleyes::wacko:

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Well ... why not Charlie Sheen? He'd make a great, suitably thuggish Cuffy Meigs! Personally and professionally.

(Don't say he's too expensive. A few more months of hookers and blow, and he'll need the gig at any moderate price.)

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> Ugh, what piece? Well, may as well have fun with it, here was my instant reaction, my guess what piece it is:

I like the thrust of it. (The conductor definitely looks like he took his viagra.) But I think Dagny and Hank might not like having all those scowling, blowsy women and the thirty? piece orchestra in the bedroom with them.

Also it's only about a minute and a half of actual climactic thrusting; she might feel cheated.

Edited by Philip Coates
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Here I expected the Nine Inch Nails' song.

I should clarify that "Closer" (the "Fuck You Like An Animal" Song) is NOT particularly erotic if you actually listen to the lyrics beyond "I wanna fuck you like an animal."

Although strangely enough, if you analyze the lyrics, "Closer" is the perfect embodiment of the "sex is low, debased and subhuman" viewpoint that Lilian indoctrinated Hank with. Perhaps the song WOULD be appropriate, but only if you think about it.

Of course, if you were thinking of a song OTHER than "Closer" to use in the Dagny/Hank sex scene, that's a different matter. ("Fist Fuck"? "Happiness In Slavery"? "Reptile"?)

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Ugh, what piece? Well, may as well have fun with it, here was my instant reaction, my guess what piece it is:

I like the thrust of it. (The conductor definitely looks like he took his viagra.) But I think Dagny and Hank might not like having all those scowling, blowsy women and the thirty? piece orchestra in the bedroom with them.

Also it's only about a minute and a half of actual climactic thrusting; she might feel cheated.

It’s a musical depiction of the biblical judgement day, so imagine the heavens opening, the earth erupting, y’know, kaboom! Usually one thinks of Mozart’s work as more classically restrained, not given to the volcanic outbursts of, say, Beethoven. I’m really curious what piece they used, “volcanic outburst” evokes what I expect the scene to be like, though not in the grim minor key that Mozart (rightly) uses here.

This just made me think of the scene from Excalibur, which uses Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde. It starts about 5:45. Also not quite right for Atlas, I think, but what the hell.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAV4xuPXCQE&feature=related

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Although strangely enough, if you analyze the lyrics, "Closer" is the perfect embodiment of the "sex is low, debased and subhuman" viewpoint that Lilian indoctrinated Hank with. Perhaps the song WOULD be appropriate, but only if you think about it.

Yes, you should reread Hank's dialog to Dagny. He basically says the same thing, thinking that the physicality of sex is animal lust and that her submitting to his desire makes her a whore.

I would have scored the film to Beethoven, Liszt, Ravel.

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Although strangely enough, if you analyze the lyrics, "Closer" is the perfect embodiment of the "sex is low, debased and subhuman" viewpoint that Lilian indoctrinated Hank with. Perhaps the song WOULD be appropriate, but only if you think about it.

Yes, you should reread Hank's dialog to Dagny. He basically says the same thing, thinking that the physicality of sex is animal lust and that her submitting to his desire makes her a whore.

I would have scored the film to Beethoven, Liszt, Ravel.

Ravel would certainly work...this is not Ravel, but it world work also...

This is from the Red Violin which is a wonderful movie.

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Although strangely enough, if you analyze the lyrics, "Closer" is the perfect embodiment of the "sex is low, debased and subhuman" viewpoint that Lilian indoctrinated Hank with. Perhaps the song WOULD be appropriate, but only if you think about it.

Yes, you should reread Hank's dialog to Dagny. He basically says the same thing, thinking that the physicality of sex is animal lust and that her submitting to his desire makes her a whore.

True. Although "Closer" is a little bit different to that; it doesn't dwell on the idea of sex-as-debased-and-subhuman (although it does imply it). Rather it dwells on the psyche of a man that USES sex to escape his own self loathing ("help me think I'm somebody else," "help me get away from myself"). So the songs, whilst having similar philosophical bases (sex as low, disgusting and subhuman), take place in different story-contexts.

But yeah, there is a similarity even in context; the experience of sex as a confession of self-loathing.

I think what makes "Closer" so fundamentally disturbing is that the music ITSELF is kinda sexy (the porno Minimoog bassline, the throbbing beat)... and superficially the lyrics are... but when you analyze it you see just how pathological it really is.

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... and superficially the lyrics are... but when you analyze it you see just how pathological it really is.

It was interesting seeing Reznor accept his Academy Award, if you know NIN you probably expect that the guy’s nuts, but he seemed normal, thanked his wife (or girlfriend?), was dressed appropriately…

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... and superficially the lyrics are... but when you analyze it you see just how pathological it really is.

It was interesting seeing Reznor accept his Academy Award, if you know NIN you probably expect that the guy’s nuts, but he seemed normal, thanked his wife (or girlfriend?), was dressed appropriately…

Oh, I know NIN quite well.

Reznor isn't psycho. Even more underground Industrial musicians (say, Nivek Ogre or Bill Leeb) are all very sane and reasonable. He DID, however, induce Bipolar Disorder within himself when working on The Downward Spiral.

I admit though, I don't think Trent's recent work is particularly good at all.

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Oh, I know NIN quite well.

Reznor isn't psycho.

Here's the Oscars appearance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmhAKhDj7KA

Funny how next to Nicole Kidman he looks like a dwarf.

I don't think I've heard any of his stuff since the 90's. Can't think of anything.

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Oh, I know NIN quite well.

Reznor isn't psycho.

Here's the Oscars appearance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmhAKhDj7KA

Funny how next to Nicole Kidman he looks like a dwarf.

I don't think I've heard any of his stuff since the 90's. Can't think of anything.

Well, nothing recent has really been good so don't lose sleep over it.

That speech says a lot... Trent being so honored for the Academy's recognition... yeah, the man that screams about the evils of the recording industry is totally the film industry's bitch. He polished up his anti-establishment credentials during his "Year Zero" period (an album of justified Bush-bashing) yet all the political art vanishes the minute Obama is elected. And his grovelling towards Hollywood... so much for being against Big Media.

The Social Network characterizes Zuckerberg as a man that desperately wants to fit in and be accepted by others, who resents the populars whilst really wanting to be like them. Trent Reznor claimed he could easily identify with that. No wonder.

If you want NIN's GOOD work, stick with Pretty Hate Machine, Broken and The Downward Spiral. If you like those, add Fixed and The Fragile to your collection. The rest is basically nothing impressive.

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... and superficially the lyrics are... but when you analyze it you see just how pathological it really is.

It was interesting seeing Reznor accept his Academy Award, if you know NIN you probably expect that the guy's nuts, but he seemed normal, thanked his wife (or girlfriend?), was dressed appropriately…

Oh, I know NIN quite well.

Reznor isn't psycho. Even more underground Industrial musicians (say, Nivek Ogre or Bill Leeb) are all very sane and reasonable. He DID, however, induce Bipolar Disorder within himself when working on The Downward Spiral.

I admit though, I don't think Trent's recent work is particularly good at all.

Trent is a nice guy. We all kind of grew up around him in Cleveland. When he worked at Pi Keyboards and Audio, I used to take the sheet music orders from him. Saw him at CIM when the Exotic Birds did their debut on Halloween. Used to have rehearsal rooms next door to him. He's always been a very warm, quiet, smart person. I think this is pretty awesome--we've got our choir doing his song this way (and yes, we paid for the music, all four chords of it):

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Have you decided how you’ll tackle John Galt’s epic speech in part three?

Well, I’m looking at a number of different things. Having John Galt give that speech, it might be in a casino environment. It might be that he is at a mountain retreat, rather than being where he is captured, not…that violent scene at the end. But we’re going to take a look. It doesn’t have to copy just that.

No, it absolutely will be a concentrate of entertaining words with a total, philosophic…But, you know, part three could be a musical…like a Les Miserables kind of a musical. That’s part of the impact and I guess I haven’t said this publicly yet, but I’m looking at it completely different if part three is a musical with quality music that’s done in a certain way that people will like. I mean, if you saw the play Les Miserables without the music, and then with the music, you may go in there saying, ‘oh hell, I would never want to see that great book in a musical.’ That’s going to shock a lot of people to see part three be a musical, and part two may be very different from part three and very different from part one. It has to be new, you know…We get a freshness, a vitality about it, and yet it has the same, rock-solid principles and philosophies that we all know and love.

The more I think about this statement by Aglialoro, the more I think he is nuts, and the less enthusiastic I am about his movie. Much of the focus of the last part of the novel is expository material; this is where the philosophical meaning behind the events of the story is fully clarified. Galt’s speech is obviously a key part of this. In part 3, the focus on reason and understanding and clarity is of paramount importance. A musical production is primarily an emotional experience. The intensity of the heightened emotions would make rational communication of a new, unconventional philosophy even more difficult than it normally is with a theatrical production. In fact, it would likely dilute any remnants of a philosophical message into meaningless platitudes.

The philosophical differences between Les Miserables and Atlas Shrugged are enormous. Victor Hugo was not offering a radical new philosophy to the world. Once again, and it saddens me to say it, but the evidence strongly suggests that Aglialoro does not have a clue about the meaning of the material he is dealing with. When I see Part 1, I will be imagining each of the characters breaking into song. The whole idea is insane.

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> The more I think about this statement by Aglialoro, the more I think he is nuts, and the less enthusiastic I am about his movie.

Huh? It's not his movie in the sense that this statement should be relevant. Lighten up a bit and be open to the movie.

> When I see Part 1, I will be imagining each of the characters breaking into song.

Well, try not to do that for Chrissake!!

Senor black-thundercloud-over-the-head, in this and other posts, you sound closed off to it before even seeing it. It sounds like you've clearly worked yourself into a state where you are going to be in a blue funk going in and unable to appreciate whatever is good.

Edited by Philip Coates
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> The more I think about this statement by Aglialoro, the more I think he is nuts, and the less enthusiastic I am about his movie.

Huh? It's not his movie in the sense that this statement should be relevant. Lighten up a bit and be open to the movie.

> When I see Part 1, I will be imagining each of the characters breaking into song.

Well, try not to do that for Chrissake!!

Senor black-thundercloud-over-the-head, in this and other posts, you sound closed off to it before even seeing it. It sounds like you've clearly worked yourself into a state where you are going to be in a blue funk going in and unable to appreciate whatever is good.

Yeah, well, call me pessimistic, but knowing the damn story is going to end with the Atlantis boogie-woogie could definitely put a damper on my enjoyment.

Can we get Aglialoro to shut up about any other brilliant ideas he might have until after April 15?

Edited by Dennis Hardin
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From Dollars and Crosses:

Atlas Shrugged Movie Producer Comments Make Charlie Sheen Seem Like The Voice of Sanity

He’s not too thrilled about Part 3 being a musical, either.

Taking the bad with the good:

Aglialoro Atlas Shrugged Movie Screenplay is “Incomprehensible Gibberish” — Film Stage Review

There is absolutely no chemistry between the characters, not even a single metabolic drop. Blame it on not enough coverage, rehearsal, etc. The list is long. That said, the actors themselves are terrific, but still unable to escape lazy set-ups and sloppy subplots. . .

On a more upbeat note, Schilling’s Dagny Taggart is stunning, circumventing her wooden lines with pitch-perfect delivery. . .

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> The more I think about this statement by Aglialoro, the more I think he is nuts, and the less enthusiastic I am about his movie.

Huh? It's not his movie in the sense that this statement should be relevant.

Actually, since he’s the producer, owns the rights, and is self funding, if he wants to make part 3 as a musical that’s probably his prerogative. There might be some restriction in the original sale of rights forbidding a crazy idea like that, I wouldn’t know. Nevertheless, I’m confident he was just making a joke. Kenneth Branagh made a bunch of terrific Shakespeare movies, then he tried one as a musical, and it bombed. I’m not sure if he’s made any since.

It might be fun to kick around other loony ideas, how about part 3 has all animated strikers, think Who Framed Roger Rabbit? As Dagny finally switches sides, she transforms into a Jessica Rabbit look-alike. But transforms back at will when Galt is captured. For Francisco, it has to be the tabby cat from Shrek.

For John Galt I vote for Wile E Coyote, mainly because he has such a terrific voice:

Hmm, now we still have to fit in Foghorn Leghorn (Hugh Akston?) and Pepé le Pew (Ragnar?) somehow, but that’s it, I’ve run out of steam.

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Opera is the only way to go. All in the public domain so it would be cheap to produce. I see the "viva la libertar" chorus from Don Giovanni as a finale. And long recitatives would be perfect for the speeches.

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Opera is the only way to go. All in the public domain so it would be cheap to produce. I see the "viva la libertar" chorus from Don Giovanni as a finale. And long recitatives would be perfect for the speeches.

The only way? There's a creativity killing attitude if I ever saw one!

How about interpretive dance? Or ballet? No, animated ballet:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izS-6BqS3p8

And something like this for Galt's speech:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPuNK-qo33s&feature=related

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> It's not his movie in the sense that this statement should be relevant.

> Actually, since he’s the producer, owns the rights, and is self funding, if he wants to make part 3 as a musical that’s probably his prerogative.

I was talking about part 1.

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