[Atlasphere] Vadim Perelman reflects on Ayn Rand?s legacy

[O-Land News Junkie]

In a new interview with PopMatters, Atlas Shrugged movie director Vadim Perelman reflects on the task before him (making the Atlas movie) and Ayn Rand’s legacy:

Speaking of “frustrated,” you’re taking on an Ayn Rand novel, a movie that’s sure to be controversial, taken from a novel that many have wanted to film but nobody can crack, “Atlas Shrugged.” At least you have Angelina Jolie on board.

It’s been in the making for 50 years, and the length of the book has daunted people, I think, for every one of those 50 years. How can you get a manageable film out of a book that big? Adapting “Atlas Shrugged” is a huge responsibility because this book, this woman, are so fervently loved and followed by millions of people. It’s like taking on “Lord of the Rings” with maybe a different sort of devoted following.

Rand would be, I think, today a great libertarian icon. Perhaps that’s what Angelina Jolie is interested in making the movie. For me, Rand is this writer of big, broad themes and emotions. But so am I, thematically. People accuse her of being heavy-handed, and I hear the same thing said about me. It is the Russian way, I think, of doing things. That was my window into this, growing up under the same repressive regime.

See the full interview for more about Perelman’s recent work, including some of the criticism he’s received lately for his movie The Life Before Her Eyes.

http://www.theatlasphere.com/metablog/755.php