The Fountainhead

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The Fountainhead

Released Jul 2, 1949

1h 54m

Drama

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79%

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14 Reviews

74%

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2,500+ Ratings

Unconventional and arrogant architect Howard Roark (Gary Cooper) sees himself as misunderstood, having been openly criticized by writer Ellsworth Toohey (Robert Douglas). Taking a job at a quarry in lieu of compromising his vision, Roark becomes involved with rich, married socialite Dominique Francon (Patricia Neal). As he struggles to preserve his ideals and projects while competing for the heart of a married woman, Roark's reactions become increasingly complex and dramatic.

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Nell Minow

Movie Mom

Potboiler of potboilers.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 26, 2003

Full Review

Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

A melodrama that Vidor builds on architectural spaces that have a certain sophistication, but its modern approach lacks emotion, and the narrative often trivializes its discourse on power, individual and the virtue of selfishness. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 6/10

Feb 5, 2025

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

It’s intoxicating and extreme in its focus and perspective (running a touch overlong as it reiterates its themes a few too many times) – and highly compelling (even if the conclusion is tidier than anticipated).

Rated: 8/10

Nov 8, 2024

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Nick Davis

Nick's Flick Picks

The Fountainhead is by turns exciting, handsome, astoundingly awkward, fully committed, untowardly relentless, very strange, and a little creepy in its compulsive watchability.

Rated: B

Jan 20, 2012

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

King Vidor's melodrama about individualism and creativity works better as cinema than as literature (it's based on Rand's novel).

Rated: B+

Jul 15, 2009

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

It's the kind of dazzling film, shot in a fascinating German Expressionist style, that veers from being silly to being provocative.

Rated: B

Oct 6, 2008

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Mike P

Manipulative Ayn Rand story conflates an artist's need for independence with society's need to shuck off all safety nets and concepts of collectivism. The story fails at the concept level. It's also pretty boring.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/17/25

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Steve D

Despite the cast I found it rather dull.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/07/24

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David S

The Fountainhead is one of my favorite books. This movie was like watching a synopsis. There's no way to compare it to the quality of the book. The movie is like 1/100th of 1% of the book. And yet, I gave it 3 stars because it was the best that could be done for a movie of around 2 hours from the 1940s. And I gave it 3 stars because the screenplay was written by Ayn Rand. If I were her I would not have allowed the movie to be made. But I'm not her. She must have had her reasons.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

10/14/23

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Eric W

Terrific. Great job casting and hitting character notes on the head.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/07/23

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Audience Member

How can King Vidor have directed two of the all time stinkers in the same year? The Fountainhead and Beyond the Forest (the bomb that ended Bette Davis' tenure at Warners) are both turgid overwrought and overacted melodramas. Both however are strangely fascinating today. Based on the unreadable and pretentious novel by Ann Rynd, who also wrote the screenplay, the novel is boiled down to silly over the top dialogue which is mostly shouted between the characters. Patricia Neal, fresh from the Bette Davis eye rolling school, gives it her all. I was actually thinking Miss Davis would have really chewed the scenery in this potboiler, but she was a bit too old. Warners purchased the novel for Barbara Stanwyck, but by the time they got around to making it she was deemed too old. It's preposterous really, because Gary Cooper was older than Stanwyck and twice Neal's age! Cooper gives his usual stolid performance. It's strangely watchable and entertaining.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/04/23

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Audience Member

anarchoindividualism

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

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King Vidor

Director

Gary Cooper

Howard Roark

Patricia Neal

Dominique Francon

Raymond Massey

Gail Wynand

Kent Smith

Peter Keating

Robert Douglas

Ellsworth Toohey

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Synopsis

Unconventional and arrogant architect Howard Roark (Gary Cooper) sees himself as misunderstood, having been openly criticized by writer Ellsworth Toohey (Robert Douglas). Taking a job at a quarry in lieu of compromising his vision, Roark becomes involved with rich, married socialite Dominique Francon (Patricia Neal). As he struggles to preserve his ideals and projects while competing for the heart of a married woman, Roark's reactions become increasingly complex and dramatic.

Director: King Vidor
Producer: Henry Blanke
Screenwriter: Ayn Rand, Ayn Rand
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Warner Brothers, First National Pictures
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 2, 1949, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 21, 2016
Runtime: 1h 54m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: 35mm

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