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Atlas Shrugged: Part 1

Play trailer Poster for Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 PG-13 2011 1h 42m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
12% Tomatometer 50 Reviews 69% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
Dagny Taggart (Taylor Schilling), a powerful railroad executive, tries to keep her business afloat while society crumbles around her.
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Atlas Shrugged: Part 1

Atlas Shrugged: Part 1

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Passionate ideologues may find it compelling, but most filmgoers will find this low-budget adaptation of the Ayn Rand bestseller decidedly lacking.

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Critics Reviews

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Liam Lacey Globe and Mail Oct 28, 2011
1/4
Made on the cheap with no-name stars, this is no better than a stilted anachronistic curiosity, a low-rent version of the eighties' prime-time soap Dallas, with the industrial concerns and sexual mores of 1950s, all, somehow, set in 2016. Go to Full Review Linda Barnard Toronto Star Oct 28, 2011
0.5/4
A talky bore that spends too much time in wood-panelled offices and at chatter-heavy parties that were clearly shot on the cheap. Go to Full Review Carina Chocano New York Times Apr 28, 2011
1/5
Atlas Shrugged: Part I is in many ways charmingly oblivious to its inherent contradictions and the fact that its capitalist titans appear to be squatting in old, abandoned Dynasty sets, eating food-court baked potatoes. Go to Full Review Richard Propes TheIndependentCritic.com Sep 2, 2020
1.0/4.0
Atlas Shrugged is an easily set aside motion picture. Go to Full Review Megan Basham WORLD Jan 8, 2019
The very nature of Atlas Shrugged -- turning on its head all the typical clichés of who's a hero and who's a villain and its refreshing honesty about the way Washington works-gives it a certain liberating energy. Go to Full Review Kelly Jane Torrance Washington Examiner Jan 8, 2019
2.5/5
While they've produced a competently made film, they haven't pulled off a miracle. Atlas Shrugged is much as you'd expect. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Cfunk D @Cfunk2085 Mar 8, 2026 Desperate attempt at socialism schmering. God forbid there is Government regulation lol See more Ryan H @scitech76 Dec 26, 2025 This was a great series that attempted to retell the fantastic book by Rand. However, budget constraints seriously cripplied these movies. With the jolting recasting of all the main characters between installments and poor production value, it took away from the underlying message. (Don't get me wrong, the actors were fine with what they had to work with, but a 5 Million dollar budget for the 3rd movie? That's a tough hill to climb.) Watch them anyway and just pay attention to the story being told. It's worth it. -Scitech76 See more Michael M @Romz420 Dec 16, 2025 Wow what a terrible movie made only to sell a sham of a story how corporations will be our saviors. Perfect for anyone with a super low iq. Any idiot who really believes this is how it is I would say should be shot. But they will do something amazingly dumb to kill themselves. See more TJ E @RT93648192 Aug 23, 2025 It’s so incredibly sad that this movie will never get a real adaptation. The irony that these movie were bombed to hell is so funny. Hollywood would never have made a faithful retelling. It’s a shame this movie came out the way it did. See more G D J @DJUKDODO Aug 20, 2025 The script is awful, the acting is so wooden it might as well be a documentary for a school wood working class. It's only worth a watch if you really want to see how bad movies can get. See more Don S @RT67300157 Jul 28, 2025 For a low budget production that had to overcome a lot of opposition this is a decent film. A great storyline that reflects a lot of events in today's world. See more Read all reviews
Atlas Shrugged: Part 1

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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Paul Johansson

Director

Taylor Schilling

Dagny Taggart

Edi Gathegi

Eddie Willers

Michael O'Keefe

Hugh Akston

Paul Johansson

John Galt

Matthew Marsden

James Taggart

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Atlas Shrugged: Part 1

Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 (2011) Taylor Schilling as Dagny Taggart and Matthew Marsden as James Taggart in "Atlas Shrugged: Part 1." Taylor Schilling as Dagny Taggart in "Atlas Shrugged: Part1." Taylor Schilling as Dagny Taggart and Grant Bowler as Henry Rearden in "Atlas Shrugged: Part 1." A scene from "Atlas Shrugged: Part 1." Grant Bowler as Henry Rearden in "Atlas Shrugged: Part1." Graham Beckel as Ellis Wyatt in "Atlas Shrugged: Part 1." A scene from "Atlas Shrugged: Part 1." Grant Bowler as Henry Rearden and Taylor Schilling as Dagny Taggart in "Atlas Shrugged: Part1." View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Dagny Taggart (Taylor Schilling), a powerful railroad executive, tries to keep her business afloat while society crumbles around her.
Director
Paul Johansson
Producer
John Aglialoro, Harmon Kaslow
Screenwriter
Brian Patrick O'Toole, John Aglialoro
Distributor
Rocky Mountain Pictures
Production Co
Atlas Prods.
Rating
PG-13 (Some Sexuality)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 22, 2011, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA)
$4.6M
Runtime
1h 42m
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