The Fountainhead (1949) in my own words: PART I

Last night I finally saw this famous movie starring Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal.

Sometimes I really enjoy the performances and the whole movie, but I just have to tell the story in my own way (like when I told you about The Naked Jungle). So click the links if you want serious info (and if you, like me, think that Wikipedia is a valid source) about the background of the novel or the  author.

The movie is about a young architect (played by a not so young Coop) that loves to design buildings his own modern way.

Like if you say, 'hey Coop, I'd like to put a prettay entrance to my new house, maybe a Greek column or something" he'd kill you and throw the drafts to the mud.

Coop had a master, like in Karate Kid, but in the architecture world. Well, they don't do exercises or kick the air in a boat... actually, this master dies at the beginning, being poor and nobody cares because he built like he wanted. But before he dies, he says to Coop: "don't live my way kid, give your customers what they want, etc etc". *Dies*

BUT Coop doesn't listen to him, because he wants to sell his own designs.

The thing is that he's brilliant. And some people notice. Like one a year. So after 4 years of work, he has  built only 4 buildings and has like 14 dollars on his pocket.

Then a rich guy decides to hire him. And Coop builds a super duper skyscraper for him.

* Meanwhile in a popular newspaper* An architecture columnist thinks that Coop is brilliant (told ya) but he wants to destroy him. And when you say, but why are you so mean Mr. Dark-Columnist-Like-That-One from- Ratatouille?,  he rubs his hands and laughs in a very evil way.

 Just kidding. Kind of.

So he convinces his boss to start a campaign against Coop, that way they will increase their sales. Because, you know, people loves architecture gossip. So he writes something like "his buildings are ugly and I don't like them. He should have made a Greek column and a baroque balcony etc"

AND this newspaper is so popular that MAKES PEOPLE TALK ABOUT ARCHITECTURE! Like in the bus, some women say (something like):

Woman A: "hey did you hear about the new building?"

Woman B: "yeah, I know, I hate it. He should have made a Greek column and a baroque balcony!"

Woman A: "I think the same!"

Woman B: "Well, this is my stop. I'll call you later to discuss more about the building"

Woman A: "I'll be waiting for your call"

*Meanwhile in Patricia Neal's department*

Patricia (she was 22 when they filmed this movie) is voluntarily dropping a sculpture that looks prettay expensive from her window...why? Well, according to her, because it's too prettay, so she can't be attached to it (can you imagine what she's going to do when she meets Coop aka one of the most handsome men ever?).

The thing is that Patricia is also an architecture columnist for this popular newspaper (and the big boss is in love with her), so when she finds out about the campaign against the mysterious architect, she quits. But don't worry, she's the daughter of a millionaire, so she won't be starving.

*Later*

Coop is unemployed and working in a quarry. The poor kid. The owner of this thing is Patricia's father. Patricia is spending a little nice vacation there and goes riding...and sees a very prettay guy working with a very old hand drill under the sun, all sweaty...

She doesn't know who he is, but she's obsessed with him. She remembers his arm and the hand drill (I can say, because the arm and the hand drill are shown superposed to Patricia Neal sitting and thinking).

But because she has this weird issue with prettay things, she behaves...weirdly. Like she starts stalking the poor worker. If you could read her agenda, this is what you'd see:

8:00AM: Wake up.

8:20AM: Ride my prettay horse (mental note: gotta kill it) to the quarry.

8.25AM to 20PM: Stalk the worker with the arm and the hand drill.

Then in the next page you could read this plan:

How can I make this guy come to my prettay house (mental note: I have to make it explode)?? OHH, I'll break my marble chimney and make him fix it. I'm so clever.

Coop ain't no fool and knows what's happening in Patricia's mind. So he writes a mental note himself:

Go and check her problem the first time. She'll think he has me at her feet and that I'll be back to fix it. But I'll send an ugly guy instead. LOL.

But Patricia has no humor so she rides and rides and whips Coop. In the prettay face. Really.

AND THEN...

To be continued....


(PART II)