Patricia Neal, on the other hand, is a revelation. As Dominique, she veers between ice queen and volcanic passion. The famous scene where she whips Roark with a riding crop (or is it a love scene?) remains one of the most bizarrely erotic sequences in 1940s cinema. Neal’s performance captures the masochistic longing of a woman who wants to be broken by a man she cannot tame.
The Fountainhead -1949- (7 times), plus secondary long-tail variations including "1949 film The Fountainhead," "Gary Cooper The Fountainhead," and "Howard Roark architecture film." The Fountainhead -1949-
Any discussion of The Fountainhead -1949- must address the elephant in the projection booth: Gary Cooper as Howard Roark. Rand originally wanted her lover, a young and unknown actor named Frank Sinatra (the suggestion was quickly dismissed), or the brooding intensity of John Huston. When Cooper was cast, Rand was furious. She had envisioned Roark as a "bronze god"—angular, red-haired, and predatory. Cooper, by contrast, was the strong, silent cowboy of High Noon . Patricia Neal, on the other hand, is a revelation
Because Roark’s designs were too expensive to build full-scale, Carrere used miniature models for the exteriors and life-size partial sets for the interiors. The illusion is perfect. When Roark stands on the scaffolding of the Wynand Building at the film’s close, the skyline behind him is a mix of real New York and painted matte shots—a fitting metaphor for a man building his future in a world that doesn’t yet exist. Neal’s performance captures the masochistic longing of a
Massey brings tragic dignity to the newspaper mogul who built an empire pandering to the public, only to realize he despises them. His friendship with Roark and subsequent betrayal provide the film’s most poignant human tragedy.
. Their relationship is a intense, often adversarial struggle of wills The Climax:
. Rand wrote the screenplay herself, ensuring her philosophy of Objectivism