Fahrenheit 451 (1966)

In an oppressive future, a fireman whose duty is to destroy all books begins to question his task.

Director:

François Truffaut

Writers:

François Truffaut (screenplay), Jean-Louis Richard (screenplay),

Stars:

Julie Christie, Oskar Werner, Cyril Cusack

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Julie Christie	...	Clarisse / Linda Montag
Oskar Werner	...	Guy Montag
Cyril Cusack	...	The Captain
Anton Diffring	...	Fabian / Headmistress
Jeremy Spenser	...	Man with the Apple
Bee Duffell	...	Book Woman
Alex Scott	...	Book Person: 'The Life of Henry Brulard'

Storyline

Based on the 1951 Ray Bradbury novel of the same name. Guy Montag is a firefighter who lives in a lonely, isolated society where books have been outlawed by a government fearing an independent-thinking public. It is the duty of firefighters to burn any books on sight or said collections that have been reported by informants. People in this society including Montag's wife are drugged into compliancy and get their information from wall-length television screens. After Montag falls in love with book-hoarding Clarisse, he begins to read confiscated books. It is through this relationship that he begins to question the government's motives behind book-burning. Montag is soon found out, and he must decide whether to return to his job or run away knowing full well the consequences that he could face if captured.

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Plot Keywords:

book | fireman | future | television | fire department | 

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Taglines:

Aflame with the excitement and emotions of tomorrow!

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 November 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

451 градус по Фаренгейту

Filming Locations:

14 Linkway, Edgcumbe Park, Crowthorne, Berkshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Anglo Enterprises, Vineyard Film Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director François Truffaut was so eager to begin filming that he and co-writer Jean-Louis Richard wrote the screenplay before they had fully mastered English. Ultimately, Truffaut was disappointed in the awkward, stilted English-language dialogue; he was much happier with the French-dubbed version, which he supervised.

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Goofs

As the firemen leave the apartment in the first raid, the sack is half full of books. The bag they toss over the balcony is twice as full.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Announcer: An Enterprise Vineyard Production. Oskar Werner, Julie Christie... in Fahrenheit four-five-one.

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Crazy Credits

The beginning credits are spoken instead of written on the screen.

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Connections

Version of Fahrenheit 451

User Reviews

A cautionary tale for our times

My first viewing of "Fahrenheit 451" since its initial relase ca. 1966 was last night, via DVD. I highly recommend this DVD version--it includes excellent bonus material, including a moving account of composer Bernard Herrman's role in making the film.

I rated the film a "9" despite not being a big Truffaut fan; there's something about the "feel" of his movies that makes me fidgety and leaves me dissatisfied. But that same feel seems just right in this atypical piece of his--he felt he had failed to make the movie right, and he had difficulties with it that are explained in the bonus material. I think what resulted was an unsuspected and unintended success, instead.

Now more than ever in recent history, we face problems with individual liberties that are uncannily reflected in this film. Watch it as a cautionary tale, as a visually stunning experience, and as an example of some of the best film music ever composed: but watch it. I think you'll be glad you did.