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:

Oskar Werner, Julie Christie, 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	...	Captain Beatty
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:

haircut | futuretro | memorizing a book | 1960s | near future | 

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Taglines:

What if you had no right to read?

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Genres:

Drama | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 November 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Farenhajt 451

Filming Locations:

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

Box Office

Budget:

$1,500,000 (estimated)

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

Jane Fonda was offered one of the roles that went to Julie Christie.

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Goofs

The first time Montag meets the woman in the monorail, behind the woman, you can see the conventional train rails out the windows.

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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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Alternate Versions

Originally Noel Davis (who plays Cousin Midge) did the opening voice over. In the current version it is done by Alex Scott ("The Life of Henry Brulard" Book Person).

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Connections

References The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

User Reviews

Reading is fundamental

After reading several whinny comments about how the movie is so different from the book I just had to add my two cents. Hello people! These are two different mediums here, like comparing Katherine Hepburn to Audrey Hepburn. They are two different entities which stand alone on their own merits.

I read the book years and years ago, and frankly, I don't remember much about it. I'd seen the movie in years past, and it never knocked my socks off. But upon viewing it last night, I have to say I found myself thoroughly engrossed in it. The scene in the monorail where all the passengers are trying to stimulate themselves through their sense of touch is quite moving. As is the neighbor who declares, "They aren't like us, are they?"

It's never going to be a movie in which you want to see over and over again (like the fluffy Wizard of Oz, again a book that is totally different from the movie, where are the complaining people now?) but it's a movie that should be seen. I also wonder how many people will complain when the new version comes out? I can hear them now, "The first movie was so much better!"