Director: François Truffaut
Year: 1966
Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature at which book paper gets burnt. It is the basis for the premise of this film, which is based upon the Ray Bradbury’s classic novel of the same name. The film takes the viewer to a future in which firemen start fires instead of put them out. Their main mission appears to look for books, wherever they may be found, and burn them. Those who possess books are breaking the law and are arrested by the state because the written word is merely forbidden.
Montag (Oscar Werner) is a fireman who is married to Linda, who spends most of the day in front of the tv screen watching approved programing put on by the state. Linda is played by the talented Julie Christie, but this is just one of the two roles she plays in this film. The other role is that of Clarisse, a misfit school teacher who likes talking about ideas, the very reason that books are forbidden, since books give ideas to people, which is viewed by the state as a mechanism for making them unhappy with their lot.
Symbolism is exuberant throughout the film. First, the homes of those who have books are often homes that are cozy and reminiscent of homes of our book living society today, while those of people who are with the program are cold. Second, the black uniforms worn by the firemen are reminiscent of those worn by the troopers of Nazi Germany. Third, the actions of the firemen, as they search for those who accumulate books, as well as the search for the books themselves, are also reminiscent of the search by the Nazis for those who were deemed undesirable under the Nazi regime. And fourth, the opening credits of the film are in keeping with the premise of the film that the written word is forbidden. As we can see the opening credits are spoken.
In general, this is a film that those who enjoyed the novel upon which the film is based should see because of the all details.
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