Fahrenheit 451 (1966 film)
| Fahrenheit 451 | |
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| Directed by | François Truffaut |
| Produced by | Lewis M. Allen |
| Written by | Jean-Louis Ricard François Truffaut |
| Starring | Julie Christie Oskar Werner Cyril Cusack |
| Music by | Bernard Herrmann |
| Cinematography | Nicolas Roeg |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | November 14, 1966 (USA) |
| Running time | 112 min |
| IMDb profile | |
Fahrenheit 451 is a 1966 film of a dystopian future, based on the novel of the same name by Ray Bradbury.
According to Bradbury the novel is not about speech, but is a story about how television destroys interest in reading literature.[1] The central character, Guy Montag, is employed as a "fireman" (which, in this case, means "book burner"). 451 degrees Fahrenheit (about 233°C) is stated as "The temperature at which book-paper catches fire, and burns ...". It was directed by François Truffaut, his only English-language film.
The film starred Oskar Werner as Montag and Julie Christie who was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role award for the dual roles of Linda (Mildred) Montag and Clarisse; having long red and short blonde hair respectively and being photographed through different coloured filters. Funding for the film became available when both Christie and Werner, both in popular films at the time, became interested in the project.
The movie differed somewhat from the novel.
- Clarisse survives throughout the film and accompanies Montag when he leaves the city.
- The role played by Faber is reduced significantly, appearing only briefly in one scene as an old man who is searched for books in a park as the cinematography surrounds him with black borders.
- The obsession with fast and often fatal driving that permeates the novel is nowhere in the film. Only three automobiles are seen in the film; a Jaguar S-Type, a Commer Imp van, and art director Syd Cain's red Excalibur roadster.
- Bradbury has said that Truffaut "captured the soul and essence of the book," although he disliked the double omission of Faber and the Mechanical Hound.
- Once Montag begins reading, the machines of his society (represented by the Mechanical Hound in the book) turn against him. In the film this is represented by his being unable to go up the fireman's pole and the door of his home no longer opening automatically.
- The nuclear war in the book is absent, though one of Linda's friends talks about her husband being called up by the military.
- The film adds a pursuit of Montag with James Bond type jet packs and an attack from a machine gun firing helicopter that is televised.
The film was Universal Pictures first European production that was followed by A Countess From Hong Kong.
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Production
- The film was shot at Pinewood Studios in England, with the monorail exterior scene taken at the French SAFEGE test track, in Châteneuf-sur-Loire near Orléans, France (since dismantled). The Alton housing estate in Roehampton, South London was also featured in the film.
- Truffaut spoke virtually no English, but co-wrote the screenplay with Jean-Louis Ricard. Truffaut expressed disappointment with the often stilted and unnatural English-language dialogue. He was much happier with the version which was dubbed into French.
- The production work was done in French.
- To provide a taste of what life is like in a non-literate culture, the opening credits are spoken rather than being displayed in type.
- The final scene of the Book People was filmed in a rare and unexpected snowstorm on the date of Julie Christie's birthday.
- Tony Walton did costumes and production design whilst Syd Cain did art direction.
List of works and authors mentioned
Note: According to the book Bradbury: An Illustrated Life, neither Bradbury nor Truffaut chose the books that appear in the movie. The DVD commentary suggests that many or all of the books used came from Truffaut's personal library. One of the books, though barely visible, is Fahrenheit 451 itself.
Music
According to an introduction by Ray Bradbury to a CD of a rerecording of the film score by William Stromberg conducting the Moscow Symphony Orchestra Bradbury had suggested Bernard Herrmann to Truffaut. Bradbury had visited the set of Torn Curtain meeting both Alfred Hitchcock and Herrmann before Herrmann left the film. When Truffaut contacted Bradbury for a conference about his book, Bradbury recommended Herrmann as Bradbury knew Truffaut had written a detailed book about Hitchcock.[2]
When Herrmann met Truffaut he asked him why he was chosen over "modern" composers such as the director's friends Pierre Boulez or Karlheinz Stockhausen. Truffaut replied that "They'll give me music of the twentieth century, but you'll give me music of the twenty first!"[3]
Herrmann used a score of only string instruments, harp, xylophone, vibraphone, marimba, and glockenspiel. As with Torn Curtain, Herrmann refused the studio's request to do a title song.
Notes
- ^ Boyle Johnston, Amy E. "Ray Bradbury: Fahrenheit the monster51 Misinterpreted", LA Weekly, May 30, 2007.
- ^ Bradbury, Ray Bernard Herrmann and Fahrenheit 451 liner notes for CD 5 June 2007
- ^ Kogehehn, Gunther liner notes "Fahrenheit 451" Tribute CD
See also
External links
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