Director
Francois Truffaut
Leading Actors/Actresses
Oskar Werner
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Julie Christie, Cyril Cusack
Genre
Science Fiction
Language
English
Awards
Nominated for the 1967 Hugo Award and 1966 Golden Lion
Date of Release
September 16, 1966
Producer
Lewis M. Allen
Setting and Context
Futuristic dystopian society, possibly in England
Narrator and Point of View
Narrator is a third-person omniscient character who understands the thoughts and functionings of each individual. However, most of the character interplay occurs during dialogue.
Tone and Mood
As it is set in a dystopian society where a totalitarian government controls everything, the tone and mood are melancholy, morose, scared, and dark.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The protagonist is Guy Montag, who breaks free from the conformity of society. Although society itself could be said to be the antagonist, a specific character would be the Captain of the firemen.
Major Conflict
The major conflict occurs because Guy Montag has a change of heart and ideology. He no longer believes that books are evil and that they should be burnt. Going against the law of their oppressive society, Guy Montag secretly collects and reads books until he is caught.
Climax
When the books at Guy Montag's house are being burnt to ashes, Linda Montag is leaving him, and the Captain is lecturing him about right and wrong, Guy Montag snaps. In a moment of rage and desperation, a moment that becomes the climax, Guy Montag kills the captain with his flamethrower.
Foreshadowing
There is foreshadowing that the Captain knows what Montag is up to. He persistently questions Montag and asks him what he does on his days off. Montag cooly replies to the Captain but the Captain says that every one makes mistakes, and that it is better to fess up early than continue.
Understatement
An understatement would be the idea mentioned that literature is not allowed. There is a special government division dedicated wholly to the eradication and extermination of books, and they hunt and arrest anyone found hoarding or reading books.
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
The film uses innovative lighting techniques by allowing a sole flame of fire to light up Guy Montag's face in certain scenes. Not only does the flickering source of light move his face in and out of darkness, representing his dueling identities, it is also a symbolic way to use the fire.
Allusions
Fahrenheit 451 directly alludes to the novel 1984 by George Orwell, which describes how the first steps an oppressive government will take to control the people is take away freedom of thought and expression.
Paradox
The rationale behind the destruction of the books in this society by the government is that it makes people happier and more satisfied. However, as we can see with Linda Montag's character, she is wholly unfulfilled in her life.
Parallelism
Linda Montag and Clarisse are "two sides of the same coin," as noted by the director in his decision to choose the same actress to play both roles. This represents the parallelism between their two characters and how although their ideas may seem drastically different, they are both internally questioning their purpose in society at large.
