Fahrenheit 451 Movies: the 1966 and 2018 Films, Cast and Changes from the Book
A French director who could not speak English, and an HBO version with no Mildred
There are two films: Fahrenheit 451 (1966), directed by François Truffaut, with Oskar Werner as Montag and Julie Christie playing both his wife and Clarisse, and Fahrenheit 451 (2018), an HBO film directed by Ramin Bahrani, with Michael B. Jordan as Montag and Michael Shannon as Captain Beatty.
Both change the book a great deal; the 2018 film leaves out Montag's wife Mildred entirely.
The two films compared
| Role | 1966 film | 2018 film |
|---|---|---|
| Guy Montag | Oskar Werner | Michael B. Jordan |
| Captain Beatty | Cyril Cusack (the Captain) | Michael Shannon |
| Clarisse | Julie Christie | Sofia Boutella |
| Mildred (Linda in 1966) | Julie Christie | Not in the film |
| Director | François Truffaut | Ramin Bahrani |
| Released | 1966, cinemas | May 2018, HBO |
Truffaut's 1966 film
François Truffaut, one of the leaders of the French New Wave, made his only English-language film from Bradbury's book, in England, at a time when he barely spoke English. He clashed often with his star Oskar Werner. Nicolas Roeg shot it in soft, bright colours, and Bernard Herrmann wrote the score. The credits are spoken rather than written, since this is a world without reading.
The boldest choice was casting Julie Christie as both Montag's wife, renamed Linda, and Clarisse, who becomes a young teacher rather than a teenage girl. The Mechanical Hound is left out, Faber is gone, and the ending, with the book people walking through falling snow reciting their books, is gentle and dreamlike. Bradbury liked the film overall.
↑ Back to the topThe 2018 HBO film
Ramin Bahrani's version updates the story for the internet age. Books are banned, and so is most of the old internet; people live inside a constant stream of screens and emoji, and a home assistant voice watches over Montag. Michael B. Jordan plays a young, popular fireman who is being groomed to succeed Beatty, and Michael Shannon's Beatty is a complex man who secretly writes in a notebook.
Mildred is cut completely, Clarisse becomes an informer working with the book people, and the film adds a plan to spread the world's books through the DNA of a bird. Reviews were mixed: many praised Shannon but felt the film lost the quiet heart of the book.
↑ Back to the topThe main changes from the novel
Neither film keeps the book's ending, in which the city is destroyed in a sudden war while Montag watches from the countryside. Both drop or reduce Faber, the old professor who guides Montag through an earpiece. The 1966 film removes the Hound; the 2018 film removes Mildred. If you want Bradbury's own vision, the book is still the only complete version.
↑ Back to the topWhich version should you watch?
Truffaut's film is the more famous and the better made, and its final scene among the book people is one of the most beautiful in 1960s cinema. The 2018 film is easier to find on streaming services and may feel more familiar to younger viewers, with its world of screens. Reading the book first makes both films more interesting.
↑ Back to the topMore about Fahrenheit 451
Books Like Fahrenheit 451
Something Wicked This Way ComesRay Bradbury
The Stepford WivesIra Levin
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?Philip K. Dick
Brave New WorldAldous Huxley
1984George Orwell
A Clockwork OrangeAnthony Burgess
Forever PeaceJoe Haldeman
The Invisible ManH. G. WellsThis guide discusses the whole plot, including the ending.