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Poster for Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451

What if you had no right to read?

1966 · 1h 53m · Not Rated Drama, Science Fiction
Directed by François Truffaut

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Overview

In the future, the government maintains control of public opinion by outlawing literature and maintaining a group of enforcers, known as “firemen,” to perform the necessary book burnings. Fireman Montag begins to question the morality of his vocation…

Director and cast

Critics on Rotten Tomatoes

Top critics, in their words

All reviews
82%
Tomatometer
Rotten

Even at the science-fiction horror-story level, the movie fails -- partly, I think, because Truffaut is too much of an artist to exploit the vulgar possibilities in the material.

Pauline Kael, The New Republic
Rotten

This 1966 film often looks good (it was Truffaut's first in color, photographed by Nicolas Roeg), but the ideas, such as they are, get lost in the meandering narrative.

Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
Rotten

Holy smoke! What a pretentious and pedantic production he has made.

Vincent Canby, New York Times
Fresh

With a serious and even terrifying theme, this excursion into science fiction has been thoughtfully directed by Francois Truffaut and there is adequate evidence of light touches to bring welcome and needed relief to a sombre and scarifying subject.

Variety
Fresh

An underrated film, perhaps because it is less science fiction than a tale of 'once upon a time.'

Time Out

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