Peter Josyph via ZOOM For years, François Truffaut dreamed of making Fahrenheit 451 because, as a lifelong lover of books, he felt a special attraction to Ray Bradbury’s award-winning novel about firemen who burn them, and one, Guy Montag, who decides to quit and become one of the Book People. Starring Oscar Werner as Montag, Cyril Cusack as his boss, and Julie Christie in dual roles as Montag’s wife and as one of the Book People, the film was shot mostly in England and was Truffaut’s only English-language film. Issues of book censorship and book preservation that were important to Bradbury in 1953, and to Truffaut in 1966, are much in the news today. In the first session we will discuss Bradbury’s novel, the complex process of adaptation, and Truffaut’s challenging role as director in a language in which he was insecure. The second session will be a lively discussion of the film, which is available on DVD and for streaming through Amazon Prime on your own during the week between the two classes [A Zoom link will be sent to you prior to each session, typically on the day before your class and the morning of your class. If you have any questions or need help getting online, feel free to call us at 516-480-5733 and we’ll get right back to you with assistance.]
