Fahrenheit 451 was the first Ray Bradbury book I ever read in 6th grade. I discovered him after reading a short story called Fever Dream in a magazine in
5th grade that gave me chills. Before that, I was mostly reading Hardy Boys and dinosaur
books, so it felt great to read something with so much imagination.
In 1966, it was made into a movie by François Truffaut, which despite lead actor Oskar Werner's efforts to sabotage the production (because he hated the director), it wasn't a bad movie at all. There were a few powerful moments that I respect from this version.
And now, in 2018, I thought I would really hate the the modern Michael B. Jordan remake.
It turns
out, parts of it were a decent modern take on the original concept!
And parts of it was Hollywood just changing things because they're
idiots. Seriously guys, stop trying so hard. Your ideas suck.
The standout for me was Michael Shannon, as the Captain. He made me appreciate his acting skills, after really hating
him as Zod in Man of Steel.
Otherwise, some of the scenes felt very well done (no
fire pun intended), and it's easy to imagine some of the elements here happening with today's social media culture. But I still think the 1966 movie was a bit better.
In the
end, you really should read the book.... before it's too late.
Deeesher
