6 replies to this topic

[caltrek]

I really hate coming across science fiction movie reviews of films that I have not seen yet.  In this case, I have seen an ealrier movie version and read the book.  So I feel some justification in presenting the review.  I would really be interested in the reactions of any who have seen the new version.   Other comments are also welcome.

 

HBO’s 'Fahrenheit 451': Bradbury’s Dystopian Nightmare Future is Now Peak Trump Era

 

https://www.alternet...-peak-trump-era

 

 

Introduction:

 

(Alternet) Director Ramin Bahrani doesn’t have to do much to make Ray Bradbury's cautionary 1953 novel “Fahrenheit 451” scream its familiar warning to 2018 audiences.

 

Indeed, what was nightmarish speculation for Bradbury 65 years ago is basically our reality now, specifically his idea of television screens the size of walls and a population that medicates its problems.

 

Many of us will watch Bahrani's cinematic adaptation “Fahrenheit 451,” making its TV debut Saturday at 8 p.m on HBO, on the small screens integrated into our mobile devices. They'll access his film via internet and data connections that make it possible to see it any time, and anywhere.

 

Technology has more or less made Bradbury’s nightmare all but a fait accompli. We should thank our stars that we're not heating our homes with the innards of public libraries at this point.

 

Among Bradbury’s best known stories, “Fahrenheit 451” seems well-suited for a high-end cinematic treatment by master of blockbusters, someone of Steven Spielberg’s or Ridley Scott’s caliber. 

 

[zEVerzan]

I'm interested in seeing how it presents another of the social themes of the book - that everyone is easily offended and so it creates an atmosphere of anti-intellectualism where the people themselves banned books.

 

My view on that is that people who easily get offended at things like bigotry (racism, sexism, transphobia etc) have their hearts in the right place, but lack the ability to express themselves coherently and something should be done about that because otherwise they just look like screeching, out-of-control SJews.

 

Bradbury had this theme in a lot of his work and always tended to portray it as "oh, they just don't like to think for themselves and so they're just anti-intellectual."

[starspawn0]

There is a flip-side to people getting offended:

Some liberals and progressives like to defend conservatives and "ordinary folk" against criticism. They don't like to see liberal intellectuals pick apart the average conservative, just as they don't like to see conversatives stereotype the poor and minorities -- or argue that those stereotypes are accurate. They seem to want everybody to be "nice", and not hurt anybody's feelings.

So, for example, if you dash the hopes and dreams of a country bumpkin libertarian with a "natural experiment" or well-known bit of theory, that disproves their cherished beliefs, then what you have done is considered "not nice" or even "mean" -- it's better to be gentle, and let them continue to believe what they believe.

If liberals ever do gain absolute power through technology, rural conservatives have nothing to fear -- liberals will construct for them a perfect little snow-globe town to live in, where they can continue to live out their lives as they see fit. They'll even sprinkle in a few annoying liberals to get worked-up over, and give their lives meaning.

[zEVerzan]

If liberals ever do gain absolute power through technology, rural conservatives have nothing to fear -- liberals will construct for them a perfect little snow-globe town for them to live in, where they can continue to live out their beliefs as they see fit. They'll even sprinkle in a few annoying liberals to get worked-up over, and give their lives meaning.

 

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[kjaggard]

 otherwise they just look like screeching, out-of-control SJews.

I'm not sure I understand this term. I'm sure it's not an attempt at an antisemitic term like it looks. could you elaborate on it's meaning.

[zEVerzan]

Oh, that's just the way SJW is pronounced phonetically so I point it out. It also calls attention to the potential bigotry of someone who uses this term unironically, which gets their goat a bit. Essjew

[Ewolf20]

i loved the book as a kid. looking forward to this.