The Truman Show (1998)

The Reality of the Truman Show

The first time I saw The Truman Show, I was hooked. The movie is highly critical of the media and of how reality is manipulated to entertain the largest group of people. I have always been critical of the way television shows always claim to distribute "reality" to the public, and The Truman Show exemplifies many of the reasons reality television is so highly criticized. Truman, played by Jim Carrey, is an engaging character whose life is displayed on camera for the world to watch. He is surrounded by actors hired to interact with him and inspire the emotion that makes Truman so interesting to watch. The emotions and actions of the actors aren't real, so though they are believable, Truman's emotions and actions cannot be real either. Truman is floating in a naïve sense of truth. This movie illustrates how though we may believe that what the Television is flashing before us is reality, there is a truth much different from what is displayed on the screen; and we should be critical enough to see the real truth for ourselves.
Truman Burbank is the focus of a television show that began with his birth and subsequent adoption by the TV studio. Every aspect of his life is on camera, and there are thousands of cameras that follow every action from various vantage points. While he is growing up, going to school, and getting married, he is being watched. He is watched as he leaves his actor/wife to go to work in the morning, and watched as his actor/best friend hang out with a six-pack of beers. It all seems so quaint and real but the truth is that his life is a sham. His wife isn't real, she doesn't even like him, which he finds out by examining their wedding photos and finding that her fingers are crossed during their wedding kiss. His best friend Marlon isn't real; instead of being a true friend Marlon is used to manipulate Truman into certain frames of thought. He takes advantage of outings to hit some golf balls to convince Truman to stay put on his island instead of going to Fiji for a vacation.
Not only are the characters used to influence Truman's sense of reality, but the media in his world as well. The radio station creates a convenient explanation for the equipment which falls from the sky right as Truman is walking to his car in the morning. According to the announcer, a plane accidentally lost equipment that morning, causing the invasion into Truman's world. Truman's "father," who was killed off the show in a boating accident designed to make Truman terrified of the water, somehow manages to get back onto the set and disturb Truman's life. Seeing a man who is supposed to be dead alive once again is a big deal, and quite a shock, especially when random strangers appear out of nowhere and take the man away with no explanation at the time. The explanation comes from the newspaper which spins the incident into an issue of cleansing the town of homeless people and from the woman playing his mother, who claims that she "sees" Truman's father in every face on the street. Truman remains unconvinced, he knows what he saw for himself.
These events set off a chain reaction of discovery in Truman's life. He realizes that he is being followed when his radio accidentally picks up the frequency broadcasting the transmission from actor to actor. In an effort to discover some truth, Truman goes against his routine and visits the building next door to his, and sees people sitting at donut-laden tables where an elevator should be. After being dragged from the building he goes to see his wife, Meryl, at the hospital where she works. At every turn he is conveniently blocked by some obstacle or another and he cannot get into the operating room where she is performing "surgery." He attempts to fly to Fiji but is told by the travel agent that they are booked up for a month because it is the "busy season." When he tries to take a bus, the bus breaks down, and when he tries to drive away with Meryl, he runs into bumper to bumper traffic, a bridge over the water that terrifies him, a forest fire, and ultimately a nuclear meltdown which forces him to stop the car. When Truman tries to run, he is tackled by men in tinfoil suits and dragged back to his home.
All of these obstacles are the design of Christof, the creator, designer, and omnipotent watcher over Truman's life. He is responsible for every person Truman sees, every word they say to him, and every challenge he faces. He observes Truman from his studio in the moon and engineers heart-wrenching scenes with a frightening genius. The best example is probably the return of Truman's father, who is reunited with his son in a dramatic scene involving fog, various camera angles, and synthesized music all coming to a climax as Christof orchestrates the camera to a close-up as Truman embraces his father and sobs, "dad!" These are the scenes that drag the audiences into Truman's life, drawing on their sympathy and awe. They accept the reality as Christof presents it to them, drawn by the intrigue to watch more. Christof lets them see what he wants them to see, his story, and the audience blindly follows along. They either don't realize or choose not to see the reality of Truman's situation. His emotions and actions are being manipulated in the exact same way as theirs are.
It's too perfect, this scene and the entirety of the show Christof creates. When a caller on a talk show claims that Christof has turned Truman into something unreal, he replies, "I have given Truman the chance to lead a normal life. The world, the place you live in, is the sick place." I fail to see how his manipulations are any less sick than the terrible place he is protecting Truman from. His claim that he is "protecting" Truman reeks of protecting his interests as a TV show director and protecting the fan-base he has established with the show. He limits the information given to Truman and blocks his "star" from exploring the world outside his own, claiming that if Truman "was absolutely determined to discover the truth, there's no way we could prevent him." It seems that preventing Truman from discovering the truth is his sole goal. At the height of the film, Truman's life is a battle for the truth fought between him and the force he has found working against him, though he still doesn't know who he fights.
The stage for the final battle is set on the sea that separates Truman from the rest of the world. His desire for the truth is so strong he overcomes his terror of the water and attempts to sail to freedom. Christof sends him a storm complete with thunder and lightning and gale force winds. It is incredible that this storm is the result of two conflicting ideals, the seeker of truth and the keeper of the truth. This idea goes beyond mere reality TV and broadens to all media and even the government. It is easy to correlate the huge body of the government or the body of the media with Christof, the manipulator of the information and the figure who decides who hears and knows what. Truman is the people, the ignorant populace who is at first naïve and complacent but fierce in his desire for information once the ball is rolling.
Here is where the relationship between Truman and we the populace ends. We have not yet found that drive for knowledge, the real and true knowledge. We are just like the viewers of The Truman Show. We are still absorbed in the forged reality of the story and have not yet broken through the silver lining to the bare bones of what we are seeing. Truman should be our icon for reality and his drive should be our drive. Truman knows that the world outside his dome of illusion is different and new and unexpected. He may be afraid to step outside the door but what truly matters is the journey to get to the door and the realization that there is a door in the wall. November 6, 2008

My kind of reality show...

The concept behind `The Truman Show' is more pertinent to us today than it was when the film was released. Sure, the idea of television controlling the world is not a new one, but in a world where every new television program is another take at the reality genre it becomes more and more probable that an event such as this one may one day take place. The opening words by the shows creator say it all:

"We've become bored with watching actors give us phony emotions. We are tired of pyrotechnics and special effects."

With that said, `The Truman Show' begins. The film tells the story of Truman Burbank, the only non-actor in a world filled with actors. He is married to an actress; his best friend is an actor; his high school teachers and current employer and seriously everyone around him, from his mother to his late father to the person that happens to walk by his house at precisely the same moment every morning. The thing is, Truman doesn't know this. He actually thinks that his life is legit, but what he doesn't comprehend is the fact that everyone in the known universe is watching his every move being projected onto their living room television set.

Yes, Truman is the star of his own reality show; a reality show he is unaware exists.

I remember watching this film when it was first released and I was merely thirteen and I felt that the film was boring and unentertaining. Because of the misinterpretation I stayed far away from this film for years, only recently entertaining the notion of watching it once again. My feelings the second time around are vastly different. `The Truman Show' is a marvelous study of the effect that television and the media in general has on each and every individual, and the damage it can do to ones psyche.

The acting here is beyond good, especially when in regards to the star of the whole show; Jim Carrey. Many have said that this is a career best for Carrey, and I think I may have to agree (although he was beyond superb in `Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind' as well). He brilliantly captures Truman's naivety and his destructive curiosity once he starts to put the pieces together. Laura Linney is wonderful as Truman's wife Meryl, contrasting her faux perfection with her genuine dissatisfaction with her actorly existence. I was not entirely blown away by Ed Harris (the only Oscar nominated performance in the bunch) for I felt that his performance was not a very difficult one. He pulls it off, sure, but there wasn't much to pull off here. Supporting players like Natascha McElhone and Noah Emmerich are also wonderfully complete and add layers to each and every scene.

What I love so much about `The Truman Show' is that it stays true to the concept in every aspect of the film. There are product placements throughout the entire film, and they pop up in the most ridiculous manner, which adds light to the idea that television is steadily controlling our every thought and action. The script is brilliantly fleshed out, creating real characters with real problems and real concerns. Weir's direction is amazing, visually captivating from start to finish by using techniques (with camera angles and placement) that create an air of reality within this faux reality.

This is what makes television worth watching. September 16, 2008

Unusual theme

I like this movie alot; I like Jim Carrey as a serious actor and as a semiserious one. He is an incredible actor. The story gives one pause to consider what if my life had been entirely staged, scripted, and was on display 24 hours a day. Yikes! September 11, 2008

ABSOLUTELY BEYOND OUTSTANDING

For me to give a 5-star rating to any Jim Carrey movie, before I saw this 1, I'd say you'd see the sun rise in the west first; or see Bush become a Christian!
Very very small-the ending, kind of leaves 1 hanging; especially with Natascha's character when she rejoices over Carrey's choice and throws on her coat and runs out the door, where's she going? To him?
But for what the movie is and attempts to accomplish, BRAVO x 1000. To qualify, for people who are not into a surreal brand of movie, without question, avoid this one!
Ed Harris' character Christof? Like Carrey's, bravo! A little malevolent, at the end when he tells Truman to choose to stay; is it love, or control? Masterfully played! And Laura Linney, always outstanding. Natascha McElhone? First roll I've seen her in but, as with Harris and Carrey, very poignantly played!

Some of the philosophical questions attacked, interestingly enough, are issues, and choices, America is contending with today.
What is it we're seeking? security, with the known and totally controlled, or the adventure of the unknown, freedom, and exploration?
How do we define sickness? completely controlling a human being's life for ratings, or the rest of the world itself gone completely mad with rising crime and a government we don't seem to be able to control any more, and an apathetic spirit which chooses to just disengage?
Is it sick/wrong for the network or corporation or whomever it is to claim ownership over Truman, in an obvious capacity, when in a more invidious one we delusionally call ourselves free today at the same time government has virtually reduced us to slaves?
What is it Goethe says, "None are more easily enslaved than those who call their slavery freedom"? Truman's mistake-discovering the game; when are we? If you like movies like "V For Vendetta" you'll like this 1 too.
A++++++ April 19, 2008

Truman Show

Great movie that gets you thinking about your own perspective of reality. Jim Carey does very good and the best part is that he did not use one bit of crude humor like he does in many of his other shows. April 14, 2008

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