The Truman Show

One of the true classic original films from the 1990s, if you haven't seen The Truman Show yet then you're clearly as oblivious as Truman himself. The Truman Show takes a brilliant science-fiction concept that comments on our society and tweaks it into an all-American parable that should speak to just about anyone in the western world. Not only does it shine a revealing light on such weighty concepts as the rise of reality television, christianity, and the way the media shapes our perception of life, but it also happens to be a heck of an entertaining film with a breakthrough dramatic performance from Jim Carrey (who had previously been known mainly for his over-the-top comedic films). Don't read on if you haven't seen The Truman Show, as spoilers be here...

Truman (Jim Carrey) is the one 'true man' in his world. Ever since he was a baby he has been raised in a fabricated small town filled with video cameras. Every person he has ever met is an actor, their actions orchestrated by the enigmatic artist/director Christof (Ed Harris), who shapes Truman's life from his vantage point inside an artifical version of the moon. In the real world, Truman's life is a smash hit television show, where everyday people follow his life as if it were a soap opera. Truman is unaware of this, but he begins to get itchy feet when a series of freak events make him question his reality.

The first thing you might notice about The Truman Show is that it's full of interesting shots that are used to suggest we are watching him through cameras. This includes scenes where the screen seems to have circular edges, or low shots such as the view we see from inside his car radio. Not only does this help reinforce the impression of a virtual world that has been constructed around this unknowing protagonist, it also makes us (the viewer) more conscious of camera shots in general. We become actively involved in the filmmaking process via these visual cues and metafictional touches, and hence we have a heightened awareness of the 'fakeness' of Truman's world. Another great aspect of this is the way product placement and advertising is continually worked into Truman's life. The film rewards the viewer on repeat viewings too as you spot more of these little touches - such as what the 'extras' are doing in the background, or the scene when Truman impusively decides to visit a travel agent (the travel agent who meets him is obviously drafted in at the last minute and still has her make-up bib on!)

There's a clear sense of paranoia at work as the film progresses and Truman's world conspires to stop him from leaving in any way. Christof has even engineered a fear of water to help imprison him, and there's a great scene where Truman's friend is reassuring him and we cut away to Christof directing him. We see the man behind the curtain, manipulating events for dramatic effect. The added brilliance of this is that it then cuts to the audience watching the Truman Show, and they're being manipulated just as much as Truman, and on top of that - the music we're hearing in the film is revealed to be the same music they're hearing, as chosen by Christof, and there's a sheepish realisation that we're being manipulated too! Another great metafictional moment comes when we see Truman triumphantly crossing the sea to escape, and Christof's voice breaks in with "That's our hero shot". It would altogether shatter the illusion the film constructs if it weren't for how serious and pure everyone involved is - Carrey, Harris and Peter Weir all work hard to put this film on the table with an almost religious fervour - and our participation as audience members is part of the film itself.

Christof is a very interesting character, he sees Truman's world as an ideal representation of what a normal 'good' life should be (hence the hokey small-town Americana that surrounds Truman). But he goes too far in trying to keep Truman imprisoned in his world, playing God in a very Old Testament kind of way (Truman walks on water like Jesus before finally meeting his God - and Christof's face is shown in extreme closeup like the massive face of a deity), and Truman literally turns his back on his God in order to move forward. He rejects pre-destiny in favour of the dangerous unknown, and it's a beautiful ending that works on several levels.

Jim Carrey is better in this than anyone gave him credit for at the time - he goes to great lengths to strip his character of any arrogance to avoid the egocentrism that would otherwise come naturally to a man who quite literally has the world revolving around him. A lot of this is down to the naivete of the character, but Carrey does a really good job of making you believe in him. The scenes where he starts to get wise to the weirdness of his world are edge of the seat moments because you come to cheer for him in much the same way as the audience of his show do. Of course, realistically, if this was the only world Truman had ever known there'd be no reason to hide the cameras, nor would product placement be strange to him... Christof even says at one point, "We accept the reality of the world in which we live in", but I don't think it really diminishes the film or suspension of belief simply because the script is so well-plotted. It really sinks it's teeth into a lot of interesting issues, and it's almost scary how relevant it has become now that reality TV is a fully-established and undying phenomenon.

TRIVIA: There is a real psychological condition attached to schizophrenia that has come to be known as 'The Truman Show Delusion', where people think their lives are really the centre of reality TV shows.

Dennis Hopper was originally cast as Christof, but he left the film on the first day of filming. An earlier attempt to get the film made would've seen Gary Oldman playing Truman.

The film is a set text for Senior High School study in both America and Australia.

The street names and supporting characters are all named after famous Hollywood stars (Marlon, Meryl, Lancaster Avenue, etc, etc).

DIRECTOR: Peter Weir
WRITER/SOURCE: Andrew Niccol
KEY ACTORS: Jim Carrey, Ed Harris, Laura Linney, Noah Emmerich, Natascha McElhone, Holland Taylor, Paul Giamati, Harry Shearer, Philip Baker Hall

RELATED TEXTS:
- The 7 Up documentary series, in which the director visits a group of people to document their lives every seven years.
- The Man With Five Children, an Australian play that deals with themes raised by the documentary series 7 Up.
- Pretty much any reality television show could be seen as a related text.
- The book Dead Famous by Ben Elton deals with a Big Brother-styled reality TV show.
- The film EdTV deals with a similar set up to The Truman Show, though the main difference is that the protagonist is aware he is being filmed.

AWARDS:
Nominated for three Oscars - Best Director (Peter Weir), Best Original Screenplay (Andrew Niccol) and Best Supporting Actor (Ed Harris).
Wins and nominations from a diverse array of film festivals and awards ceremonies - including the BAFTAs (Peter Weir and Andrew Niccol won awards) and the Golden Globes (Ed Harris won a Best Supporting Actor award).
Jim Carrey won a Golden Globe for Best Actor (Drama) despite failing to even get nominated for most other Best Actor awards.