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The
Truman Show (1998)
With "The Truman Show" Jim Carrey spits in the face
of all those fans who made him a star. This figurative
slap to the public is a wonderful surprise to those
of us who doubted the man's talent. It's amazing that
anyone of his supposed numerous advisors (agents, managers,
entourage members, studio bosses, etc) let him make
this masterpiece. It will be maligned and misunderstood
by the throng who will gladly pay to see it. And, sadly,
it might be missed by those who cannot stand the goofball
antics of the rubberfaced man, the very type it is intended
for.
Carrey plays Truman Burbank and the ads and trailers
leading up to the film's release have already told us
that Truman was adopted by a corporation as a baby and
then had every moment of his life televised, unbeknownst
to him. His birth, his first steps, his adolescent crushes,
his marriage and marital relations have all been televised.
(One can only assume he never masturbated as a pubescent,
there is even a camera in the bathroom). All of the
people in Truman's world are actors from his wife (Laura
Linney) to his mom (Holland Taylor) to his best friend
(Noah Emmerich). Oddly, perhaps because of the hype,
director Peter Weir brings us almost an hour of the
film before he breaks into an aside where the creator
of "The Truman Show," Christof (Ed Harris) is interviewed
by Harry Shearer about his show. Up till this point,
it is assumed we understand the proceedings. This cannot
help but make one wish and wonder what it might be like
to see the film knowing anything about it.
The film must have a plot and so it doesn't take long
for Truman to begin to suspect things are amiss in his
world. It begins when he sees a man who looks like his
father, long dead, who is quickly whisked away by a
man and woman right before Truman's eyes. From here
on, an odyssey begins by Truman to leave the island
of his home, a huge enclosed world created by Christof
with programmable weather and sunlight and thousands
of cameras. Truman wants to go to Fiji, a destination
of import in another plot point. And here is where the
film begins to get detailed and wondrous. It is shown
how Truman has been made afraid to leave the island
by having a fear of water created for him. Numerous
other little subterfuges are revealed to explain why
Truman has never left the island as well, from the ingenious
to the hilarious. It's done perfectly.
"The Truman Show" is a masterpiece for two reasons.
One, it is an important diatribe against our television
mentality and, two, it is an ingenious recitation on
the frailty of sanity. First, and foremost, is the theme
of television. American society is permeated by television.
All culture is now pop culture. The idea of a man trapped
in a TV world not of his own creating doesn't even seem
that insidious to us. In fact, it becomes a huge hit
in the film and one wonders if anyone might raise any
objection if the film's fictitious ruse were tried in
reality. TV has become so much a part of our lives that
we are especially captivated by it when reality is shown,
truthfully or supposedly, "True Tales of the Highway
Patrol," "Cops," "The Real World," the O.J. Simpson
trial... the line between reality and entertainment
is so blurred now as to become indistinguishable. "The
Truman Show" covertly chides us for this. It is so subtle
that this point will be lost on those who "don't get"
and don't like the film. They don't understand that
it is meant to shame them. Secondly is the precarious
nature of sanity exposed here. For who is to say that
Truman isn't delusional. What one of us, told since
birth that God is "everywhere" and "always watching
us" doesn't have some layer of built-in paranoia? Truman
is all of us with modern Judeo-Christian upbringing.
Couple this with the conspiracy theories that abound
in modern culture, from the JFK assassination to Area
51 and tabloid journalism hocus pocus and you've got
a society ripe for paranoia and distrust. When Truman's
paranoia begins to overwhelm him, he reacts in the manner
we might call "homicidal" or "neurotic." There is a
point where one wonders if he will not kill himself
or someone else. The movie makes no bones about this.
And when Truman does finally overcome his paranoia and
come close to escape, when he gets to the end of his
world, the edge of the precipice, he talks to his maker,
Christof, and it is as if he is talking to God. It is
no accident that Christof's voice booms from the sky.
This is a parable about modern Christian anxiety. What
would we say and do if we found out that God not only
existed but that we were created for his and others
"amusement?" What if God told us he just wanted to see
"what we'd do" if he created us? Would we stay in this
Godly prison or opt for escape? Pretty Heady stuff for
a Jim Carrey movie, huh!
Speaking of the actor. He is awesome. His goofiness
is only in the amounts that suit the character. Carrey
actually acts and it is hard to imagine the film having
the prominence it deserves or the resonance it requires
without him in the role. Carrey's sweetness is infectious
throughout the first half of the film and his angst
is all the more troubling later because of this. No
one but Carrey has the star quality and clout to make
this role take shape, let alone the acting skills. The
part requires a phenomenon and Carrey delivers in abundance.
It is the performance of his career and one guaranteed
to be associated with him until the end of time. His
quiet driving compulsion to understand what is going
on in his world is remarkable and made even more intense
by the actors around him.
A highlight of the film occurs when Emmerich and Carrey
talk of their friendship. They have been friends since
age 7. Carrey's Truman is suspicious of a plot but he
just can't seem to put his finger on what is going on
around him that is so troubling. Emmerich, as Marlon,
shares a tear-filled moment with Truman, telling his
friend that if anything was going on, any kind of plot
or conspiracy, he wouldn't have anything to do with
it. "I'm not in on it," he tells his troubled friend.
His lines come into his ear from the control room where
Christof sits, the creator whispering them into a microphone
for Marlon to Echo to Truman. It is ever so disquieting.
The writing and direction of the film is flawless.
Weir's work comes from a script by Andrew Niccol (who
explores another theme of paranoia in postmodern society
in "Gattaca") which is one of the most solid and perfect
scripts I have witnessed in quite a while. Since these
two films are Niccol's first works, it will be interesting
to see what the man has in store for us in the future.
But his "The Truman Show" will probably be lost on
quite a few of those Generation X Baby Boomer TV junkies.
They will find it boring. They will think it's "stupid."
They won't understand why a Jim Carrey movie isn't funny.
They won't get it... Kinda the point, ain't it?
Note: Also with Natascha McElhone. Blair Slater plays
the young Truman. Phillip Glass has a cameo.
Niccol also acts as a Producer. Other Producers include
Scott Rudin.
Music by Burkhard Dallwitz (aka Burkhart von Dallwitz),
with additional music by Glass. Also includes a piece
by Wojciech Kilar. Although there are no real pop songs
in the film, the Talking Heads song "Once in a Lifetime"
was used quite effectively in the trailer.
Filmed in Florida on a budget of $60 million.
Dennis Hopper was to play the role of Christof but
had "creative differences" on the set with Weir.
Review written in 1998
Report
Card
Script:
A+
Acting: A+
Cinematography\Lighting: A+
Special Effects\Make Up: A+
Music:
A+
Final
Grade: A+
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