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The Truman Show

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The Truman Show
Directed byPeter Weir
Written byAndrew Niccol
Produced byEdward S. Feldman
Scott Rudin
Andrew Niccol
Adam Schroeder
StarringJim Carrey
Laura Linney
Ed Harris
Noah Emmerich
Natascha McElhone
Edited byWilliam Anderson
Music byBurkhard Dallwitz
Philip Glass
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release dates
June 5, 1998
Running time
103 min.
LanguageEnglish
Budget$60,000,000

The Truman Show is a 1998 film directed by Peter Weir, written by Andrew Niccol, and starring Jim Carrey and Ed Harris. The film chronicles the life of a man who does not know that his entire life is a constructed reality soap opera, televised 24-hours-a-day to millions across the globe. The plot takes many ideas from Philip K. Dick's 1959 novel Time Out of Joint, as well as the 1960 Twilight Zone episode A World of Difference, and the 1968 feature The Secret Cinema (later remade as an Amazing Stories episode in 1986).

Plot

Truman Burbank began life by being the chosen one of six unwanted babies to be the star of a documentary of the first year of life of a child. The program became so popular that it expanded into a continuously running reality television program.

Contained within a completely artificial town called Seahaven, itself contained within a gigantic dome, the "Omnicomm Ecosphere" Truman grows up as the only person in the town unaware that he lives in an almost solipsistic constructed reality for the entertainment of those outside. His friends, family, and wife are all actors following direction. In the case of his life-long best friend, Marlon has been on the show since he was 7 years old.

The movie picks up on Day 10,909 (nearly year 30) of Truman's life. It starts in the style of a television program, with opening credits and interviews of three main characters: Christof (the program's creator), Meryl (Truman Burbank's wife), and Marlon (Truman's best friend). Throughout the film, footage of Truman is interspersed with scenes of people in the real world watching The Truman Channel.

The movie depicts many instances of Truman's need for safety and security — his job as a life insurance agent, his fear of water and sailing, his avoidance of flying. However, throughout his life, Truman has also indicated a conflicting wish to explore the world, to travel, and to leave Seahaven. Attempts to keep him on the island (and thus unable to discover the truth of his TV-show existence) include the staged drowning death of his father, the use of an intimidating and threatening dog in his path while attempting to explore the island, and others' explicit discouragement of his wishes to be an explorer. Also, the general media consistently presents the good points of staying home.

Despite the producers' wishes, Truman makes several choices that confound their efforts to control him and his world. He falls in love with an extra named Lauren, who reveals her name to be Sylvia and then is subsequently whisked away by the TV producers. Truman is told that she and her family are moving to Fiji, thus provoking a lifelong wish in Truman to travel to Fiji to find her.

Encountering a man in the street whom he recognizes as his dead father, only to see him forcefully removed, Truman's doubts about his world grow. He has a growing suspicion that he is the observed center of the world. His friends and family give the same sorts of manufactured responses in attempts to change the subject, calm, and distract him.

With an inability to raise suspicions in anyone else, Truman begins to suspect he's the only one not aware of some kind of plot. He spots his wife crossing her fingers and with the ring on her right hand in a wedding photograph and notices that she constantly launches into impromptu praise of new household products, as though she is within a commercial. After an argument and a struggle, she declares, sobbing apparently to no one, "How can anyone expect me to carry on under these conditions, it's not professional!" and leaves Truman (and the show).

His friend Marlon, being coached by the TV producer through an earpiece, insists on his loyalty and honesty, claiming "you're the closest thing I have to a brother" and deceitfully, "the last thing I would ever do is lie to you." He then brings forward Truman's father in a moving reintroduction scene.

In an interview about his creation, it is revealed that Christof does not see harm in deceiving Truman, arguing that the latter would rather not know the truth and prefers his protected existence.

Upon seeing his father again, Truman ostensibly resumes his light-humored routine, only to later surreptitiously escape from the island via sailboat. Unable to find Truman, Christof orders the transmission cut, creating a large media stir in the real world. After thorough searching on land, Christof realizes the sea is unwatched, and quickly finds Truman with a camera on his boat, and resumes transmission of the show.

In an attempt to deter Truman, Christof orders an artificial storm, though clearing the weather just before Truman is about to drown. Truman resumes sailing until hitting a wall painted like the sky, the physical edge of the show's enormous set. Truman follows the wall until he discovers a door labeled exit. As he opens the door, Christof introduces himself through a loudspeaker and tells the truth. He entreats Truman to stay, but Truman casually bows out and steps through the door.

Cast

Production

Niccol was due to direct the film until Carrey was signed. It was felt that Carrey's $12 million salary was too great an investment to leave in the hands of a second-time film director, and Weir was drafted. In October, 2002, Peter Weir revealed that real life prototype for Truman is entertainer Michael Jackson: "You watch The Truman Show and, I mean, Jim Carrey did a fantastic job, but Michael Jackson is Truman. He's who I based him on and he is the nearest thing to Truman."[1]

Exterior shots of the town of Seahaven were filmed in Seaside, Florida, a master-planned community located in the Florida Panhandle. Members of the cast and crew lived in Seaside during filming.[2]

Soundtrack

Philip Glass appears very briefly in the film as one of the in-studio composer/performers. The soundtrack for the scenes of freedom contain excerpts from his scores for Powaqqatsi and Anima Mundi, as well as some music composed specifically for The Truman Show. Glass shared a Golden Globe Award with Burkhard Dallwitz for the score.

The film also contains a Frédéric Chopin composition, 2nd Movement from Piano Concerto No. 1 in E, Op.11: Romance-Larghetto, which was performed by pianist Artur Rubinstein, and snatches of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Rondo alla Turca and Horn Concerto No. 1 in D Major.

Reception

The film was a commercial success, earning $125,618,201 domestically and $138,500,000 elsewhere - for a worldwide total of $264,118,201.[3]

Critically, the film was also a success, with 96% of registered reviews by selected critics on the website Rotten Tomatoes[4] being positive. The Truman Show was also nominated for three Oscars (original screenplay, achievement in directing, and best supporting actor: Ed Harris) and six Golden Globes. It won three Golden Globes, including a Best Actor in a Motion Picture-Drama win for Jim Carrey, thus generating a substantial amount of Oscar buzz. Carrey was not nominated for an Academy Award for this film (or any other film to date).

The movie won the 1999 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation.

See also

Wikiquote has quotations related to The Truman Show.

References

  1. ^ "Weir on Jackson". Popdirt. Retrieved 2007-05-07.
  2. ^ Eric Young (Executive Producer) (1998). "How's It Going To End? The Making of The Truman Show, Part II" (DVD (Special Feature)). Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment.
  3. ^ http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=trumanshow.htm
  4. ^ http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/truman_show/
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