The Truman Show Essay Example. Movie Analysis
The Truman Show was released in theatres on the 5th June 1998. Displaying for 103 minutes, it was rated PG, intended for young audiences however also enabled adults to understand sophisticated jokes and mature themes. The Truman Show was directed by Peter Weir, who also directed Fearless in 1993. The genre of the film is a comedy, science fiction and drama. The original name of the movie was The Malcolm Show. The movie was filmed in Seaside in Florida, which is a real town and not simply a movie set. Ed Harris performed as Christof the director on The Truman Show. Truman’s wife, Meryl Burbank, was played by Laura Linney. Truman’s best friend was played by Noah Emmerich.
The Truman Show followed the daily activities of Truman Burbank, played by Jim Carrey, who's life is transmitted by concealed cameras hidden within Seahaven. From adoption, his life was live broadcasted, to an audience of millions. He was uninformed that his life was constantly broadcasted for the world to see. An artificial neighbourhood covered by a dome is the set to The Truman Show. The dome was a large cover for the set of The Truman Show, which could be observed from space. The inside colour of the dome was cerulean, to represent the colour of the natural sky, thus causing the audience and Truman to believe that it is real. Truman Burbank was adopted at birth, as the first child to be adopted by a corporation. All features of Seahaven are manually controlled by the director of The Truman Show, Christof.
Themes Displayed
Multiple themes are displayed in The Truman Show. One theme that is evident throughout The Truman Show is deciphering what is real. Truman lived among actors and lived inside a fake neighbourhood, none of Truman’s life was real. The passing of his actor father was also faked to ensure Truman stayed on Seahaven, as a result of his father’s drowning, Truman developed Thalassophobia, the fear of large bodies of water. Due to his fear of water, Truman was trapped on an island where the only escape was through the water. The character and neighbourhood are stereotypes for the perfect life. Another significant theme was how the media can control and manipulate the general masses. Truman had no privacy his entire life only for the purpose for people to be entertained by him. The Truman Show could convoy people away from their issues and problems in the real world and live through Truman, in a perfect world. The show tries to act as genuine and not scripted conversely, every announcement is scripted and managed to entertain and captivate the audience. God is also a theme presented clearly in The Truman Show, as Christof has complete control of Truman by manipulating his fears and emotion and cognitive status. Christof can also do God-like acts, as displayed when he controlled the weather and the sun. As a result, Christof has complete power over Truman until Truman attempts to escape.
The Techniques Used
The Truman Show displays a wide variety of film techniques. An example of film techniques is diegetic camera angles, where it is shot from different angles to show that it is filmed by concealed cameras. Additionally, vignette shots are used to lead the audience of the movie to believe that the cameras are in hidden positions. Lighting is utilised to show Christof having power and creating a false sense of perfections, as Christof has full control of the lighting. The ocean is a representation of entrapment and fear, and how Christof controls Truman by using his fear. Fiji is used as a method of escapism, as Truman desired to get as far as possible from Seahaven, and ultimately would endanger his life to escape. Truman’s final escape was fraught with danger as Christof could end his life at any point.
The Truman Show provokes thought in the audience by addressing them question what is real. The movie was wonderfully directed. I individually enjoyed how Jim Carrey played Truman, as an adventurous and honest character, forming a connection between Truman and the audience, generating empathy for Truman. It also implies how humans prefer to be distracted from their own private issues and live through someone else. It left the audience questioning if the publicness is worth the lack of antagonism and the chance to escape our lives.
The movie was captivating as it provoked thought about living in a world without animosity and being constantly monitored. The movie was excellently filmed leading the audience to assume it was filmed by concealed cameras. The viewing of this film was entertaining, this was due to the elaborate storyline and interesting dilemma posed by The Truman Show, I would rate it five out of five stars and highly suggested others to view this film.
