Review of all aspects of the Truman Show

Rating: 9/10 (3 January 2005)

The Truman show sits on a genre crossroads, with comedy, drama, romance and thriller all coming together to form one of the greatest films of the 1990's.
The island of Seahaven is not far off being the perfect place to live, it is inhabited by the friendliest people of the United States, and with scarce litter and impeccable weather it is almost too good to be true. For all his life Truman Burbank (Jim Carrey) thought that his lifestyle was no different to any other American's, with his perfect wife, delightful neighbours and 'loyal friend' Marlon (Noah Emmerich) who pops round with a four-pack of beer every now and then. It is when suspicions mount in Truman's mind, as to why members of the public ignore him if he runs in front of a moving car, or don't so much as turn a head if he curses in the middle of the street, that the plot line begins to unfold.
As he strings together proof of his suspicions, Truman begins to plan his exit of the conspiracy that he feels is going on around him, at this point we meet the "all powerful" Kristof (Ed Harris), who is the director/producer/creator of the hit television program; The Truman Show. After meeting Kristof the audience realises that Truman is permanently being surrounded by a hive of actors and actresses, who improvise their everyday lives to create this haunting illusion of reality, so that Kristof can continue to run the world's most popular television programme.
Kristof doesn't just want to make money from The Truman Show; he wants to mould the perfect man, by acting as the puppeteer above Truman's life. Kristof adopted Truman as a baby and from that day forward has put every emotion, thought and experience into Truman's head; I think that Kristof's character wants to create a world that contradicts the real world of poverty, crime and war.
The Truman Show only concentrates on the last few days of Truman's life in Seahaven, but with the use of flashbacks the scriptwriters manage to give the audience a wide perspective of what has happened in previous episodes of the show - which were somewhat faulted by 36 year old Carrey attempting to play an 18 year old boy, a feat that not many actors can achieve without the help of plastic surgery. Needless to say these flashbacks inform us on the first girl that Truman ever loved: Sylvia; a rebellious actress who met Truman as a teenager, and attempted to tell him the truth before being thrown off the set by protective producer, Kristof.
Director Peter Weir creates the idea of reality television by filming most of the movie with "hidden cameras". So wherever he goes, the fact that we are seeing Truman through a keyhole, or a car radio adds to the theme of the movie. I didn't tire of this, but at some points I couldn't help but wonder how there was a hidden camera filming Truman from underwater, but it's hard to enjoy such a momentous film if you pick out mere technicalities like that.
The plot is tightly evolved around the idea of Truman feeling trapped, and he attempts to escape this incredulous lifestyle of perfection on several occasions.
These actions conveniently allow Kristof to display his power, by trying to psychologically and physically stop Truman from leaving the island, using subliminal hints on the radio, and graphically showing aeroplanes being struck by lightning on posters. These unsubtle methods were one of the funnier moments of blatant censorship in the film, but when they fail to change Truman's mind, and he sets sail to leave the island, Kristof directs an electrical storm to strike his boat. This great film has got the nail biting climax that it needed to make it memorable in the film industry for years to come, as the film to create the craze of Reality TV.
The Truman Show would almost definitely make my list for the top twenty films of all time. It gave Jim Carrey the boost in his career that took him away from his 'less sophisticated roles' such as; "Ace Venture, pet detective," "The Mask," and "Dumb and Dumber." This serious roll as Truman Burbank proved that Jim Carrey has got more than one genre of acting style, and since then he has continued to show his true potential as an actor in recent hits; "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," The Majestic," and "Me Myself and Irene." One thing that I hold against this film is that it began the reality TV plague that Britain has been infected with for the past six years. Programs like Big Brother, I'm a celebrity get me out of here, and Pop Idol have leached off the prospect that Andrew Niccol thought of when writing the script; filming the everyday lives of people for the public's entertainment. The fact is, I can no longer turn on my television without seeing a disgusting northern family get filmed "swapping wives" with an ideal posh family, or watch a celebrity eat a cow's testicle, and then puke it up shortly afterwards: and I therefore put the entire blame on George Orwell, and Andrew Niccol (writer of the Truman Show).
I first saw this film when I was 8 and thoroughly enjoyed it, the sunny setting and funny scenes of Truman in front of his bathroom mirror are ideal for pleasing the younger audience. The concept of Truman being watched wherever he goes is probably more haunting for adults than children, so therefore I would say that it is suitable for almost anybody, probably not a film for the claustrophobic though.
The turning point of Jim Carrey's acting career, and a film that caters for any mood! 9/10