An awesome film totally worth a look...

Rating: 9/10 (7 July 2007)

Reality TV shows, whether it's 'Big Brother', 'Shipwrecked' or 'Wife Swap', you either love them or hate them! In our world, wannabe contestants would give anything for their five minutes of fame whereas in this Paramount Pictures flick we have Truman; blissfully unaware that he is living in a fake reality and has become a global household name.
Truman Burbank is a simple man with a simple life - he has a perfect wife, and a fairytale home; what more could you ask for- right? Every day it's the same thing, greetings, run-of-the-mill insurance job, corny commercial advertising and his never ending search for a lost love. All desperate attempts to escape from the world of Seahaven end in failure. Of course, there is no escape. The clues are all there: stage lights falling from the sky, even the radio talking to him. Whenever Truman comes close to discovering the truth about his life, all the evidence is buried under a clever web of tricks and lies. From buttons to bowler hats, secret cameras have been plastered all over the neighbourhood and they're watching. 'Born a star', Truman's whole existence has been broadcast to the planet from womb to work, in the largest TV stage set of all time! Actors create a trained community of friends, lovers; even relatives, while the 'God-like' Christof (Ed Harris) gets to recite such lines as "Cue the sun", while concealed in his spacious viewing office hidden behind the moon. Natascha McElhone is cast as Lauren; Truman's bona fide love, quickly pulled from the show for attempting to tell Truman his true identity. Truman's father (Brian Delate) was also cut from the show early on in a boating accident resulting in Truman developing aqua phobia. Wier has managed to produce a small backbone cast so perfectly suited to their on-screen roles that you could say they were born to play them! However, these characters are only the framework of the movie giving the films major star Jim Carrey a chance to shine through.
Naturally the success of this blockbuster hit would have been nothing without the presence of Jim Carrey and his leading role as Truman. In previous films Carrey has delivered first class comedy performances resulting in nation wide admiration for his cringy, OTT comedies such as 'Ace Ventura' and 'Liar Liar'. It doesn't matter if you've never liked him before. In this film Carrey has become a real human being (for the first time) and creates his character with powerful, captivating emotions never seen before. A masterfully moving performance with the perfect balance of humour and solemnity; Carrey deserves top marks for making 'The Truman Show' one of the biggest films of the year! Films this great don't come along often. Clever, funny and thought provoking; this big hit blockbuster has it all. You will never look at a reality TV show in the same way again