The Truman Show
Originally published on social media on July 18th, 2022
This film was on T.V. often growing up. In fact, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen this film. Yet, every time I watch this film, it hits me somewhere different. The older I get, the more significant and startling the message of this film becomes.
Talk about altered reality. The entire basis of this film is about a man who has lived his entire life in a fabricated reality designed to entertain audiences around the world. He is living his life and everyone around him is an actor. The most eerie thing about this film is the idea that something like the Truman Show could very easily be replicated in real life and people would probably respond to it just the same as they do in the script.
The attention to detail in this script is phenomenal. There are so many big and small moments that are significant, ironic, and thought provoking all at the same time. Set design is heavily involved in this with little signs that provide both subliminal and very direct messages intended to keep Truman trapped in his altered reality. Living a life where critical thinking is not only taught, but is not allowed and highly discouraged is mind boggling. Yet what I love about this film is how it shows that no matter what environment someone is raised in, critical thinking is part of our human nature in the way God designed us.
There is a definite eerie tone in this film, but it also has a ton of heart. All of that is credited to Jim Carrey. Everybody knows Jim Carrey as a comedian, and of course he’s hilarious, but I think he makes a better serious or dramatic actor. His ability to display emotion so authentically makes every moment feel real for the audience. I would almost say that he is like a modern James Stewart in films like this and the Majestic.
There are so many different moments of this film I would love to talk about, but I can’t do so without revealing spoilers, so the conversation must end here. I truly hope that everyone gets a chance to see this film at least once because it might be one of the greatest films ever made.
With that, this film gets