The Truman Show

“We accept the reality of the world with which we are presented, it's as simple as that.” (Christof)

This might be my favorite line of dialogue of all time - or at least of the movies I’ve watched so far.

One of the reasons I fell in love with the medium of film is because of its ability to be extremely biased, yet superbly effective at being a direct reflection of reality - whatever “reality” may look like for each respective viewer. What I mean by that is, every film is told from a very specific perspective (some filmmakers take this literally by using 1st person POV (i.e. THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY). Every part of a story is crafted deliberately to deliver a pointed message, whether it be a more direct or ambiguous one. Some filmmakers are determined to answer questions, others to pose them. Regardless, all the elements - story, characters, mise en scène, cinematography, color, editing - collectively serve the purpose of conveying a specific emotion or idea to the audience. They aim to present a “reality” (no matter how absurd or unrealistic it may be) to the audience within the dark confines of a theater and convince them that there are applicable truths that can be found within it. Truths that can be found within their own realities and perceptions of the world.

Somebody help me, I'm being spontaneous! (Truman Burbank)

In THE TRUMAN SHOW, we find Truman stuck in a 24/7 reality show unbeknownst to him, essentially against his own will and consent. With millions of viewers watching his every move from childhood to adulthood, Truman spends three decades in a massive set meticulously crafted to become his reality. He has autonomy, yet most of his actions are confined to a set routine written by the screenwriters and built by the production team on a daily basis. Throughout the course of the movie, we watch him start to 1) Question whether his “reality” holds any truth and 2) Attempt to piece together a reason why he must take a leap of faith to escape this world and venture out beyond the horizon (quite literally). There are a lot of themes at play - love, family, friendship, fear, authenticity, self-discovery. Ultimately, Truman comes to the conclusion that the fear of the unknown is one that he must face head-on.

If his was more than just a vague ambition, if he [Truman] was absolutely determined to discover the truth, there's no way we could prevent him. (Christof)

I've given Truman the chance to lead a normal life. The world, the place you live in is the sick place. Seahaven is the way the world should be. (Christof)

My main takeaway from this movie was that we should always be mindful of the “reality” we believe in. That it never hurts to question ideas and dig deeper into things that feel, instinctually, a bit off (i.e. random, unsolicited advertisements that bombard us 24/7). Going against the grain to follow your gut is needed sometimes.

I’m sure Christof truly believed that he was helping Truman by incubating him in this “perfect” world; protecting him from the supposedly harsher truths of the real world. But every human has the right and obligation to find their own truths for themselves.