Review of The Truman Show (1998) by Peter N — 02 Aug 2013

In the days of "Jersey Shore" and "Jon & Kate Plus 8," "The Truman Show" is refreshing (possibly even more now than it was in 1998) because it takes the media's annoying habit of indulging themselves in others personal lives for cash, and spins it into a juicy satire.  Jim Carrey seems like an odd fit for a genre made for deadpan leading men, considering his physical comedy roots, but he's perfectly cast here, making the stereotypical nice guy not so ordinary.

You can't help but feel sorry for Carrey's character, a poor fellow named Truman Burbank, who was chosen at birth to star in his own reality TV show. You might already be thinking of a trashy one you'd see on Bravo or E!, but that's not the case. Instead, the producers of his "show" follow his life 24 hours a day, seven days a week, which ends up being quite inspirational and rewarding to most viewers. The problem is, is after 30 years, Truman is growing suspicious of his too prim-and-proper life.

He's married to a woman (Laura Linney) that's so bright and cheery that it can't be right. His entire town is friendly to him, and every time he tries to leave "his" city, something goes apparently awry, so he can't. But after years of frustration, Truman realizes that it all might not be just a coincidence.

There's a sort of bizarro parallel between Truman and Kim Kardashian.  While they're not similar in personality (or gender), they both are huge figures in how the public hungers to see somebody else live their lives.  Kardashian seeks out the attention, with her high profile romances and bad decisions; Truman represents the golden "real world," which is most likely why his audience finds him so entertaining-- they can relate to him.  In opposition, people today look to Kardashian as a person who is glamorous, ridiculous (to the point of almost seeming fictional) and fascinating, for all the wrong reasons.  The point is, no matter who the focal point is, the public can't help to escape their lives and get a head-on view of someone else's.

The performances are durably excellent.  Carrey has terrific comedic power, but sometimes it can be a bit tiring; here, it's put to good use, as he plays a quirky man that still manages to be realistic, and often times is somber enough to move us.  The rest of the cast, who are all playing actors in Truman's life, manage to keep the light air of sleaziness (as they're all complete fakes) and robotic-ness.  The actors create a great sense of the real and fake of Truman's life, and that's a difficult thing to do.

Andrew Niccol's screenplay is compelling, because, while it definitely has a bit of a comedic, sci-fi edge, it works as a unique drama.  It's always upsetting to see Truman's life get controlled by television just for entertainment, since you can't help but wonder how different his life could be if it was like anyone else's.  The quieter moments of the film are the best, as there is a bittersweetness about them that you know are too good to necessarily be true.  The fakery set around Truman's world, with every single place truly looking like a movie set, is thought-provoking; the movies, TV shows, and advertisements making "home" enticing to Truman is near insane, as the producers of his show are so desperate to lock him into his own little world.

"The Truman Show" has aged well over the years, since reality show heaven has truly set in.  It's unnatural style surely makes it a candidate to work as a companion piece to "Being John Malkovich" of the next year -- but "The Truman Show" is great enough to stand alone.