The Truman Show
Status: Seen originally in theaters in 1998. Watched most recently on 02/18/2022.
Rating: 5/5
Spoilers
This movie is extremely good. I saw it as a kid, and have frequently thought about it throughout my life. I like the story’s science fiction elements, the biting social commentary, and the sadness of Truman’s life circumstances. Reading about the movie’s production, it looks like the director Peter Weir tried his best to mute all of these characteristics. Apparently, the original screenplay by Andrew Niccol was much darker.
Maybe this was a good thing, and the lighter tone makes the stuff I liked feel more subtle and disciplined. But I do wonder if the original Niccol screenplay might have even been better. I really love the first half of the movie that shows Truman cracking the puzzle of his world (“a woman on a red bike, then a man carrying flowers, and then a dented yellow beetle.”) The second half of the movie focuses more on Christof. I liked that too, though the ending felt abrupt.
The performances are very good. Ed Harris is the best. Jim Carrey is generally strong, but will sometimes seem too Ace-Ventura-like, which feels out-of-place. Noah Emmerich as Marlon and Laura Linney as Meryl both seem like total sociopaths.
Reading more about the movie made me want to explore the career of Andrew Niccol. In addition to this, he wrote Gattaca, In Time, and S1m0ne. Lots of interesting ideas in his work.