The Truman Show (1998)

An insurance salesman/adjuster discovers his entire life is actually a TV show.

Director:

Peter Weir

Writer:

Andrew Niccol

Stars:

Jim Carrey, Laura Linney, Noah Emmerich

Top 250 #216 | Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 31 wins & 36 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jim Carrey	...	Truman Burbank
Laura Linney	...	Meryl Burbank / Hannah Gill
Noah Emmerich	...	Marlon
Natascha McElhone	...	Lauren / Sylvia
Holland Taylor	...	Truman's Mother
Brian Delate	...	Truman's Father
Blair Slater	...	Young Truman
Peter Krause	...	Lawrence
Heidi Schanz	...	Vivien
Ron Taylor	...	Ron
Don Taylor	...	Don
Ted Raymond	...	Spencer
Judy Clayton	...	Travel Agent
Fritz Dominique	...	Truman's Neighbor
Angel Schmiedt	...	Truman's Neighbor

Storyline

In this movie, Truman is a man whose life is a fake one... The place he lives is in fact a big studio with hidden cameras everywhere, and all his friends and people around him, are actors who play their roles in the most popular TV-series in the world: The Truman Show. Truman thinks that he is an ordinary man with an ordinary life and has no idea about how he is exploited. Until one day... he finds out everything. Will he react?

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Plot Keywords:

hidden camera | island | blockbuster | betrayal | fear of water | 

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Taglines:

On The Air. Unaware.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements and mild language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 June 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Truman Show

Filming Locations:

Falls Lake, Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£2,210,999 (UK) (9 October 1998)

Gross:

£9,771,416 (UK) (27 November 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Scott Rudin Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The exterior shots of 'Seahaven' were shot in the beach town of Seaside in Florida. Some interior shots were also filmed including the local shop.

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Goofs

When Truman is being thrown out of the office building, a police officer is standing behind him and does not notice the commotion going on.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Christof: We've become bored with watching actors give us phony emotions. We are tired of pyrotechnics and special effects. While the world he inhabits is, in some respects, counterfeit, there's nothing fake about Truman himself. No scripts, no cue cards. It isn't always Shakespeare, but it's genuine. It's a life.

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits are for the "real" Truman Show, with lines like "starring Truman Burbank as himself" and "created and directed by Christof".

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Connections

Featured in The Hour: Episode #7.78 (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Anthem - Part 1"
Written and Performed by Philip Glass
Courtesy of Nonesuch Records
by arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

camera lucida

Truman Burbank (Jim Carrey) is the most famous man in the world, and he doesn't even know it. Raised entirely 'within' a television show which comprises his entire world, Truman is an Everyman for the post-television age. Truman's world, "Seahaven", is an Eisenhower-era model of American bliss, recalling the prison-like Port Meirion and the moral certainty of Bedford Falls (Its a Wonderful Life). Surreptitiously filmed around the clock by 5000 hidden cameras, the show exists inside an enormous geodesic dome with simulated weather and even its own ocean. Through a series of production blunders Truman slowly realises that he is being controlled and that perhaps all in his world is not as it seems. His surrogate father by proxy, 'Christof' the producer/director, goes from being benevolent social scientist to evil genius as his attempts to frustrate Truman's wanderlust become more and more deadly. Will he escape?

The film raises some interesting points about our fascination with life as seen through the magnifying lens of tv, and the morality of real lives viewed as so much entertainment. But like most soaps the scenes from "The Truman Show" that appear within the movie are variously dull, mawkish and sentimental. At points the film has a problem deciding on whether it is going to be a straight escape-chase movie or a philosophical piece about morality and technology. The t.v. show's inherent blandess also lends little to the pace or our sense that there are characters worth caring about.

Carrey is good. This in itself is gratifying, and a tribute to a script that walks the tightrope of imitating bad t.v. in tandem with the metaphysical angst of Truman's unique situation. If it isn't quite the film it could have been, The Truman Show is still pretty much unique in the recent crop from our cultural overlords in Hollywood. No arthouse here, this is a watchable, big-budget think piece, with well-executed and stylish direction. Its too early to say but this film may have given some execs at NBC, ABC et al. one very bad idea...