The Truman Show (1998)

Director:

Peter Weir

Writer (WGA):

Andrew Niccol (written by)

Release Date:

5 June 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

All the world's a stage...

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Hidden Camera | Island | Cult Favorite | Betrayal | Mother Son Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 29 wins & 34 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

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic elements and mild language.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Brazil:Livre (DVD rating) | Philippines:PG-13 | South Korea:12 | USA:PG (certificate #34959) | Netherlands:6 (re-rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Belgium:KT | Brazil:12 | Chile:TE | Denmark:11 | Finland:K-12/9 | France:U | Germany:12 (bw) | Hong Kong:I | Iceland:L | Ireland:PG | Mexico:A | Netherlands:12 (original rating) | Peru:PT | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG

Filming Locations:

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

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

To help Ed Harris develop the character for Christof, director Peter Weir presented to him a 10 page biography. Part of this biography consisted of Christof doing a film on the homeless for which he won an award.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When the neighbors are walking arm and arm in search lines, the audio is of footsteps marching in perfect synchronization. However, the people's heads are bobbing up and down out of synchronization, and when their feet are shown, they are walking out of step.

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.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "My Family: All Roads Lead to Ramon (#2.1)" (2001)

Soundtrack:

Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Opus 11: Second Movement: 'Romance - Larghetto'

Finally a movie that makes us think

When I was a young adult on the search for my true self, religion and God; I found myself reading all kinds of books such as: Demian, Sidarta, Brave New World, 1984, the works of Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Bolvoir. The world of Truman Burbank certainly took me back to those days. I used to look at myself in the mirror and say out loud: "I wonder if I am me? I wonder if everybody thinks the same shade of red when I say red? Why was I born? Why are my parents my parents? Why did God create the world? Will I get punished by God for thinking all these things?" This is a deep movie, bound to become an art film. Jim Carey did such a superb job that it earned him a Golden Globe Award. This is definitely an Oscar contender. It made me think! What a suprise! Movies do not make me think very often. They are predictable to me now. Could it be age?

When the lady comes on the bike with the basket, then the dog and then the yellow Volkswagen it reminded me of how repetitive life seems at times, when we think that nothing is going to change and we want changes. The Director was like God, the creator, although at times he was a mean guy, I think that all of us have questioned God and have been angry at him. Truman's world seemed so "perfect", no messy hair, no trash. Just phony! Our world seems much like that, everything is a matter of perception.

The audience that watched the Truman Show in the movie was a hedonistic audience of consumers who wanted to be entertained no matter what the cost to Truman, reminded me of the soaps, of the Paparazzi, of how we like to know about the celebrities, and ultimatly of how the product could be the death of someone such as Princess Diana, or Truman Burbank.

Purchase the video and watch it many times and many other symbols will come to mind. Like Jim Carey stated while he received the Golden Globe that he would enjoy it down to the crunchy chewy part.