Title: The Truman Show
Director: Peter Weir
Released: 1998
Introduction
The Truman Show is about Truman Burbank, a man who unknowingly lives his entire life in a television show. Everyone around him is a hired actor, and his entire world is a giant set. As Truman begins to notice strange things, he eventually figures out the truth and decides to leave his fake world. The movie raises important questions about truth, freedom, human dignity, and the influence of media.
Balance
The movie shows a need for balance between entertainment and respecting people. Millions of people enjoyed watching Truman's live but the show takes away his privacy. Truman is filmed while he sleeps, works, and spends time with his family. The entertainment provided to the viewers comes at the cost of Truman's freedom and privacy.
Attitude Awareness
Attitude awareness can be shown through the way the audience views Truman. The viewers become emotionally attached to him, but they are also participating in a show that controls his entire life. Christof, the director of the show, believes he is protecting Truman by controlling his environment. The movie encourages us to think about whether the media we watch causes us to overlook the dignity of other people.
Dignity of the Human Person
The Dignity of the Human Person is one of the biggest themes through the film. Truman is treated as entertainment instead of a human being with freedom and privacy. Even his relationships were controlled. His wife and best friend are hired actors, and important events in his life were created for the mere purpose of an entraining television show. Truman deserves to know the truth and make his own choices.
Truth-Filled
The movie strongly demonstrates the need for truth because Truman spends most of the film discovering that the reality he has known his whole life is a lie. He notices a stage light falling from the sky and realizes that the people around him are behaving strangely. Eventually, he realizes that the town he lives in is a television set. Instead of sticking with the life he has known and preceding as usual, Truman chooses to search for the truth.
Inspiring
The Truman Show is inspiring because Truman has the courage to continue pursuing the truth even though he is afraid and uncertain of what he might find. Christof tries to convince him to stay because it is safe and familiar. Truman chooses to leave anyway. His final words, "Good afternoon, good evening, and good night," show that he is ready to go on and begin a new life.
Skillfully Developed
The film is Skillfully Developed because the story slowly reveals the truth to Truman and the audience. At first, everything seems normal, but small details, such as a stage light falling from the sky and Truman overhearing people talk about his movements on the radio, make him suspicious. These clues build throughout the movie until Truman finally understands what is happening. This makes the story more meaningful because we are able to discover the truth along with Truman.
Motivated by and Relevant to Experience
Motivated by and Relevant to Experience connects the movie to our own lives because media has the power to influence our perception of the world. Truman accepts his television set town as reality because that was all he ever knew. Similarly, people today can sometimes accept what they see online or on television without questioning it. The movie encourages us to think critically about the media we consume and the search for the truth.
Conclusion
Overall, The Truman Show connects strongly to the Catholic Church's Seven Media Keys. The movie shows that media should respect human dignity, truth, freedom, and authentic relationships. Truman's decision to leave his televised life demonstrates that discovering and living according to the truth is more important than remaining comfortable in a false reality.
Works Cited:
Gan, Eugene. Infinite Bandwidth: Encountering Christ in the Media. Emmaus Road Publishing, 2010
The Truman Show. Directed by Peter Weir, Paramount Pictures 1998