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Truman Show Paper

In the words of Christof, “we accept the reality of the world with which we are presented.” Truman Burbank lives in world of extreme borders, zero crime and kind neighbors. He doesn’t know any different. The Truman Show is movie well beyond it’s time.  The movie contained interesting camera angles, music and symbolism to get its message across. The Truman Show has impacted mass media today in a sense that it is almost foreshadowing. It is because of these qualities that I thoroughly enjoyed the movie.

The movie does an excellent job of using camera angles, music, and symbolism to get across a message. Since Truman has no idea that he is on a reality television show, Christof had to use a variety of hidden cameras to follow Truman’s life. Each camera captures a different part of Truman’s day. There are multiple button cameras placed on common people Truman encounters through his day. This angle allows the audience to connect first hand to the scene. Another hidden camera is in the dashboard of his car. Through this angle you watch Truman begin his day, every day. It shows how similar and perhaps boring Truman’s days really are. As you watch Truman’s life, there are also a wide range of, well, wide shots. These shots allow you to view the structure and protection set in Truman’s life. Not only does the movie do a spectacular job in camera angles, but music as well. As in any movie, music help sets the mood in a particular scene. At the end of the movie when Truman is on the steps, the music portrays a sort of… revelation occurring. Another scene that musically stands out is when Truman is travelling to work. The music is an upbeat horn section. It just sets the mood that the day is new. The movie also has a couple symbols that I found interesting. Christof is the creator of the whole reality show. If you separate his name it looks like “Christ of.” It’s a play on of Christ, who biblically is the creator of man and the whole world. Another symbol is Truman himself. His name is pronounced just like “True Man.” Christof was trying to show how a true man goes on living a normal life through his show.

The Truman Show has had an effect on even today’s mass media. The movie can suggest that reality, and reality television isn’t real at all. Recently, almost every station on television has caught onto to the reality show trend. Thinking about it though, you can’t really be sure what is reality and what is acting or exaggerated. Nothing may be true, everything may be real, or bits and pieces could be true. I also think there is an underlying message of what reality television is doing to the “stars.” What people do just to get attention is degrading. In a way, people are selling themselves just for television. The difference is Truman had no idea his life was being documented, while today most people do. I don’t think I would watch The Truman Show if it were real. I feel like it’s wrong to have a man believe something entirely false. He was trapped, and he had no idea what was happening to him. Basically, his whole life was a lie. I also, would not take part in acting in it. I just think it would be wrong.

Overall, I really enjoyed watching this movie. I thought it was a really unique idea, and I think it’s amazing how far ahead of its time the movie was. The hidden cameras made it all seem like a reality show, and when they showed people in “real life,” that just added to the realness of the movie. There are a few things I would do different though. I would have made the movie slower, show more of Truman’s life growing up. I would add more flashbacks of his younger years. I also would have left a little less mystery to the ending. I enjoyed the mystery, but I see how people would like to know more. Other those small things, I think the movie was very well done and different than anything I’ve seen before.

The Truman Show used interesting camera angles, music and symbolism for its audience to receive the message. It has also impacted the latest of mess media. If it weren’t for these things, I don’t think I would have enjoyed the movie so much. Christof wanted to present a man with a pure life. He gave him a world with no evil, or crime or wrong doing. In doing so, he lead Truman Burbank to believe in a perfect, unrealistic, fake world.

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