“The Truman Show” challenges the very nature of our reality

The first time I watched “The Truman Show” I was in sixth grade in my music teacher’s classroom where the lights were harsh and projected. He had contended that the movie was important, for reasons I have since forgotten, but my classmates and I had simply relished the opportunity for a movie day.

In the eight-or-so years since, I have dutifully avoided watching the film again, not because I thought it was bad—on the contrary, quite the opposite—but because it made me severely uncomfortable. Though the movie is fiction, and the actors are, well, acting, I could not shake its potential connection to my own life.

For weeks after viewing it, my eleven-year-old self was convinced that in my life, too, I was simply the only thing real.

“The Truman Show” is a unique 1998 film starring Jim Carrey; however, its premise is far from comedic.

Its plot is as follows: bored with the likes of regular television actors, director Christof decides to do something that’s never been done before. He creates a fake world for a newborn baby, including actors, weather, and love interests alike, and televises every moment of the baby’s life for the views of the worldwide public.

As it turns out, “The Truman Show” is an enormous hit. Everyone becomes invested in Truman’s life, in which Truman himself is unaware of its falsity.

For thirty years of Truman’s life, he does not question his artificial surroundings.

When asked why, director Christof responds, “We accept the reality of the world in which we are presented.”

Not only is this line entirely applicable to Truman’s life but also our own. Consequently, the standard in which we find things “normal” is just a measure of what we’ve gotten used to.

Leading the film, Carrey’s performance is top-notch. Most of his roles are for an audience who enjoys slap-stick humor or exaggeration, but “The Truman Show” explores his range.

His character’s happy-go-lucky personality coupled with a natural humanity makes the viewer even more desperate for him to uncover the truth. Similarly, Laura Linney, who plays Truman’s wife, exudes an artificiality that suits the film spectacularly.

This film is one of the best examples of a psychological thriller that I’ve ever seen. It presents itself as lighthearted, but underneath that facade lies a terrifying thought: what if everyone you knew was pretending?

Watching this film again at age 19 is just as striking as it was at age 11. I was constantly white-knuckled, wanting Truman to discover that his life was a lie, while simultaneously being afraid for his mental state when that happened.

In 2022, this movie seems even closer to reality than it did in 2013. It is strange to see the ways in which “The Truman Show” has predicted our current lifestyle, especially reality TV and product placement.

My only two critiques are that one, I would appreciate a better soundtrack, and two, the trailer does not do the movie any justice. All in all, “The Truman Show” fulfills an original concept, and was truly ahead of its time.

For anyone looking to question the basis of their reality, I whole-heartedly recommend it. “The Truman Show” earns a 4/5 stars from me.