My Cultural Diet

By all appearances, Truman Burbank’s life in idyllic Seahaven Island is as perfect as it gets. But he can’t shake an ever-present feeling of discontent, and when bizarre events start occurring — a light falling from the sky, strange radio broadcasts — his world, and psyche, begin to crack. Unbeknownst to Truman, though, he’s actually the star of his own reality TV show, his entire world since birth contained inside a massive Hollywood soundstage. It’s a pretty meta concept that could easily fall into pretension, but The Truman Show succeeds thanks to Jim Carrey’s winsome performance, which veers from comedic to manic to tragic and back again, as well as strong supporting performances from Ed Harris (as the creator of Truman’s televised world) and Noah Emmerich (as Truman’s in-show best friend). Peter Weir’s movie approaches its heady themes with a deft and humorous touch and some wonderfully retro production design, and despite being released over 25 years ago, feels all the more relevant and even prophetic in our current reality TV-obsessed era.

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