132: “Cue The Sun” – The Truman Show

Can you imagine living in a world where millions of people are glued to their screens 24/7, watching the life of an ordinary person unfold while being bombarded with advertisements that are disguised as part of the entertainment?

Of course you can! It’s 2024, and we’re already there. But back in 1998, the premise of THE TRUMAN SHOW was still a pretty radical idea, giving moviegoers a glimpse of the future shortly before the reality TV boom of the 2000s and long before the rise of social media. Audiences who thought they were in for a summer comedy starring Jim Carrey found themselves instead confronted with deep philosophical questions about freedom versus choice, artifice versus authenticity, surveillance versus privacy, and other heady topics – unaware that they were witnessing the rise of the world’s first influencer.

The film stars Jim Carrey as likable everyman Truman Burbank, who’s lived his entire life unaware that every move he makes is broadcast to adoring fans across the globe. His mom, his wife, his best friend, and everybody else in town are in on it. The Truman Show gave Carrey newfound credibility as a dramatic actor and showcases peerless supporting performances from Laura Linney as Truman’s increasingly unhinged wife and Ed Harris as the God-like “creator” behind this massive production.

There’s no question that Peter Weir’s fable-like film was ahead of its time in numerous ways, which only lends itself to an even richer conversation than was possible back in the late 90s. But how does this unusual blend of comedy, drama, and satirical science fiction hold up as entertainment now that there are millions of Truman Burbanks among us? Is the movie held back by dated technology and a plot that hinges on 1990s broadcast television, or is it time to hail The Truman Show as a timeless masterpiece?

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