Man is born free, but he is everywhere in chains — Rousseau
The Truman Show is a 1998 film produced by Paramount Pictures. After more than two decades, The Truman Show remains one of the most iconic films in the minds of audiences. Movies that can stand the test of time are often not fast food culture, but related to human nature, life, and social reality. The Truman Show, nominated for the Best Original Screenplay Award at the 71st Academy Awards, is an affirmation of the significance and value of this film.
“The Truman Show” is about: a man named Truman, from his birth to growth, love, work and all the process, 24 hours non-stop live broadcast in front of the world’s audience, he is the protagonist of a reality show called “The Truman Show”. In this reality show, all the participants are actors, and only he is real. The show’s producer, Christopher, seems to control everything about Truman, but Truman doesn’t know it, he lives in a false world. It was only when Truman gradually sensed that he was being monitored that he tried to escape the Taoyuan Island where he had lived for more than 30 years, rushed out of this huge studio – this is the whole world in which he lived, and then walked toward freedom and his first love.
Truman: Out of prison, to freedom
It’s a reality show for the world, 24/7, with 5,000 cameras watching the Truman Show. And there’s only one main character: Truman. Every minute of Truman’s life from birth to growth, every stage of his life, is displayed in front of a worldwide audience.
Since he was a child, Truman has dreamed of exploring the outside world, but the show’s producer, Kirsten, has created all kinds of obstacles to stop Truman from stepping out of the world he has created. For example, when Truman was a child, he told the “teacher” to stop wanting to go outside, and arranged for evil dogs to bark at young Truman to frighten him into going outside. In order to cut off Truman’s idea of exploration, Kirsten arranged for Truman’s “father” to drown, planting a shadow in Truman’s heart.
For 30 years, Truman had no idea that his life around him, neighbors, friends, convenience store owners and customers, company bosses and colleagues, customers, etc., were all fake, they were all cast in this reality show with Truman as the core, and even Truman’s parents and wife were actors.
Truman actually means “true man.” In fact, the name Truman implies that Truman is true, and the opposite of true is false. Taoyuan Island, this huge studio, where Truman lived for thirty years, only Truman was a real person.
The show’s producer, Kirsten, controls everything from his perch in the “Moon Room” high above the sky, however, he eventually reveals a flaw. For example, while listening to the radio station in his car, Truman overhears the radio broadcasting information about which lane he is entering and where the actors are. Truman’s father “dies” and reappears. Of all the actors, only Serbia, who also fell in love with Truman, told Truman the truth, but before Truman could find out what was going on, Serbia had been forcibly removed from the “set”. Truman’s union with his wife is nothing more than Kisto’s arrangement.
Over the years, Truman has been collecting the facial features of various female models from magazines in order to piece together the appearance of his first love, Serbia, to ensure that his loved one’s image is fresh in his mind. It is also because of this pure love that Truman has greater courage to walk out of this false world. The relationship between Truman and Serbia is the only real relationship in this fake world.
Truman began to take a serious look around him, and he began to suspect that everyone around him was watching him. While looking through a family photo album, Truman noticed an important point: in a wedding photo of him and his wife, he noticed that his wife’s index finger was folded over her middle finger (in Western religions, the Christian gesture represents repentance for doing something against his heart).
Truman follows his wife to work and discovers that the doctors at the hospital where she works do not know how to operate; Truman wants to buy a ticket to Fiji, but the conductor says tickets are not available until next month. Truman wants to take the bus to Chicago, but the bus breaks down… He tried to escape from the prison, but he hit every wall.
Lu Xun once said: there is no freedom to be greedy and stable, and there is always some danger to be free. These are the only two ways. As it became clear to Truman that he was living in a world where everyone was lying to him. To this end, he escapes the cameras that monitor him day and night, runs away from home, and prepares to take a boat to leave the world that has deceived him, even though Truman has begun to actively fight his fear of water, but Christ will not easily let him leave.
In order to prevent Truman from leaving, he was not afraid to let Truman drown in front of the world audience, and he ordered the highest level of wind and rain, lightning and thunder to exert pressure on Truman, and Truman was overturned several times in the water. But the Truman of this moment would rather die than stay here any longer. Christian can put 5,000 cameras around Truman, but the only thing he can’t do is put a camera inside Truman’s head.
Although he is now in this world, he has clothes and food, a car and a house, and so-called parents and relatives, but because it is false, everything has lost its meaning and value. Although the world he is about to step into will also be false, there will be lies, there will be harm, but all this is nothing compared to freedom.
Truman left Taoyuan Island, left the cage that kept him free.
Keith: Control everything and stop Truman from finding freedom
Christian, the English name in the film: In fact, the meaning of Christof here, refers to christ (christ, God) in the Western religion, in the Western faith, Christ created everything, and in Taoyuan Island, the world in which Truman lives, this huge studio, Christof is the creator. Kisto controls everything on Peachland, including Truman’s life from birth to the present.
Kisto believes that trapping Truman on Taoyuan Island and having his life played out in front of a world audience would be a good thing for Truman, so he tries to manipulate Truman’s fate by controlling everything that goes out the door the way he thinks is right. The only thing that Christian could not control, however, was Truman’s mind and will.
Finally, from the camera, looking at Truman who would rather die than return to Taoyuan Island, Kirstu thinks that Truman, who has been used to being controlled for so many years and has taken this false world as the real world, will succumb to his spiritual commanding control. So he said the words: “The world out there is just as false as the world I gave you, with the same lies, with the same fraud.” But in my world, you don’t have to be afraid. You’re scared, so you can’t get out of here. I’ve watched you all your life…”
At this time, Truman, who no longer believed what anyone on Taoyuan Island said, entered the channel to the new world without hesitation, firmly saying goodbye to Kirstou, and everything on Taoyuan Island, and this false world. At this point, Truman was truly out of the hands of his supposed creator, Kirsten.
Everybody’s the Truman Show
When Truman managed to escape from Taoyuan Island, the entire audience applauded. They hugged each other and cried with joy, expressing relief at Truman’s escape. Those who watch in front of the TV are not every one of us.
In fact, people who watch The Truman Show are conflicted. On the one hand, they want to explore other people’s world to satisfy their curiosity; But on the other hand, they want Truman to truly escape the world that controls him 360 degrees. Because, in Truman, they see themselves.
When Truman was slightly aware that he was being spied on, he once told a friend (who was also an actor), “I could be manipulated.” Do you ever feel like you have nothing to do with your life?” In fact, many people in the world have had such thoughts. Kirsten was asked why Truman never realized what kind of world he was living in. Christ replied, “We accept the reality Of the world With which we are Presented. It’s as simple as that.” Which translates to: We accept the world as it is, that’s all.
Everyone has the right to choose their own suitable way of living, but Yi-shu said: people are actually difficult to really free, lock people, often the person himself. Unconsciously, we are not the slaves of feelings, is the cause of the maidservant. In the fast-paced modern society, people are always under all kinds of pressure, sometimes even out of breath. Everyone wants to live a free life, but the reality will always beat people to smooth the edges. Everyone wants to leave everything behind and break out of the bondage, but it is often a prison. In a sense, in reality, we are not living in Taoyuan Island’s Truman.
The audience in the film cheered and clapped for Truman’s escape, because Truman bravely did what he wanted to do. In reality, we may not be able to break through the shackles like Truman, but we can, as Romain Rolland said: After recognizing the truth of life, we still love life. In the flood of reality that cannot be separated, as far as possible to adhere to their own thoughts, grasp their own destiny, do their own life director.
