The Truman Show

I found this movie to be very intriguing all the way through, yet at almost every point throughout the movie I felt deeply sorry for Truman and the life that he lived. I found myself wondering throughout the movie how someone could get away with treating another human being the way that they did, and how many people found it ethical to watch and view such a television show. How does this not violate basic human rights? I understand that this is a movie most likely set in a different universe compared to ours, but shouldn’t human decency expand across all universes?

One of the first instances where I questioned the morality of this film is when they showed the flashback of Truman’s supposed love interest Sylvia. You could tell however, that Meryl was being pushed onto Truman because that’s what Christof wanted for Truman. Truman had no choice in the matter, and later Sylvia was ripped away from Truman. This shows how important factors in his life such as love are easily controlled and manipulated by people running Truman’s life. Everyone should have a chance at finding their own love, and not have it forced upon them the way it was forced upon Truman. Throughout the movie however Truman finds ways to remember Sylvia, and Sylvia is trying to find ways to release Truman from his captivity. You can see this instance in Truman where he buys the fashion magazines so that he can try to fashion an image of Sylvia together out of facial parts in the magazines. This was a very interesting scene because it allowed for an idea of the volume and the amount of cameras that are placed around “Seahaven” to keep an eye on Truman. This scene also showed the sneaky nature of Truman, and gave an audience a glimpse into the “secret” life of Truman and what he tries to keep hidden from the world. Little does Truman, is that the whole word knows anyway.

Earlier I talked about the morality of The Truman Show and how people could let something like that happen, but worst of all is how could someone produce and create such a television show? Christof is the executive producer of The Truman Show, and basically Truman’s adopted father. However legally Truman was adopted by the corporation that owns the TV show, Christof kind of acts as Truman’s father in the shadows. This is because he basically plans and intervenes in Truman’s life just as a father might. Even at the end Christof tries to appeal to Truman in a father-like sense by telling him that he was there for several important moments in his life, and always wants to be updated when Truman’s has a change in behavior. But would you call this a kind of love, or could you make the claim that he only does these things for his work and legacy?