Film Theory and Criticism
In Case I Don’t See You, Good Afternoon, Good Evening, and Goodnight
Imagine every life event that you have experienced was fabricated for you, every human you have interacted with were hired actors and each object that you touch contains a hidden camera. This was the reality for Truman Burbank when he was unwillingly cast to be a star of a television program-which he had no knowledge of. The Truman Show is a cultural piece showcasing the complications of media influence in which Peter Weir utilizes the paranoia within both the characters and the audience. Many viewers of this movie experienced the “Truman effect” which can be described as mirroring Truman’s paranoia in every day life. You begin to feel that you are being watched, your friends are actors, and a giant light may one day fall from the sky. Through the following synthesis, I will utilize Gillies Deluze’s theory on cinematic affected images in terms of paranoia in The Truman Show. I will take the position that viewers experience “Truman effect” paranoia upon watching The Truman Show because of the affected images produced throughout this film.
Affect in film is defined as the aspect inside our bodies that mix with the image of external bodies. Affect, adapted by Deleuze is not a straightforward definition, but rather a concept with a function in order to stray away from normality (Jones 121). Deleuze is trying to figure out how performances, sounds, framing, etc. communicate to the audience about the on-screen movement and emotion. For example, a shot of a child smiling means nothing unless it is paired with a shot of an ice cream cone. We view film though the context of our everyday experiences and humans naturally adapt their life to the life being depicted on screan. Our minds fill in the gaps between the image of ice cream and the emotion that is felt with the smile. Audiences are not only assembling the images on screen, but we are becoming a part of the film itself. In the case of The Truman Show, Truman begins to notice the artificial interactions between his community which causes his mental breakdown. I argue that the mix of visuals and performance in affected images are the reason that the “Truman effect” paranoia can be felt throughout audience’s.
Paranoia themes in film were not a new concept in the 90s, but rather stemmed from a longer history in film. For example, Paranoia was a common theme among post-war cinema on behalf of the social transitions that Americans experienced (Pratt 1). There was an increase in government surveillance on every day American life which led to overwhelming paranoia being projected into daily activities. In cinema, paranoia is utilized as a subjective reflection of the perceived powerlessness of the American experience (Pratt 8). In the case of The Truman Show, Truman is trapped in this realistic world, where pain is no exception. The producers kill off his father through a boating accident in order to scare him away from exploring past the sea that surrounds the island. Truman pays the price of a normal life through orchestrated pain and suffering. This created a theme of paranoia surrounding modern media. The Media created his fear and suffering in order to control his decision-making. When Truman buys the daily paper, the titles feel omniscient, almost knowing that Truman wants to leave the island and feeding him reasons to stay in his town.
We can turn to the casting of Jim Carrey to encompass the use of slapstick which pleases the diegetic audience (Rayner 228). Truman is placed as a critical observer of modern American culture morals which at first, is seen as comical and lighthearted. Because Jim Carrey is known for slapstick comedy, the audience is fooled by his conformity to his fabricated world. It is important to see the key similarities between Truman and our own society in order to target the mindset of our lens and perception of our daily life. There are countless advertisements thrown throughout the show, which subconsciously push products onto viewers. It is hard to say that you have not been influenced by the media to buy a certain product, whether that be through commercials or product placements. Sometimes the overwhelming presence of social media and advertisements can make a participant feel surveilled. Have you ever been talking about something, then log into social media and see an ad for the same product you discussed? This is no coincidence. This comes to a head in The Truman Show when his wife uses the knife she once advertised to protect herself from Truman's “nervous breakdown” as she calls it. This theme is prevalent in our media today, for example when news stations focus on certain fear-driven stories. They expect generations who rely on the news to listen without further research. Political influences in the media can have a drastic effect on our history. For example, when Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg got called into question about the spread of misinformation throughout his site (perrgio 2). It can be seen that big media companies have a hold over our decisions, though it is not always obvious to consumers. Paranoia may be missed by a careful observer (Kantor 61). Our subconscious is not always aware of the drastic effects of media influence which can be detrimental to our decision making, both big and small. Truman is no exception to this.
In regards to affected images, The Truman Show utilizes Deleuzes theory in pursuane of targeting our own paranoia in society. The means of communication-expression can turn our assumption off course towards affected images (Deleuze 112). For example, when Trumans wife yells “do something”, this breaks the fourth wall breaking our trajectory (Niccol 103). In doing so, his wife broke the original flow of the characters conformity. This causes projected paranoia through affected images, not because of the plot, but rather through the certain motion of characters that the audience was used to. Peter Weir utilizes these moments of paranoia through Truman for the use of targeting his message. We accept the reality to which we are presented (McGregor 115). For example, despite the show operator stating that Truman can leave whenever he wants, he does not hold true to his word when he creates chaos in order to prevent Truman from leaving. Ultimately, Truman makes his only unorchestrated decision to leave his controlled environment. He cannot escape his need to leave this fantasy-filled world. Though there may not be a physical set we can escape from, consumers of media must have the responsibility to go beyond what the media states. The Truman Show shows the audience that we must follow Truman to make decisions beyond what is presented.
The affect image is influenced by the vocabulary developed by each character (Anderson 8). When Truman begins to go off the rails, we begin to feel paranoia take action. Lines such as “you are blaming me for the traffic” paired with Trumans insistent “Should I?” solidified the use of paranoia affect. Audiences assemble the linguistic traits with the images on screen in order to unify the bodies on screen with our own bodies. This an have a durastic effect on our viewing experience. For example, in The Truman Show, he never outright states that he is going to escape. Instead, audiences get caught up in their knowledge of the outside world and assume Truman knows about the door. In reality, Truman has no way of knowing how to escape but rather embarks on a journey of escapism. In a way, this calms viewers’ perceived paranoia because they get the satisfaction of an escape. If Truman did not escape, that may trap the viewers’ own paranoia with Truman. The affected images of the final scene lets the audience feel something significant (McGregor 114). The Truman Show shows the audience what is wrong with our society and points us to a better world.
This film has no real ending, cutting off the cameras as Truman steps out into the real world (Knox 13). The overhead of the show stated that Truman prefers living in his “cell” during an interview. The interview with the director gives us insight into how the media thinks of its subjects, stating that this life is not fake, just merely controlled. This has significance to the “Truman effect” because the movie is meant to make audiences question the media's influence on their own life. With Truman as a critical observer of American life, audiences assimilate with the film. This carries well past the screen and into our every day life. The Truman Show is a great start to freeing yourself from the complications of media presence.
