The Pleasantly TrumanVille Show

Recent cinema seems obsessed with the paranoid notion that another ‘ontological’ reality exists hidden alongside of parallel to the one that we experience (whether it be in the form of virtual reality or media/alien surveillance). Discuss this notion comparing and contrasting The Truman Show and Pleasantville.

Recent films such as The Wachowski Brothers’ Matrix Trilogy (1999,2003) and David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ (1999) have become obsessed with the paranoid notion another ontological reality exists, hidden alongside, or parallel to, the one we experience, but alternatively, films such as Peter Weir’s The Truman Show and Gary Ross’ Pleasantville (both released in 1998) provide cinema audiences with an optimistic exploration of the “theme of reality versus virtuality.” [de Vries, 2005:81] These films utilise the medium of television programs (the titles of which reflect the titles of the films themselves), to provide examples of paranoia based not on fear but on longing. For the characters in these television shows, and the viewers who watch them, the idea other worlds exist outside of our own ‘reality’ is a concept not only from which we learn as much about ourselves and the world we choose to live in, as we are shown in Pleasantville, but also these worlds provide an outlet from which we can gain hope, as in The Truman Show. The existence of “transcendental realities, higher or more absorbing than the apparently relatively disappointing reality in which we live,” [Pomerance,2003:2] in respect to film, are to be explored in this essay through philosophies pertaining to Plato’s cave allegory, the struggle between authenticity and inauthenticity, and Bentham’s Panopticon.


“Most people are so thoroughly conditioned to believe that the world is the way they have been taught to see it that they resist any alternative,” [McMahon,2003:173] which is exactly how Truman Burbank (Jim Carrey) lived his life until day 10,909 when the light bulb above his head literally went off; “a theatrical light…falls from the sky” [McMahan, 1999], and he begins taking steps toward authenticity, and away from Seahaven.
“Existentialists define authenticity as a state in which the individual is aware of the true nature of the human condition. In contrast, inauthenticity is defined as a state in which the individual is either ignorant of the true nature of reality or in denial with respect to it.” [McMahon, 2003:166]
The idea “ignorance for Plato is not bliss, but rather a form of enslavement,” [Falzon, 2003:22] creates an instant connection between the characters of both films, and the prisoners from Plato’s cave allegory who sat “with chains on their legs and their necks so that they have to stay put, and can only look straight in front of them.” [Plato, 1996:230] While they are not physically chained Truman is isolated in his world, and the citizens of Pleasantville are trapped in reruns.
Originally the citizens of Pleasantville are ignorant to the true nature of their reality, but upon the arrival of David (Tobey Maguire) and Jennifer (Reese Witherspoon) in place of Bud and Mary-Sue Parker, who ostensibly release their chains, the residents who do not accept the “certain changes in the town”, are those prisoners who do not get “way out of the cave” [Plato, 1996:232] and are simply living in denial. The youth of the town, followed by Bill Johnson (Jeff Daniels) the Soda Shop owner, and Betty Parker (Joan Allen) Bud and Mary-Sue’s mother, choose to embrace the opportunity they are presented with to create themselves, rather than continuing to adopt predetermined identities originally written for them by the show’s creators. They refuse to live inauthentic lives dictated by the scripts, instead choosing an alien and sometimes frightening authentic life where they fill in the blank pages themselves.

The books in the library provide a metaphor for the town’s inhabitants, Mary-Sue asks of David: “Did you know that the books are blank?...they have covers and there’s nothing inside of them,” just as Plato asks of the prisoners in the cave:
“Do you think that people in this situation would even have seen themselves and each other properly? Or just their own shadows?”
[1996:231]
Like Truman, they know only what the creators want them to know, all these years they have merely been black and white silhouettes, outlines, of what they can really be. It isn’t until Jennifer brings her knowledge of ‘another world’, a world outside their ‘cave’, that the pages begin filling in. Those who have made the change and decide to accept all aspects of reality, not just those with which they are comfortable, find themselves and things around them in technicolour, while those living in denial are still literally in the dark; trapped in the monochromatic scheme of the television show. [McMahon, 2003:173-176]


“This enclosed, segmented space, observed at every point, in which the individuals are inserted in a fixed place, in which the slightest movements are supervised, in which all events are recorded.”
[Foucault, 1977:197]
Foucault was describing the ‘disciplinary mechanism’ of the Panopticon, but he could very well have been explaining Truman’s world. Foucault goes further, describing the Panopticon thus: in the peripheric ring (Seahaven), one (Truman) is totally seen without ever seeing, and in the central tower (the Lunar Room), one (Christof) sees everything without ever being seen. [1977:201-2] These analogies indicate Truman is a prisoner, just like the prisoners in Plato’s cave watching the shadows. As we watch on a large screen the sleeping figure of Truman in blue and white striped pyjamas, evocative of a stereotypical prison uniform, Sylvia pleads for Truman; “He’s not a performer, he’s a prisoner,” which Christof repudiates saying: “Truman prefers his ‘cell’ as you call it.”


Truman’s paranoia is reflective of a more traditional paranoia than the ‘upbeat paranoia’ belonging to the characters of Pleasantville, but, as the audience knows all along, his suspicions are not unfounded. Truman’s gradual descent into madness as he desperately searches for a way out of Seahaven is best explained in terms of authentic versus inauthentic characters, and does not necessarily reflect a negative change in his character:
“Whereas inauthentic characters are described as existing in tranquil ignorance, characters approaching authenticity are depicted as anxious, alienated, and bordering on insanity.” [McMahon, 2003:167]
Truman’s erratic behaviour, escalates quickly in the “Somebody help me, I’m being spontaneous!” scene where Meryl (Laura Linney) comes home from work to find Truman sitting in the car in the driveway, contemplating the ‘loop’ of people passing their street; “Lady…Flowers!...and…There it is! There it is! There's that dented beetle!” He is slowly pulling apart the world which has literally been created around him, also evident from his calculating comments of the traffic when he and Meryl decide to drive to Atlantic City/New Orleans: “Beautifully synchronized, don’t you agree,” and “Same road, no cars. It’s magic!”
After his attempted driving escape, Truman literally reaches the end of the road, as he and Marlon (Noah Emmerich) sit on the edge of the unfinished bridge drinking beer, as he finally acknowledges his unspoken fear: “it feels like the whole world revolves around me.” Then, in what is a beautifully manufactured moment, we see Christof (Ed Harris), God-like, orchestrating from his “Lunar Room”, feeding Marlon lines through an earpiece, as Marlon tells Truman: “if everybody was in on it, I’d have to be in on it too. I’m not in on it Truman. Because there is no in.” Truman’s apparent faith in Marlon’s speech not only makes the audience admire Marlon’s acting skills, but also incites slight paranoia as to the truthfulness of our own existence, leading us to question authenticity in our own lives; if there is indeed a real or if it is all manufactured.


While these films largely present what can be described as ‘upbeat paranoia’, there is still always a them or a they which is kept very separate from us; it is the ‘other’. In Pleasantville the ‘other’ does not take on one form. There is David and Jennifer versus Pleasantville; “reality versus virtuality,” [de Vries, 2005:81] – “You’re messing with their whole universe”. It is also the world which characters begin to accept exists outside of Pleasantville – “I bet they don’t know how lucky they are.” As the film progresses it escalates into a case of “coloureds” versus “all true citizens of Pleasantville” as proclaimed by signs around town. During Bud and Bill Johnson’s trial the court house segregates the town into “coloureds” on the top balcony, and the remaining “true citizens” on the lower level. Throughout the scene all citizens gradually become coloured, even Big Bob (JT Walsh), despite his denial until the bitter end, “It’s (the other) not inside me!”, and the townspeople are once more unified.
For Truman, as shown in flashbacks, it was Lauren/Sylvia Garland (Natascha McElhone) all those years ago who planted the idea of the ‘other’ in his life, she attempted to explain it all to him moments before being removed from the show: “They’re going to be here any minute…they don’t want me talking to you…everyone knows everything you do…everybody’s pretending….this…it’s fake. It’s all for you…the sky and the sea…everything. It’s a set. It’s a show.” Her ‘father’ then appears and explains “she has episodes” – although ironically she won’t be having any more – but as Sal (O-Lan Jones), waitress from the Truman Bar, explains: “they got rid of her, but they couldn’t erase the memory,” once more indicating Truman’s omnipresent other, and the fact he’s been thinking about this ‘other’ for years now.


While The Truman Show displays the world of the media breaking into real life, and conversely Pleasantville shows real life breaking into the media world, both films seem to “privilege authenticity over inauthenticity.” [McMahon, 2003:167] Despite the opposing outcomes of reaching authenticity – in Pleasantville an authentic life must be lived in the inauthentic world of the television show, whereas Truman releases himself into the outside reality of the viewer – the audience finds themselves on the side of the newly liberated characters, no matter how unsure their new lives may be.
“While authenticity may not conform to our conventional definition of bliss, living authentically affords individual a unique serenity because it ends the maddening run from our being that characterises inauthenticity.” [McMahon, 2003:176]
The ending of The Truman Show sees Truman standing at the edge of his known world in front of an open door suggesting only blackness beyond, but he does not seem afraid of the unknown. He calmly addresses Christof, and the greater viewing audience with his trademark: “And in case I don’t see ya, good afternoon, good evening and goodnight,” before taking a final bow, and cuing, for the first time ever, his own exit. This exit reverses Plato’s cave allegory to an extent as he leaves the sunlight for the darkness, but the result is the same. Just like the prisoners in the cave he has decided to no longer simply sit and watch the false images being paraded before him, and even though “it would hurt him to do all these things…[he would be] a little closer to what is real…[to see] more truly.” [Plato, 1996:231-2]
Pleasantville concludes with similar feelings of uncertainty yet peace brought about by authenticity. Sitting on a park bench George (William H Macy) and Betty Parker discuss the unknown future, the camera cutting between the two characters. A final cut from Betty to George reveals George has mysteriously been replaced by Bill Johnson, but the characters remain positive about the great unknown before them.
George: So what’s going to happen now?
Betty: I don’t know. Do you know what’s going to happen now?
George: No…(laughs) I don’t.
Bill: I guess I don’t either.


A preoccupation with how it’s going to end, or where the character’s stories will lead them is evident in both films. Truman remarks on Lauren/Sylvia’s button: ‘How’s It Going To End?’ with “I was just wondering that myself.” As her red sweater and the button are the only physical reminders Truman has of her, this desire to know his own ending, and to be in control of it, are what drive Truman to ‘escape’. In Pleasantville David knows the ending of the books: Catcher In The Rye, and The Adventures of Huck Finn, he also knows how most of the characters stories develop: “Oh god, are we in that episode?” however, he can not see the ending of his own story.


Due to the complex nature and often undesirable results from the search for authenticity “most people prefer to flee the facts and remain in a ‘dreamworld’ of their own – or someone else’s – design.” [McMahon, 2003:173] Which not only explains why, for so long, Truman had no idea his life was nothing more than a television show, but also explains why recent films have become obsessed with an idea of another ontological world existing alongside our own; it is our human way of testing the waters so to speak. If we, as an audience can accept the possible existence of these ‘other’ worlds – through television camera surveillance as in The Truman Show and Richard Linklater’s A Scanner Darkly (2006), virtual game reality as in eXistenZ, complete computer existence in The Matrix, or even the most fanciful idea incited by Pleasantville’s TV Repairman (Don Knotts) that “something’ll put you right in the show” – as an educational ‘other’ rather than a fearful one, we can more readily accept truths of our own reality, and begin our own search for authenticity rather than continuing to dwell in a dreamworld living vicariously through fictional characters as a substitute for our own search for the truth. Christof’s last attempt to stop Truman leaving Seahaven: “There’s no more truth out there then there is in the world I created for you,” is ignored by Truman as he realises he must discover this for himself, and he will no longer be controlled.


Despite both films involving television shows they incite not so much ‘Big Brother’ paranoia of ‘someone’s watching me’ but more an idea of ‘there’s got to be something bigger out there,’ especially in the “dreariness of the…1990s world” [Tyron, 2003:45] Pleasantville and The Truman Show illustrate through the world of the viewers. The grey, cold lives of The Truman Show’s carpark attendants’ office, and the utterly bleak picture of the world painted by David’s teachers in the montage at the beginning of Pleasantville, explain why though we may be already living in a reality, a search for something else is often necessary. Films such as The Truman Show and Pleasantville can be explained away as ‘only a film’ or ‘just fantasy’ if we choose to, because as Christof himself says: “We accept the reality of the world with which we are presented,” but, more than anything they give us the inspiration and encouragement to make the “existential choice between living honestly and living in ignorance” [McMahon, 2003:166] giving us the confidence to raise our hands without fear and ask: “What’s outside of Pleasantville?”


REFERENCES:

Books:
• de Vries M, 2005, Teaching about Technology: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Technology for Non-philosophers, USA, Springer.
• Falzon C, 2003, ‘Ch.1: Plato’s Picture Show – The Theory of Knowledge’ in Philosophy Goes to the Movies, London, Routledge.
• Foucault M, 1977, ‘Ch.3: Panopticism’ in Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison, New York, Pantheon Books.
• McMahan A, 1999, ‘Watching You Watching Me’ in Film – Philosophy, Vol. 3, No. 24 (e-journal).
• McMahon J, 2003, ‘Popping a bitter pill: Existential authenticity in The Matrix and Nausea’ in The Matrix and Philosophy, (ed) Irwin W, Chicago, Open Court.
• Plato, 1996, ’34. Republic 514A-519A’ in The Plato Reader; (ed) Chappell T, Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press.
• Pomerance M, 2003, ‘Neither Here nor There: eXistenZ as “Elevator Film”’ in Quarterly Review of Film and Video, volume 20.
• Tyron C, 2003/4, ‘Virtual Cities and Stolen Memories: Temporality and the Digital in Dark City’ in Film Criticism, Vol. XXVIII, No. 2.


FILMOGRAPHY:

• A Scanner Darkly, 2006, Richard LINKLATER, USA, Warner Independent Pictures.
• eXistenZ, 1999, David CRONENBERG, Canada, Alliance Atlantis Communications.
• Pleasantville, 1998, Gary ROSS, USA, New Line Cinema.
• The Matrix Reloaded, 2003, Andy WACHOWSKI & Larry WACHOWSKI, USA, Warner Bros. Pictures.
• The Matrix Revolutions, 2003, Andy WACHOWSKI & Larry WACHOWSKI, USA, Warner Bros. Pictures.
• The Matrix, 1999, Andy WACHOWSKI & Larry WACHOWSKI, USA, Warner Bros. Pictures.
• The Truman Show, 1998, Peter WEIR, USA, Paramount Pictures.