The Truman Show

Truman Burbank (Jim Carrey) is the star of the most popular show in the history of television. The public loves it — there are Truman addicts who go to sleep with the TV on and who have sets installed in the bathroom so they don’t miss anything when they’re taking a bath. Every individual in “The Truman Show” is an actor with one important exception: the lead character himself. One day, however, when a former member of the cast sneaks back onto the set with a warning for the star, Truman begins to suspect that appearances can be deceiving…

As an intriguing, well-written piece of entertainment and a mild social commentary, “The Truman Show” deserves high marks. Not everything in the film works, and the script isn’t perhaps as deep or incisive as it would like us to believe, but there’s enough here to mark “The Truman Show” as a worthwhile motion picture — an appealing, offbeat, one-hundred minute diversion for those who really are tired of monsters tearing down buildings and action heroes saving the world.
It doesn’t take long to appreciate Jim Carrey’s understated lead performance. He does have a few characteristic “wacky” moments, but he also demonstrates admirable restraint — due largely to Peter Weir’s superb direction and a script that requires him to really act for a change.

The underlying ideas made the movie more than just entertainment. It brings into focus the new values that technology is forcing on humanity.