Watching the Truman show is definitely a fun time. However, having seen it more than once i can say that more than few things became more clear on just how closely and accurately the movie critiques the media. In the movie their is no shortage of product placements by the actors for their sponsors in the show. The first time i watched this movie it was just something funny about how prevalent advertising is in television. This being the third time i've seen the movie, it was surprising to feel that this wasn't just some cheap gag, they were really trying to say something about the media. Though it was funny, it was also very true, advertising is as much a part of media as the stars are a part of the night sky, they always go together. It suddenly hit me that not only is the advertisers pumping their brand through media outlets, but also that the media works along with them so willingly. Then it became clear why almost instantly, money. Clearly in the movie for something like this to be possible, a lot of cash is going to be needed, and when the media need cash, who is their go to source, sponsors and advertisers. I mean, take a look at the superbowl, half the hype over it is for the commercials. We have become a society so saturated with ads that we barely even consider them a separate entity from the actual content media, like pilot fish and a shark, only the pilot fish called 40 of their friends and they are slowly devouring the shark. Looking at the Truman show in an interpretive way, I can see the public as truman, unwitting and unaware, the actors as the media, pushing truman right up against the ads and shoving it in his face, and he still remains consciously oblivious to it.
(This post was brought to you by budweiser, please drink responsibly)
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