'The Truman Show' essay
Discuss how cinematography is used to create meaning in one scene from The Truman Show.
In the 'Do Something!' scene from The Truman Show, various camera shots and angles are used to create meaning through cinematography. The first shot in this scene is a medium shot of Truman's wife, Meryl Burbank, who is leaning against a breakfast bar in the kitchen of their house. The use of this shot creates meaning because it shows that she is has authority, due tot the fact that she is the only character in the shot, and because she is in the centre of the shot. The body language of this character also looks quite relaxed, so meaning that Meryl is at ease and not anxious in this shot could portray that she has control over Truman. The use of a medium shot also shows the character's costume. This creates meaning in this shot because Meryl is wearing a nurses uniform, which shows that she is seen to be someone that can be trusted and is caring, which is ironic because she is really doing the opposite for Truman. The fact that there is nothing in between Meryl and Truman (she is standing in front on the breakfast bar) could imply that Truman may feel more intimidated by her, compared to if there was something between them.
The next show is a two shot which shows both Truman and Meryl in it. This creates meaning because the viewer can see the body language and expression of Truman, and he looks quite intimidated and anxious due to his closed body language. Also, the fact that he is sitting down and Meryl is standing up in this shot could show that she is in control of the situation and has authority over Truman. The shot also shows the back of Meryl when she is having a conversation with Truman. The fact they a silhouette of her is shown could again reiterate the role of authority and control that she seems to have in these shots. This two shot also includes the spherical artificial lighting hanging from the ceiling. This could create meaning that the situation and Truman's reality or life is very artificial and unnatural. This could alternatively be making reference to how Christof is on the moon controlling the TV show that Truman is unwillingly a part of. The fact that this prop is central in the shot also could create meaning that Truman's life is revolved around the TV show and that it controls him.
Another shot that is used in this scene is a zoom shot, which changes from a medium shot to an extreme close up. This could be used to show significance of a character, or alternatively to highlight a key point in the film, in this case a hint at what is actually happening. The shot also is quite unnatural due to the fact that it closes down on |Meryl's personal space. This could create meaning that Truman has no personal space because he is constantly being followed by cameras that he is unaware of, and by people who know the reality of his situation. Due to the fact that this shot is an extreme close up, the facial expressions of Meryl are captured to be very artificial and dramatic. This could be reflective of how Truman's life is made to be as dramatic as possible by Christof to make it interesting for the people who watch the TV show in the film.
A pan shot is also used in this scene to follow Truman as he walks towards Meryl and intrudes on her personal space. This could be used to watch the conversation as though the audience are an observer at the event. Meaning could be created that Truman no longer feels intimidated or controlled by Meryl and that he has suspected that something alternative or strange is happening. the pan shot shows that character expression and movement of Truman and Meryl. Truman's expressions look quite intimidating and angry, whereas Meryl's look quite shy and introverted. This could create meaning that the expressions and body ;language of the characters has reverses as soon as Truman is suspicious of her actions. From this pan shot, the viewer could then infer that Meryl doesn't know how Christof would want her to react is Truman became suspicious, as she believes she is in danger.
There is then a series of extreme close shots of Truman and Meryl. This could create meaning that they have both invaded each other's personal spaces and that there is a lot of tension between the two characters. These shots are also very short (perhaps about 1 second in length) which could highlight that this part of the scene is quite fast and that neither of them really know what the other is going to do, because of the artificial aspect of their marriage.
A high angle shot is them used to look down onto the two characters. This could create the meaning that neither of them are I control of the situation because Truman is no longer anxious or intimidated by Meryl. This could highlight to the viewer that Christof is in control of the characters in his TV show, due to the fact that the camera is looking down on them, and that at the end of the film we find out that he is on the moon looking down on Earth at the situations that he creates.
In the 'Do Something!' scene from The Truman Show, various camera shots and angles are used to create meaning through cinematography. The first shot in this scene is a medium shot of Truman's wife, Meryl Burbank, who is leaning against a breakfast bar in the kitchen of their house. The use of this shot creates meaning because it shows that she is has authority, due tot the fact that she is the only character in the shot, and because she is in the centre of the shot. The body language of this character also looks quite relaxed, so meaning that Meryl is at ease and not anxious in this shot could portray that she has control over Truman. The use of a medium shot also shows the character's costume. This creates meaning in this shot because Meryl is wearing a nurses uniform, which shows that she is seen to be someone that can be trusted and is caring, which is ironic because she is really doing the opposite for Truman. The fact that there is nothing in between Meryl and Truman (she is standing in front on the breakfast bar) could imply that Truman may feel more intimidated by her, compared to if there was something between them.
The next show is a two shot which shows both Truman and Meryl in it. This creates meaning because the viewer can see the body language and expression of Truman, and he looks quite intimidated and anxious due to his closed body language. Also, the fact that he is sitting down and Meryl is standing up in this shot could show that she is in control of the situation and has authority over Truman. The shot also shows the back of Meryl when she is having a conversation with Truman. The fact they a silhouette of her is shown could again reiterate the role of authority and control that she seems to have in these shots. This two shot also includes the spherical artificial lighting hanging from the ceiling. This could create meaning that the situation and Truman's reality or life is very artificial and unnatural. This could alternatively be making reference to how Christof is on the moon controlling the TV show that Truman is unwillingly a part of. The fact that this prop is central in the shot also could create meaning that Truman's life is revolved around the TV show and that it controls him.
Another shot that is used in this scene is a zoom shot, which changes from a medium shot to an extreme close up. This could be used to show significance of a character, or alternatively to highlight a key point in the film, in this case a hint at what is actually happening. The shot also is quite unnatural due to the fact that it closes down on |Meryl's personal space. This could create meaning that Truman has no personal space because he is constantly being followed by cameras that he is unaware of, and by people who know the reality of his situation. Due to the fact that this shot is an extreme close up, the facial expressions of Meryl are captured to be very artificial and dramatic. This could be reflective of how Truman's life is made to be as dramatic as possible by Christof to make it interesting for the people who watch the TV show in the film.
A pan shot is also used in this scene to follow Truman as he walks towards Meryl and intrudes on her personal space. This could be used to watch the conversation as though the audience are an observer at the event. Meaning could be created that Truman no longer feels intimidated or controlled by Meryl and that he has suspected that something alternative or strange is happening. the pan shot shows that character expression and movement of Truman and Meryl. Truman's expressions look quite intimidating and angry, whereas Meryl's look quite shy and introverted. This could create meaning that the expressions and body ;language of the characters has reverses as soon as Truman is suspicious of her actions. From this pan shot, the viewer could then infer that Meryl doesn't know how Christof would want her to react is Truman became suspicious, as she believes she is in danger.
There is then a series of extreme close shots of Truman and Meryl. This could create meaning that they have both invaded each other's personal spaces and that there is a lot of tension between the two characters. These shots are also very short (perhaps about 1 second in length) which could highlight that this part of the scene is quite fast and that neither of them really know what the other is going to do, because of the artificial aspect of their marriage.
A high angle shot is them used to look down onto the two characters. This could create the meaning that neither of them are I control of the situation because Truman is no longer anxious or intimidated by Meryl. This could highlight to the viewer that Christof is in control of the characters in his TV show, due to the fact that the camera is looking down on them, and that at the end of the film we find out that he is on the moon looking down on Earth at the situations that he creates.
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