Watch: The Truman Show or The Conformist
Watch The Truman Show
Links to an external site.(1998) (1:43:00) OR The Conformist (1970)
Links to an external site.(1:53:23)
For this week's feature film screening, you may choose one of the two films that have a close relationship to Plato's allegory of the cave. You are only required to view one, but of course you may view both if you wish.
The Truman Show is a 1998 film starring Jim Carrey and Ed Harris. The film is one of the closest film analogies to Plato’s cave. It follows a television production centered around a single man named Truman, who doesn’t know that he’s the star of a TV show. The world is created specifically for him on a massive soundstage and the people surrounding him are all actors.
While watching, consider the cinematic techniques used that relate the camera to a form of surveillance. Also, consider the specific thematic analogies to Plato's cave and how cinematic techniques support that comparison.
Still from The Conformist, from The Chicago Reader Links to an external site.
Your other option this week is to view The Conformist (1970). This film ties very closely to the allegory and is actually cited in Branigan's article. The film is set during fascist Italy in the 1940s and is about an Italian citizen who joins a nazi espionage organization. His mission requires him to kill his former professor and he is sucked into the horrifying and absurd world of fascism.
Here is a film summary from Kanopy:
"In Mussolini's Italy, repressed Jean-Louis Trintignant, trying to purge memories of a youthful, homosexual episode--and murder--joins the Fascists in a desperate attempt to fit in. As the reluctant Judas motors to his personal Gethsemane (the assassination of his leftist mentor), he flashes back to a dance party for the blind; an insane asylum in a stadium; and wife Stefania Sandrelli and lover Dominique Sanda dancing the tango in a working class hall."
Bernardo Bertolucci's masterpiece, adapted from the Alberto Moravia novel, boasts an authentic Art Deco look created by production designer Ferdinando Scarfiotti, a score by the great Georges Delerue (Contempt, Jules and Jim, and That Man From Rio) and breathtaking color cinematography by Vittorio Storaro."
CONTENT WARNING: Fascist characters with offensive beliefs, reference to sexual abuse.
While watching be sure to note visual details in the film that reinforce Plato’s cave allegory. Consider the film's unique and complex use mise-en-scene techniques to create a sophisticated interplay between reality and illusion.
VIEW THE TRUMAN SHOW ON SWANK: https://digitalcampus-swankmp-net.eu1.proxy.openathens.net/ucf298355/watch/248B9BB26D265015?referrer=direct Links to an external site.
VIEW THE CONFORMIST ON KANOPY: https://ucf.kanopy.com/video/conformist Links to an external site.
Continue on to complete your discussion for the week.
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