Mise-en-scéne involves taking apart the pieces of a certain media and looking at how each part plays its role into making the media significant in any type of way. These ‘parts’ include what Considine & Haley (1999) describes as the 4 P’s: posture, perspective, props, and position.
The Considine & Haley's (1999) 4P Framework used for mise-en-scéne fosters deeper analysis of the media you’re looking at and media messages as a whole by making you pay attention to little details you may not have put much thought into before. It does this by essentially giving us a mental viewing guide for what to look out for when it comes to looking at media. For example, looking at a character’s posture in a scene. One may not think twice about a character having a slouch or laying back in a chair instead of sitting straight up, but thanks to the 4P Framework, one can take a deeper look into the posture and body language and may be able to figure out that the reason why a character is postured a certain way is because they have an internal conflict with self confidence or something else along those lines. By looking at the smaller details of a media with the 4P Framework, it allows us to find media messages we didn’t know could even be a thing .
Using the 4P Framework, one can analyze just about anything, by looking at props, point of view, position, and posture. In this film analysis, I will be applying Considine & Haley’s (1999) 4P Framework in order to analyze how the character Truman in The Truman Show uses the 4P analysis himself to figure out he is the media. In addition, I will be using this framework to also analyze other aspects of the film, focusing on Truman and his development and motives to escape the world, or rather the set around him.
The Truman Show (1998), directed by Peter Wain, is a movie about a man starring in his own television show. The catch, however, is that he does not know he is in a show to begin with and that he is the star. Truman, the protagonist played by Jim Carrey, is a man who lives a simple life. He lives in a house with his wife, goes to work everyday, has a best friend, and is pretty much content with his life. However, things start to change for Truman when he starts to notice tiny details that don’t make sense, such as why the same exact things seem to happen every day, why things are placed in certain ways, and why everyone seems to act differently when he’s around. In a way, Truman uses Considine & Haley’s (1999) 4P Framework to analyze the situation he’s in and to help him determine that nothing around him is real.
The Truman Show was Weir's 13th film. Weir is also known for making films such as Dead Poets Society (1989) starring Robin Williams. Weir was nominated for the Academy Award for best director for The Truman Show, and the film and it's cast received multiple awards in different award ceremonies such as the Golden Globes, BAFTA, and more. The film was also ranked number one in "Ten Best Movies of 1998" which was featured in a Rolling Stone magazine published on January 21st, 1999.
Scene 1: Point of View
Start at 4:58, end at 6:03
In this scene of the Truman Show, Truman is in the middle of trying to escape Seahaven. After going through multiple obstacles such as traffic, a bridge (he is afraid of water), and even fire, Truman believes he has finally made it out. This belief quickly changes though once he comes across a (staged) nuclear plant leak. After realizing the sheriff (whom he has never met) knew his name, Truman attempts to flee the scene. In an article from Screen Rant, a popular website that primarily discusses entertainment and media, it explains that this is one of the instances where Truman realizes everything is a set up. In this scene, people in suits chase and try to capture Truman, and in return he tries to fight back. In the movie, there are hidden cameras everywhere such as on the clothes of people’s buttons, the trees, etc. This scene switches through the perspective of Truman’s point of view and the perspective of the hidden cameras looking at Truman. The use of point of view shows us how Truman is starting to see the world around him. When the people start to capture Truman, it is shown through his perspective. By doing this, it gives us an idea of what Truman is starting to see not only here, but everywhere: everyone is out to get him. This idea drives Truman to lose trust in everyone, giving him even more of a motive to get out. Point of view is also used to show how Truman is losing any sense of self control he thought he had. By switching to the points of view of the people capturing him, it shows Truman laying on the ground by using a high-angle tilt-down angle, which "usually implies weakness, vulnerability, and loss of power. The expression “looking down on someone” actually reinforces this" (Considine & Haley, 1999). By showing this perspective, it shows Truman is scared and weak, and he is not in control in the slightest considering he was both trapped and captured.
Scene 2: Props
In this scene, we have Truman and his wife, Meryl, discussing Truman’s mental state. This scene comes immediately after Truman takes Merly on a dangerous car ride in an attempt to desperately leave Seahaven. With the exception of Truman, everyone in the town knows Truman is not allowed to leave. Truman, who has caught on to that, knows at this point in the film that something is up with everyone around him. However, after the car ride and the outcome of it, Truman begins to feel some doubt and starts to think that there may indeed be something wrong with him, hence his wife saying “You’re not well” and Truman’s reply. The use of a prop in this scene though gives it all away, allowing Truman to solidify his evidence that there is definitely something going on with the people around him. The prop in the scene is the hot cocoa powder. In Considine and Haley's excerpt explaining the 4P Framework, it discusses how when it comes to props "the importance of the object is usually signified by the shot the director uses, typically a close-up" (Considine & Haley, 1999). In this scene, the cocoa is slowly zoomed in on, telling us (the audience) it is important. Throughout the film, subtle advertisements are made through product placement (in which the products are also shown close up) and in casual conversation, but Truman is unaware of that because of how natural they have been. However in this scene when Meryl picks up the hot cocoa powder and goes on script, not only is it completely out of nowhere, but it is very unnatural. The way Meryl delivered this line was very forced, in addition to the randomness of the line itself mentioning where it comes from and how it doesn’t have artificial sweeteners. This allows Truman to realize she isn’t saying this just to tell him, she’s saying it because she has to. This scene acts as one of the main, and final pieces of evidence for Truman, causing him to finally pursue actions to figure out what is going on. In addition to this, this instance could have served as one of Truman’s aha moments of realizing that nothing is what is seems, which is something that Gina Wurtz takes away as one of the main meanings of the movie in her article “The Hidden Meaning of the Truman Show” which was posted on The Daily Fandom.
SCENE 3: Posture & Position
The final scene of the movie is cut up into two parts, however, both include moments displaying posture and position that make the scene and resolution to the movie all the more powerful and impactful. The first part showcases Truman on the boat. In a final attempt to escape the world he is trapped in, Truman has not only faced his fear and trauma of the water, but he has survived monstrous waves, lightning, and a near death experience; all thrown at him from the creator of the show. Looking at his posture in the first half of this part of the scene, Truman is defeated. Considine and Hailey mention in their excerpt that "Posture or body language are key clues in reading a character’s mood and reaction" (Considine & Haley, 1999). He is lying on the boat, choking, and struggles to get up. Although struggling, Truman gets up anyway, and works to get the sails on the boat working again. This shows his desire to not give up. It next shows Truman finally sitting up, leaning his head back to take in the air, the light, and even the surrounding water, something he once feared so heavily. Truman has been through it all: he’s learned his entire life was a lie, he’s lost trust in everyone he loves, and he’s left behind all he knows. Yet his relaxed posture and body language shows us and the creators and viewers of the show that Truman is finally at peace, and to him at least, he is finally free. However, his body language continues to change in such a short amount of time. Once Truman reaches the wall, he puts his hand up to it shakily. His shaking shows how nervous he is by this. By touching the wall, it reveals that everything he suspected was true: nothing is real. Him touching the wall confirms his greatest fear: that everything has always been a lie and that he is trapped. This confirmation gives Truman and immense amount of disappointment, anger, and defeat, and that is quickly shown through him punching and hitting the wall with all of his strength. In Considine and Haley's expert, it also mentions that posture/body language can reveal a characters internal conflict, and in this scene Truman's immense amount of disappointment, anger, and defeat is quickly shown through him punching and hitting the wall with all of his strength. In the second half of the final scene, Truman stumbles upon the staircase leading out to the real world. In this part of the scene, Truman’s position on the staircase showcases his resilience and success of escaping. Each step Truman takes up the stairs is a step away from his old life. And although Truman is not looking down on anyone, him going up the stairs represents him gaining power and control again over his own life, showing that he is now the one on top and in charge, implying that the person in charge of him (the creator of the show, Christof) can no longer do so. Truman is now in control of his own life, and is free. Finally, to end the movie (or show, in Truman's case), Truman bows. His body language in bowing signifies that his story has finally ended and that he is officially done performing for the world's entertainment.
Conclusion
Understanding Considine & Haley’s (1999) 4P Framework is key to not only understanding, but remembering pieces of information. This tool shows itself to be incredibly useful when analyzing media, such as The Truman Show, and looking at how Truman and the story itself develops over time. This tool also shows itself to be useful outside of the media in our everyday lives. Similar to Truman, we too can take a closer look at the world around us by paying more attention to posture, props, point of view, and position when seeing things such as the places we go, the people we’re around, and more.
References
Clarke, Leah. “The Truman Show: 10 Times Truman Almost Found out the Truth.” ScreenRant, 21 June 2021, https://screenrant.com/truman-show-times-truman-almost-found-out-truth/#when-truman-tries-to-escape-with-meryl
Considine, D., & Haley, G. (1999). Visual messages: Integrating imagery into instruction (2nded.).Englewood, Colorado: Teacher Ideas Press.
Rolling Stone. 01/21/99, Issue 804, p83. 1/8p.
Wurtz, Gina. “The Hidden Meaning in the Truman Show.” The Daily Fandom, 16 Oct. 2020, thedailyfandom.org/the-hidden-meaning-in-the-truman-show/#:https://thedailyfandom.org/the-hidden-meaning-in-the-truman-show/#:~:text=Truman%20first%20realizes%20something%20in,man%20who%20Truman%20runs%20into.
Weir, Peter. The Truman Show. Paramount Pictures, 1998.
(Videos from Youtube, but clips were taken from the movie, cited above. The images used are also from the movie.)
“Media in this analysis has been compiled for educational purposes.”