Above image: 'Brazil' / Below image: 'The Truman Show'
One day, I was bored scrolling through my photo gallery and saw a picture of Truman touching the sky-painted high wall. I couldn't help but sigh, why would Truman want to escape from a dreamy paradise that everyone desires, where one isn't bound by fear and can live freely? Isn't that wonderful?
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But then I thought further; it makes sense that Truman would want to escape. He has lived his entire life in a false world, where everything is manipulated, and the way of life is as dull as a math formula. Nothing is real, and Truman is like a dog without bones, being led around everywhere. Although there are no external forces pulling at his soul, he cannot express his true feelings, cannot achieve spiritual freedom, and cannot do what he wants. So what meaning does life have?
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The next film, 'Brazil,' also explores individual life in another kind of totalitarian system. Let’s first discuss the origin of the title 'Brazil.' In fact, this film has nothing to do with Brazil. It all started when director Terry Gilliam one day was at a beach in England, where the weather wasn't great, but he saw a man sitting alone on the sand, listening to the famous song 'Brazil' that appears in the film (playing through speakers). Despite the surrounding environment being filled with 'misfortune,' that man still sat there quietly, which fascinated Gilliam. This scene became one of the inspirations for the film's theme and title.
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The protagonist of 'Brazil,' Sam, although born into a wealthy and powerful family and having a good job, has already grown tired of his life. It is only when he meets his dream lover that he realizes he has long been weary of this absurd world—bureaucracy, paperwork, and intense surveillance. Sam is determined to end his own life, unhesitant to break the rules set by society, just to escape with his lover to a world free of pipes and skyscrapers, and live a carefree life.
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How absurd and how real the world of 'Brazil' is. Two heating repairmen experience PTSD due to not completing paperwork, which leads to their inability to act. A repairman who doesn't want to be controlled by the government becomes an alternative gentleman thief, yet the government sees him as a terrorist; he merely wants to help repair machines rather than deal with paperwork. Moreover, due to government information leaks, an innocent family ends up financially devastated, but the government's apology is just an empty refund check.
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Interestingly, both Sam and Truman's moments of change begin with their beloved ones. Sam's dream lover and Truman's actor, perhaps 'love' is a genuine existence in any world, serving as a compelling pursuit in the story.
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So why did I choose 'Brazil' as the accompanying film to 'The Truman Show'? Because when I looked at that picture of Truman touching the high wall, it reminded me of the ending scene of 'Brazil,' with a long shot showing the central character Sam sitting immobile on an operating table like an empty shell, surrounded by cold metal walls. The melody of 'Brazil' emerges, just like Gilliam encountering that man on the beach. The mind has reached a paradise-like freedom, but the body remains trapped in a hell of dust, ultimately defeated by the powerful system; while Truman's spirit is bound by a huge cage, but in the end, he relies on his will to break down the high wall and march toward reality and freedom.
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Although 'Brazil' and 'The Truman Show' differ greatly in visual style, both themes explore 'reality' and 'fiction'; 'freedom' and 'control.' The storylines are quite similar, but the endings are starkly opposite. Sam and Truman are both in two extreme worlds—one a totalitarian regime and one a false world—however, each longs for a different world than their own. Sam escapes reality to move toward a dream; Truman escapes falsehood to move toward reality.
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Interestingly, both 'Brazil' and 'The Truman Show' conclude in an objective manner, without critiquing which is better, leaving everything for the audience to reflect and define.
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By the way, before watching 'Brazil,' definitely don't check the cast list; otherwise, you'll miss the surprise.