The Truman Show

The Truman Show (1998)

40 mistakes - chronological order

(9 votes)

Continuity mistake: When the lamp is about to fall, the aerial view show a very simple street. From street level, the place is filled with all sorts of decoration. (00:03:15)

Sacha

The Truman Show mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When the lamp falls, an aerial angle shows that the street is in the shadows. In the following angle the street is sunny. (00:03:15)

Sacha

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Suggested correction: As the lamp hits the road, the shadows of the houses and posts are regular. When the angle changes to look at Truman from between the posts, the shadows haven't changed. Only the angle we're looking at him, and so the angle we see the shadows.

Movie Nut

Continuity mistake: The lamp falls on a sunny side of the pavement. When the shot changes it's on a shady part. (00:03:15)

Sacha

Continuity mistake: In the scene where a lamp fell from the sky in front of Truman, the damage caused to it seemed somewhat insubstantial, bearing in mind the height from which it surely must have fallen in order for it not to be visible from the ground in the first place. (00:03:15)

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: The reason it wasn't visible in the first place is because there was a screen/cover on the walls of the dome as shown at the end. Not to mention those lights are heavy duty, mostly made of metal so it's extremely likely that it could have fallen from a height like that (probably the height of a 20 story building) and gotten the damage that it did.

Continuity mistake: Truman picks up the fallen lamp from its upper part. A frame later he is holding it from the side. (00:03:40)

Sacha

Continuity mistake: When the lamp falls on the pavement, its front part breaks completely. When Truman picks it up it is fixed. (00:03:40)

Sacha

Continuity mistake: When Truman is watching how the lamps falls from the sky, the shadow on the front of his car appears and disappears depending on the angle shot. (00:03:40)

Sacha

Continuity mistake: At the ferry, the first shot shows the blinds opened. From inside the ticket place the blinds are closed. (00:07:40)

Sacha

Continuity mistake: When Meryl takes the Chef's Pal out of the paper bag, the lettuce around the bread disappears. (00:09:15)

Sacha

Continuity mistake: When Truman meets his father, there's a man on a bike, 5 meters behind them, riding really slowly. A second later, from a new angle, the bicycle is 10 meters in front of him. (00:15:00)

Sacha

The Truman Show mistake picture

Continuity mistake: In the scene just before Truman sees his dad as a homeless man, there is a woman in a white sweater holding a shopping bag in her right hand. When Truman turns, the bag switches to her left. (00:15:05)

Continuity mistake: Just before Truman turns around to see his dad as a homeless man, there is a woman in a white sweater behind him. When Truman turns, the woman is in front of him. (00:15:05)

Continuity mistake: When Truman meets his father on the street, the father turns his head and looks at his son. The angle changes and his head repeats the movement. (00:15:10)

Sacha

The Truman Show mistake picture

Visible crew/equipment: After Truman sees his father as a homeless man there is a scene where he runs into a vehicle (before the dog runs past). This shot is from the ground looking up. Take a look at the reflection in the passing car, you can see the crew and equipment. (00:15:50)

manthabeat

Continuity mistake: When Truman opens the trunk in the basement, the stuff inside changes completely in the close-up. (00:17:25)

Sacha

The Truman Show mistake picture

Visible crew/equipment: When Truman takes his high school sweetheart to the beach, her "father" comes to get her. There is a shot through the father's button cam showing Truman backing away. Look at Truman's shirt and you will see not one but two human shadows. One is the father and the other is the "button" cameraman. (00:25:30)

Continuity mistake: When Truman stops in front of the bus, the position of the driver's right hand differs between the outside and inside shot. (00:32:55)

Sacha

Continuity mistake: When Truman talks to Marlon, who is stocking the vending machine in the shop, Marlon's head jumps from looking at Truman to looking inside the machine, placing the bar, in a single cut. (00:34:40)

Continuity mistake: When Marlon stocks the vending machine, the camera (inside the back of the machine) shows him stocking the 1st row with brown-wrapper candy bars. He starts stocking the 2nd row with yellow-wrapper bars; Truman interrupts him for a minute (during which Marlon doesn't touch the bars at all). When Marlon continues, the yellow bars have changed to something darker (it's not just a different camera view; even barcodes are different). After another brief interruption, Marlon continues again, and the yellow bars are back. (00:35:00)

Truman Burbank: Good morning! And in case I don't see you, good afternoon, good evening, and good night!

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Question: Just something that has interested me for a while. Did all the people in the town grow up with Truman (eg. his classmates) or are they all different actors? Also do all the actors live on set or do they have lives outside the show?

Heather Benton

Chosen answer: Clearly, in his media interviews, Truman's best friend, Marion, indicates that he did, indeed, grow up with Truman since they met in elementary school. One could extrapolate that his classmates did, as well. A sudden change of actor from one day to the next would be too much of tip-off to Truman. As actors leave the show, there is a story along with it. His father is presumed to have died, and returns later. I'm sure others move away. The main characters (Truman's wife, parents, close co-workers, and other key figures in his life) also appear to live "in world" and have devoted their entire lives to the Truman project. It is not made clear about the extras, though.

Michael Albert

It's kinda hard to believe though that a little boy (Marion) is faking it all so well for all these years since his childhood without raising any suspicion.

He probably didn't get to know it until a late age. In the bus, a little girl was confused and almost tell her mum that there was Truman, so a kid can't keep up the secret. I'm pretty sure they don't know it. But on the other hand, when he says he wants to be an explorer all the classmates freak out, as if they knew it would put in danger the show. So maybe the classmates and even the best friend had been selected after making sure they wouldn't mess up and reveal the secret.

Answer: In a deleted scene, "Marlon" explained that he didn't realise he was auditioning for the show. Only that his mother was the casting director and told him that he would be in this class with Truman and that he would be known as Marlon from then on. In regards to the classmates, they weren't freaking out, they were laughing at the prospect of Truman wanting to be an explorer. With the other actors, only his family, Marlon, and a few close friends/co-workers would live on set. If they want to have a break to visit their friends/family on the outside I'm sure they would have been allowed to. Just come up with a story of why you are leaving for X time and Truman would buy it.

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