The Truman Show glorifies the idea of a watchful eye; a creator that controls every aspect of the main character’s life without the main characters knowledge.

The life of the main character, Truman, is constantly monitored by a series of cameras and windows throughout the world in which he lives. His daily activities and interaction with other characters is part of a greater story being shaped by the watchful eye. The characters he interacts with are also outfitted with cameras. The camera angles used create an uncanny third person view, atypical compared to the  over the shoulder view  normally representative  of a watchful eye.

 We also view his life from the perspective of everyday inanimate objects. More often than not we are completely oblivious to these objects and this creates a strange and eerie sense that we are being scrutinized and examined from anywhere and everywhere. A sense of voyeurism is generated out of this film technique – we become part of Truman’s world, interacting with and affecting every moment of his life, each step of the way. The film creates an uncanny feeling that our everyday actions, including our displayed thoughts and emotions, are being watched, influenced and controlled by a greater power.  One can easily conjure feelings that their own life is being manipulated and monitored without us ever knowing it and we are left questioning the purpose and reasoning behind our own actions.

Are we actors in a greater story? Are we part of some form of sick-entertainment, generated for someone else’s pleasure?  

The watchful eye in The Truman Show is acting on  behalf of the main character’s good. This greater power has its own limitations but can still direct our thoughts  and actions unbeknownst to us..

A Scanner Darkly enlightens us to a different form of surveillance; the main characters know they are being watched.

The main character Fred works as an undercover narcotics agent in California and in his second life (or first life, he can’t decide to which he truly belongs) he is Robert Arctor, a Substance D addict trying to network himself in the drug scene.

As Arctor, he knows that he and his friends are under surveillance by the police.  This creates an uncanny desire to be true to oneself while trying to act natural in front of the watchful eye. With a duelling nature as both an addict and a narcotics agent, he’s constantly battling issues of morality and common sense, while trying desperately to keep his alternative life style secret and separate from both his friends and the police. His internal struggles finally tear him apart mentally and emotionally after being assigned the task of monitoring the actions of his fellow drug addicts.

Knowing that every action, every displayed emotion and thought is being scanned and analyzed when one is allowed to be themselves? What becomes uncanny is when you become the very observer in your life. You become the very ‘eye’ that people fear is peering down over their own shoulder. Except here, you know every thought that crossed your mind at the times of action and are given a unique perspective.

You have unparalled access to your mind. You’re already within your own head, but know trying to figure out why and how. You are delving deeper into your own psyche, but looking through the eyes of another.