PLEASANTVILLE
(Insight, Reactions, Synopsis for the Movie)
Do you know the game “The Sims”? Have
you ever played it? I have. It is a simulation game. It is a game that starts
by choosing a town first. And Pleasantville is one of those towns. This entry
is not about the Pleasantville in the “The Sims” but the movie “Pleasantville”.
After a few minutes of watching the "Pleasantville", I remembered “The
Sims”. The Pleasantville in the movie and the Pleasantville in “The Sims” have
the same feel; that relaxed, unhurried feel of a town. I was thinking that
maybe the creator of “The Sims” got "Pleasantville" from the movie
itself.
"Pleasantville” is a fantasy, comedy, and drama film. It is a movie directed by Gary Ross. Tobey Maguire and Reese
Witherspoon acted as the two siblings that were transported in a black and
white TV sitcom called Pleasantville. Because of this, David became Bud Parker
while his sister Jennifer became Mary Sue Parker. In Pleasantville, the
siblings led a very different life from what they were used to. The most
noticing difference was that they became black and white after all
Pleasantville is a sitcom during the 1950’s where colored televisions don’t
exist yet. Because of their acts and the consequences of their actions,
Pleasantville was slowly changing; so much that it disrupts the wholesomeness
and the peace of the place. An the end, Pleasantville changed so much – it
became colored; Mary Sue decided to stay in Pleasantville to go there to
college while Bud decided to return to the real world.
More than an art film,
“Pleasantville” is more of a philosophical and political film. Change is not
something that we readily accept. When someone is faced with a situation that
could alter his/her whole existence, most of the time, he/she reject these
changes. After all, most human beings are afraid of changes. But who is not?
Our imaginations can run pretty wild that we create all these monsters when we
are at a road would lead us to an unknown destination. However, sometimes the
forces of change are so strong that you cannot stop it; that when you try to
stop it, you hurt others. Just like what happened in the movie, when people are
suddenly becoming colored; the mayor then suddenly outcast them.
Changes always start as
a minority. A minority will believe these changes. The majority might accept or
reject them. In the case of the movie, the majority of the town people
including the town’s heads rejected the rampant changes that are happening in their
town.
There are different
reasons why others don’t accept changes. One is because of fear. Some are just
afraid of changes. Second is to protect the status quo, in such, they are
protecting their current values and principles in life. The mayor rejected
colors to protect Pleasantville’s moral values. While others reject changes,
some do readily accept them like Bud and Mary Sue. Change can happen to someone
in an instant while others do take time. In the movie, Bud and Mary Sue’s
mother became colored first than them. It took time before they became colored.
Changes incite realizations. After every important event that happened
in my life, I always learn a lesson. Sometimes, you realize something is wrong
then you decide to change to be better. Sometimes, you are already changing
before you realize that you are changing. But still after, you will realize
something.
I think it is ingenious to use colors as a symbol of change in the
movie. When someone differs from the status quo in the movie, he/she changes
from black and white to color.
One of the topics covered as well in the movie is racial discrimination.
The ways the black and white people discriminated and harassed the colored
people remind me so much of the past when the whites in US discriminated the
blacks. Decades ago, there are a lot of public spaces and stores that blacks
cannot enter. In the same manner of the movie, some store owners put up signs
that read something like no colored people allowed. The scene where the black
and white people were having a meeting about the implementation of new laws
while excluding the colored people reminded me of how in the past the black
Americans cannot participate in the country’s decision making events. Some
decades ago, they cannot even vote. The scene where Bud and Mary Sue’s mother
was being harassed by some black and white teenagers reminded me of the
harassment received by the blacks. Whatever form it is, racial discrimination
develops unpleasant social situations.
One of the themes
tackled in the movie is the idea of utopia. After watching the film, it feels
like the creator wants to give a message that there are no paradigms of perfect
life. Pleasantville is just like our own earth but just put into a smaller
scale where there are no fire, rains, and others. For others it might be
perfect but for some it is boring. After all, how can someone enjoy the dance
in the rain if there is no rain? The movie wants to share the idea that what
might be perfect to someone is not for others.
Bud and Mary Sue were
changing Pleasantville. But throughout the movie I am uncertain if whether what
they are doing changes Pleasantville for the better or for worse. And until now
I am uncertain. I am in conflict. I believe there are just some things that
should be left as is and that changing them will make lose their worth and
beauty. Some things should be preserved not changed.
The colored Pleasantville reminded me of the current China. Since China
has a very rich culture and history, they decided to destroy some of their
heritage in place of something more modern. The Chinese do have a point that
they cannot stay backwards while others are moving toward urbanization but I
don’t like what they did. I am uncertain if I like how the black and white
Pleasantville turned into a colored Pleasantville. I am also uncertain if there
was really a need for those changes. The plot of the movie didn’t really
justify if there was really a need for the changes.
If something is black and white, it doesn’t necessarily equate that it
is ugly while colored ones are not necessarily beautiful. The black and white
Pleasantville is can be better than that of the colored Pleasantville. The
black and white Pleasantville has a charm of its own. It is mysterious. It is
ordered and not chaotic. It is peaceful.
