PLEASANTVILLE
SYNOPSIS:
David (Tobey Maguire) and his sister Jennifer (Reese Witherspoon) are living a depressing
existence with their angrily divorced mother. David is obsessed by a re-run 1950's sitcom
called Pleasantville. While waiting for a one day marathon of the show to start, the
remote is accidentally broken - just as a strange TV repairman (Don Knotts) appears at the
door. Through his new "remote" David and Jennifer are transported into
Pleasantville itself as Bud and Mary Sue Parker, the children of George (William H. Macy)
and Betty (Joan Allen). They find a black-and-white world where the weather is always
perfect, the roads go nowhere, there are no toilets and sex is unknown. But with the
arrival of the newcomers changes start to occur, not least in the straight-laced diner
owner, Mr. Johnson (Jeff Daniels).
"Exploding with originality and verve, Pleasantville is an absolute delight. In
his directorial debut, Gary Ross has succeeded magnificently in bringing to the screen a
simple story that is rich in its complexity, magical in its execution. From the clever and
beautifully structured script, to the performances and technical effects, this film will
capture your imagination, and leave you uplifted and enchanted. In this delectable journey
where black and white life is simple and uncomplicated, we rediscover the marvels and
challenges of the unknown through its engaging characters. Joan Allen is a standout as the
perfect housewife, with top performances by William H. Macy, Jeff Daniel, Tobey Maguire
& Reece Witherspoon. The concept of broadening horizons, taking risks and embracing
change is beautifully handled, all the while complemented by Randy Newman's beautiful
score. The effects and visuals are sensational, yet what dazzles overall, is the very
essence and heart of the film. Pleasantville is a wonderful cinematic experience that you
should not miss."
Louise Keller
"Pleasantville should be on every high school curriculum - and required viewing
for all those in politics. It deals with some of the eternal truths, and handles them with
intelligence, wit and skill. Much like Animal Farm, albeit with a different agenda,
Pleasantville is a deceptively complex work, told with simple strokes. It’s a
parable, a metaphor, a fable and a morality play all at once, glued together by some
perceptive humour and sensational performances from the entire cast, and from Joan Allen
in particular. The film can be enjoyed on a superficial, fun level, or it can be taken
apart and analysed in search for its deeper meanings: there are references to fascism and
totalitarianism, to the wilting effects of living in fear of change, to the downsides of
individual freedom, to the joy of humour and irony, to the need for human fulfillment and
to the glory of sexuality. And that’s just in the first half…. It is a film of
great depth made with a light touch, and magical in the way only cinema can be magical. So
if anyone ever tries to compare Pleasantville to any other film, don’t believe it.
And for goodness sake, don’t miss it."
Andrew L. Urban
"There's so much depth in this beautifully textured, and highly original first
feature by writer/director Gary Ross. As both a comment on the simplicity of postwar
America, and a study of what makes us complete, Pleasantville is a film that is not only
technically astonishing, but it's also a film where visuals and screenplay are perfectly
intertwined. It's not simply a gimmicky film, during which the once black and white world
of the fifties, with its colourless, moral high ground, changes to colour. Sure these
moments are stunning to watch, and extraordinary to behold. But they serve Ross' tale
well, and give the viewer a profound insight in the nature of these characters, and their
yearning to be set free - morally, physically, emotionally and intellectually. Though the
film does ultimately run out of steam, and one fears it tries too hard at times, it is
still an engaging, moving and sharply observed charmer, full of wonderful visual details
that herald the arrival of a major new talent. The performances are mostly topnotch, from
the always superb William Macy and Joan Allen, who shine as Pleasantville's all-knowing
parents; Reese Witherspoon is perfectly cast as the rebellious teenager who undergoes a
huge transformation during her stay in this town; the film's most beautiful performance
comes from Jeff Daniels as the soda fountain worker, who ultimately discovers his sense of
independence and artistry. Unlike Peter Weir's more self-conscious Truman Show,
Pleasantville is a finely textured, intelligent and emotionally resonant film, that is
also one of the most visually breathtaking films of the year - with a topnotch script to
match."
Paul Fischer
"Just weeks after Gus van Sant’s disastrous remake of Psycho, here's another
movie that uses ‘colorisation’ as a potent if problematic metaphor for our
attempts to improve on the past. Ultimately the idea of a television parallel world seems
like a pretext: the real concern here is less with old sitcoms than with a distilled myth
of the ‘50s as the Nerd Decade, a bland utopia where housewives stay home, sex is
non-existent, and Father Knows Best. The plot that develops is partly an allegory for
various actual conflicts of the time (anti-communism, the civil rights movement), though
its simplified terms can be taken to mean almost anything. Earnestly preaching diversity
and freedom, the film is shot through with a curious nostalgia. Pleasantville is
simultaneously a repressive hell and an innocent Eden – while a prologue suggests
that the crusades of the ‘60s have led only to the horribly Unpleasant modern world
of pollution, unemployment and broken homes. The stunts with digital technology seem still
more ambiguous. When people and objects suddenly appear in luscious computer-controlled
color, they’re obviously more palpable, closer to life; yet the seamlessly artificial
effect only enhances the unreal, spectral aura of this 'high concept' movie, set in a
deliberately banal universe peopled with walking cliches. Contradictions and all,
it’s a very watchable film, thanks to the fine ensemble cast, and especially Tobey
Maguire as our representative from the ‘90s: a passive slacker who mostly sits round
watching old TV shows, but who discovers in himself, at the crucial moment, an unexpected
courage, wisdom and decency. With his not-quite-formed quality, his husky voice and
sweetly foolish grin, Tobey Maguire embodies a pervasive spirit of vague yet poignant
idealism – suggesting that this contrived, incoherent Hollywood fantasy might still
possess some kind of soul."
Jake Wilson
"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto... No, we're in Pleasantville - the
dazzling creation of writer/director Gary Ross. In this amazing film, Ross perfectly
captures an unreal world - yet one which eerily mirrors our own - and populates it with
compelling characters. Pleasantville and its people are modelled on '50s American sitcoms,
like Leave it to Beaver, or My Three Sons. But this is no sitcom film. Ross uses
Pleasantville- a place unused to change - as a metaphor for certainty, order, conformity
and (ultimately) tyranny. Some have seen the film as chronicling the change from 50s
morality to 60s rebellion. I think that's too narrow. The themes addressed by the film
(change, acceptance of difference and personal freedom among them) are far more universal.
If I had one minor quibble, it was that some of Ross' imagery was rather heavy-handed on
occasion. The film's centrepiece is its magical use of colour to tell the story. It's a
visual feast - far more ambitious and imaginative than, say, Forrest Gump - and brought
off with technical brilliance. The cast works perfectly together, with the performances
uniformly excellent. And where was Joan Allen's name on the Oscar nominations list?
Pleasantville is full of little pleasures, touching moments and grand ideas. A remarkable
achievement and definitely a film not to miss."
David Edwards
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CRITICAL COUNT
Favourable: 5
Unfavourable: 0
Mixed: 0



WILLIAM H.MACY INTERVIEW
PLEASANTVILLE (M15+)
(US)
CAST: William H. Macy, Joan Allen, Tobey Maguire, Jeff Daniels, J.T. Walsh, Don Knotts,
Marley Shelton, Jane Kaczmarek, Reese Witherspoon
DIRECTOR: Gary Ross

PRODUCER: Gary Ross, Jon Kilik, Robert J. Degus, Steven Soderbergh
SCRIPT: Gary Ross
CINEMATOGRAPHER: John Lindley
EDITOR: William Godenberg
MUSIC: Randy Newman
VISUAL EFFECTS SUPERVISOR: Chris Watts
COLOUR EFFECTS DESIGNER: Michael Southard
PRODUCTION DESIGN: Jeannine Oppewall
RUNNING TIME: 124 minutes
AUSTRALIAN DISTRIBUTOR: Roadshow
AUSTRALIAN RELEASE DATE: February 25, 1999
VIDEO RELEASE: Sept 7, 1999
VIDEO DISTRIBUTOR: Roadshow Home Entertainment
RRP: $24.95 (March 13, 2000)
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