Customer Reviews

Pleasantville (Widescreen)

5 star:		(158)
4 star:		(59)
3 star:		(23)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(25)

 

 

I saw this movie under the impression that it would be a fun and lighthearted exploration of the Leave it to Beaver fantasy. While it certainly delivers on that, it's the fact that this movie doesn't shy away from the racially-charged undertones of the era that makes this flick really shine. A bright, smart and thoroughly satisfying movie.

i really enjoyed this movie.i thought it was very clever.it also deals
with themes that are as relevant today as they were in the 1950's and it
touches on themes that were relevant in the 1940's.this film is set both
in the 90's and the 50's.it's multi-layered in terms of story and
content.there's a lot of depth here.a lot of thought was put into the
characters,as well as the story.it's very thought provoking,as well as
entertaining and even funny.not only is the story well written,but so
are the quirky characters.Reese Witherspoon and Tobey Magiure are
wonderful as the two leads.Jeff Daniels,Joan Allen,William
H.Macy,J.T.Walsh,and the great Don Knotts also star and are equally
good.Credit must also go to Gary Ross,who not only directed the
movie,but also produced and wrote it.even though there are some dark
themes,i think this a movie that could be,and should be watched by the
whole family.but parents should use their discretion.for
me,Pleasantville is a 5/5

This is a very well made movie. The colors and black and whites are great.
Nice Picture and Audio Quality.
Not many extras though.

A modern day brother and sister David and Jennifer argue over what to watch on T.V. He wants to watch his favourite show 'Pleasantville'(a black and white show set in the 1950's); she wants to watch a music show. Their argument leads to the remote being broken at which point a mysterious repairman leaves them a new one which transports the pair to the idyllic Pleasantville. Finding themselves trapped in this monochrome world they try to fit in whilst finding a way back to reality.
The people of Pleasantville have never experienced art, rain, colour, or anything less than perfection and have no awareness of a world or life outside of their town. The arrival of the two teenagers sparks a change and gradually colour and reality start encroaching on this little town. At this point we can see the uglier side of reality developing as some of the townspeople turn against the 'coloureds' and fight against any change in their existence.
This is a wonderful film to watch. It has its magical, whimsical side whilst also managing to address the issue of prejudice. Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon deliver great performances as the geeky brother and sparky sister and are a perfect foil for each other. Highly recommended

Who says Hollywood can't make a movie that is both smart and entertaining? Pleasantville is proof that it can. Here is a movie that is an enjoyable escapist entertainment. But it is also a religious allegory similar to The Truman Show, depicting the fall of man and loss of innocence in a variety of forms.

I don't want to connect the dots for you because you need to watch this movie closely and think about its meanings. When is it that people begin to take on color? What causes it for some doesn't cause it for everyone. It is a commentary on everything from the Civil Rights and Women's Liberation movements to Christianity, Genesis and the fall of man. And all of it is dressed up in a clever conceit about the good old days of black and white sitcoms.

Along with The Truman Show, this is one of Hollywood's greatest productions of the decade. One day people will appreciate it for the masterwork that it is.

I'm not really sure why I like this film....and that's one of the things I like! Weird.

Background - The hit 50's television show 'Pleasantville' is having an all night marathon. David Wagner (Tobey Maguire)intends to watch every episode. His sister Jennifer Wagner (Reese Witherspoon) intends to watch a concert with a new boy-toy. The two fight and are somehow transported inside the black and white show.

Story - The town of Pleasantville is a typical utopian vision from the 1950's. Everyone has a white picket fence, and the boys play basketball for the school team. When David's sister begins messing around with the balance in the town, things start to go awry. The normally black and white town starts to become 'in living color'.

While many in the town fight the change to color, some accept it willingly. They want to change, and grow. The town begins to tear itself apart as the grey people and the colored people begin to fight. It harkens back to the 50's and 60's era with black and white race relations.

This is a good film that unfortunately, didn't get a any decent advertising when it was released. I think it's a bit of a cult classic that way. Most of the people who've seen it did so because of word of mouth. So take it from me, you should get this one.

I'm not really sure why I like this film....and that's one of the things I like! Weird.

Background - The hit 50's television show 'Pleasantville' is having an all night marathon. David Wagner (Tobey Maguire) intends to watch every episode. His sister Jennifer Wagner (Reese Witherspoon) intends to watch a concert with a new boy-toy. The two fight and are somehow transported inside the black and white show.

Story - The town of Pleasantville is a typical utopian vision from the 1950's. Everyone has a white picket fence, and the boys play basketball for the school team. When David's sister begins messing around with the balance in the town, things start to go awry. The normally black and white town begins to become 'in living color'.

While many in the town fight the change to color, some accept it willingly. They want to change, and grow. The town begins to tear itself apart as the grey people and the colored people begin to fight. It harkens back to the 50's and 60's era with black and white race relations.

This is a good film that unfortunately, didn't get a any decent advertising when it was released. I think it's a bit of a cult classic that way. Most of the people who've seen it did so because of word of mouth. So take it from me, you should get this one.

This is a question that ran through my mind while watching Pleasantville starring Reese Witherspoon as Jennifer/Mary Sue Parker, and Tobey Maguire as David/Bud Parker.

Pleasantville follows two teenage siblings as they are transported to a world that is "pleasant" every moment of every day. Being thrust into another reality wherein which the norm is "perfection," Jennifer and David must pose as Bud and Mary Sue, children in a black and white television series set in a small town, until David can contact the television repair man, played by Don Knotts, who is responsible for their nether world experience.

As they realize they are captive until contact can be reestablished, they begin interacting with members of the town in an effort to not throw off their "entire existence," in effect acting out the episodes David has memorized. However, given that Jennifer is not pleased by having to be held hostage by such a boring place, she chooses to engage in a little paradigm shifting/deviant behavior.

Interactions by David and Jennifer with the citizens cause them to begin seeing the world in very different terms; namely that of color. The result being a blossoming red rose, the first color in Pleasantville, symbolizing the awakening/unfolding consciousness of the community; and a pink bubblegum bubble, which symbolizes an expanding of consciousness. As this awakening occurs, the yearning for knowledge produces an infectious need to consume mass amounts of information among the newly colored. For instance, in one scene, upon discovering the joy of reading, the children and young-adults begin visiting the local library to absorb information on a consistent basis.

As the town's "colored" residents move beyond the bonds of social control, their appetite for information re: what else is "out there" becomes the most important endeavor. When this newfound information and freedom are incorporated into their daily lives, there begins the need to find balance in this "brave new world." Yet, before this level can be attained in Pleasantville, the residents must undergo many tense moments in an effort to understand what is happening in their little town.

In a meeting being held in the Town Hall, the Mayor says, "we have to separate out the things that are pleasant from the things that are unpleasant." With that, he and his staff institute a Code of conduct. According to these "codes" which simultaneously focus on social control and "reintegrative shaming," a concept by Braithwaite, we see how the town's leaders seek to regain control over and in their Pleasantville. Of their codes, three stand out for me:

1.) The area commonly known as Lovers Lane as well as the Pleasantville Public Library shall be closed until further notice.

2.) The only permissible paint colors shall be black, white, or gray, despite the recent availability of certain alternatives.

3.) All elementary and high school curriculums shall teach the non-changes view of history emphasizing continuity over alteration.

The above samples of the "Codes of Conduct" are an instance of direct social control by the town's leaders. As one would expect, they also hold the potential of creating a sub-culture, which only serves to compound "deviant behavior."

In other subtle, but equally poignant, moments/scenes the element of shame/deviance is also revealed. For instance, when Bud and Mary Sue's mother discovers the joy of phalangeal and labial interaction, she becomes "colored," which suggests she has done something impure to become so. Due to the stigma attached to her "deviant behavior" which produced the coloring, she sought to hide her shame from not only her husband, but the larger community as well. It is not until she encounters Bill Johnson, artist and soda fountain owner, played by Jeff Daniels, that she reveals her color without shame.

In an effort to illustrate that being different is not inherently a bad thing, Bud/David engages in a little demonstration to prove to the Mayor that all have the potential to be different or "deviant" and hence also possess the ability to move beyond their accepted reality in constructing a new reality that incorporates and legitimates newfound experiences. Once made valid in the new social structure, the potential to evolve beyond recent revelations once thought to be a hindrance are not only probable, but are duly beneficial. His point crystallized, the town emerges into a new world with possibilities unbounded.

Concluding Thoughts

Everyone is on a journey to find enlightenment and balance in their reality, social control notwithstanding; a reality that encompasses and celebrates diversity as an asset as opposed to being a liability. Given that the potential to realize immeasurable possibilities lie within the core of our being, it is imperative that we begin embracing new thoughts of not only ourselves, but others as well. Upon comprehending the methods involved in the creation of a new and different reality, based on an awareness of a collective sub-conscious resting just below the level of conscious activity, a new reality will emerge; one rooted in the incontrovertible fact that the only constant is consistent change. Given so, I must say Pleasantville is a wonderful movie that provokes thought beyond being mere entertainment, for it reaches into the ever-illusive realm of edutainment, but with lots of laughs. Great movie!

Note: the above is part of a work presented in a course on Deviant Behavior and Social Control.

A beautiful film, make no mistake. But what is "Pleasantville" really about? The "moral/repressed" 1950's against the "decadent/free-spirited" 1990's? I would venture not -- rather, the town of Pleasantville represents a fantasy of what the 1950's were like, a peek at what many imagine was a golden age of "family values" and sexual innocence. The fact that the 1950's were not actually like this is passed over by many of the film's critics, who see the sexual elements in the film as an attack on morality typical of an equally imaginary "immoral" modern world.

But "Pleasantville" is about fantasy and reality, not the 1950's and the 1990's. The characters take on color not because they are discovering sexuality but because they are becoming whole human beings rather than imaginary characters in an unchanging idyllic world. This is no less true of David/Bud and Jennifer/Mary Sue than it is of the citizens of the town. The symbolism of the fruit, paralleling the Biblical story of emerging human awareness and its divinity, is powerful. Contrary to those who see the knowledge of good and evil as an affront to God, "Pleasantville" reminds us that it is this knowledge that makes us like God, possessing of a divine nature that other animals lack. As to the charges that the film glorifies irresponsible sexuality, I point out that Jennifer/Mary Sue only achieves color when she stops having sex and discovers that there is more to life than the shallow pleasure-only morality she had previously embraced. One must be sexual to be whole, but one cannot be whole if one is only sexual.

So see "Pleasantville", but be warned: it will challenge you in ways that few stories do.

Pleasantville is a 1950's tv show that paints the lives of people living in a "perfect" world, full of good family values where colors don't exist, where firemen never have to deal with fire but just rescuing cats, where couples sleep in separate beds, where the most physical contact couples have is holding hands or a kiss on the cheek, where people don't swear, where the basketball team never ever loses, where people are just happy living routine lives where everyone loves each other and ...nothing ever happens.

When 2 teenagers from the 90s find themselves trapped into pleasantville by some kind of "luck", the whole world that pleasantville is based on collapses. The two teenagers now in the skin of the two kids of the show, start changing the way people think. Or rather just let people think for themselves. The crowd of pleasantville discovers than there is more than holding hands in relationships, that you can't always win a basketball game and that if you prepare the salad before you make the burger, life will keep going.

This movie is to me a satire on how people have become free and how the impredictibility of life is what living really is. In some ways, the movie makes allusions to the book burnings and the rewriting of history by the nazis, the segregation of blacks from whites, and how people fought to overcome it all to become free. Free to think for yourself, free to be who you want to be regardless of what the society expects of you.

The Genius of pleasantville is how all those underlying very serious subjects are all wrapped into sugar, and turned into a very enjoyable, innocent-like, cute little story.

This is a great movie, very smartly done and very original.