Pleasantville

Gary Ross, USA, 1998, 124 mins

Why can't life be a trouble-free comfortable affair? Pleasantville reminds us that an uncluttered existence does not necessarily embrace the act of living. David, the film's hero (Tobey Maguire), longs for the cosy conservative life portrayed in a sentimental fifties sitcom. The wholesome inhabitants of "Pleasantville" appear to glide through life without pain or dissatisfaction, only occasionally pausing for generous helpings of all-American apple pie. David's escapism is quite understandable in light of his low-key career as a high school nerd and his divorced mother's difficult love life. Jennifer (Reese Witherspoon), his trendier sibling, is slowly going off the rails towards the other extreme via a succession of shallow liaisons.

David's wish is unexpectedly granted when on a weekend of back-to-back Pleasantville re-runs a wizened TV repairman gives him the magic remote control, which allows David and Jennifer to be teleported into Pleasantville. Here they become Bud and Mary Sue, the children of George and Betty Parker. David is initially keen to settle into a world of v-neck pullovers and soda siphoning. The frumpy outfits of the period and the sexual innocence of her high school contemporaries dismay Jennifer. Both characters are shortly to discover that the grass on the other side of the fence may not necessarily be any greener. Jennifer causes a stir by seducing the school basketball captain (an unprecedented series of lost basketball games follows) and within a short space of time the previously straight-laced high school population are all experimenting avidly. Emotional and creative awakenings spread gradually through the community, destabilising the established order and prompting the transformation of previously monochrome characters into colour. This new social climate of liberation and free thinking meets with the disapproval of the local establishment and a moral conflict ensues. It is not just the teenagers of the town who are affected by these events.

Joan Allen memorably plays subdued housewife Betty Parker (not altogether dissimilar from her character in The Ice Storm), who finds a soulmate in Bill Johnston (Jeff Daniels), the artistically inclined owner of the local diner. After a spot of erogenous self-exploration, Betty finds herself breaking out into colour; a `shame' she initially conceals by the judicious use of grey foundation. Pleasantville possibly attempts to cram a plethora of literary ideas and high ideals onto too little celluloid, but overall Ross' Capra-esque enterprise certainly deserves a viewing. Apart from its engaging storyline and cast there are several enjoyable visual moments, notably the scene in which pink cherry blossom cascades onto the dingy black and white track leading to Lover's Lane. Fiona Apple's closing rendition of `Across the Universe' is also well worth the wait. If you're one of those countless millions trying to find yourself or think you might enjoy a worthy feelgood movie, this film might inspire.

Review by Fiona Clague
Taken from EUFS Programe Autumn 1999