‘Pleasantville’ Essay Exemplar – student’s work
Analyse how one main character or individual changed to become (more or less) admirable.
In the film ‘Pleasantville’, directed by Gary Ross, David changes to become more admirable by the end of his journey.
David is less admirable at the beginning of the film because he is insecure. In the scene where David tries to ask a girl out, Ross uses mise en scene, such as his facials to show he is insecure and has no confidence, a close up shot of David’s face reinforces the idea of him being insecure. Later we find out what actually happens between David and the girl. A point of view shot is used as we see through the eyes of David. David is not even near the girl and the girl was talking to another person. David is less admirable at the beginning due to him not being able to get along in a relationship with others. This is shown through two scenes. When he is talking to Howard, his only friend, he only talks about ‘Pleasantville’ as it shown as an unpopular person. Gary Ross also shows David is incapable of getting on with Jennifer, as they have the fight over the remote. His insecurity is shown through mise en scene. His body language and costume shows this as he feels uptight and his clothes are not tidy. Close up shots on David when he is watching Pleasantville shows the idea of David being uptight and insecure. ‘Nobody’s homeless in Pleasantville’. This quote from David further emphasizes the fact that he is a person that is not that admirable as he seeks refuge in watching Pleasantville, where everything is perfect. He does this to get away from the miserable world he is in as he is isolated from the world and his parents are separated. Many teenagers nowadays are similar to David. They may feel insecure and isolated form the world, probably die to broken families, just like David. Confidence is also an issue with teenagers as they can lack confidence when asking the opposite sex to go on a date, just like David. David’s insecurity at the start of the film makes him less admirable.
David is much more admirable at the end of his journey as he has found his confidence. In the scene where David is in Pleasantville, set in 1950’s America, he asks Margaret to go on a date. Gary Ross uses a close up shot on David’s face. He looks much more secure compared to before going into Pleasantville. The effect of this shot is to emphasise his change before and inside Pleasantville, and how he is more admirable due to his tone of voice and he approaches Margaret unlike in the real world where he was insecure and unconfident about himself. His costume and hair is tidy and this is further evidence of David’s change into someone who is a leader, someone who is admirable and popular with most people. In today’s world, the leaders who are confident are admirable, just like David. They are different from others and people notice this aspect of them which makes them likeable by others around them. David is popular in Pleasantville and therefore is an admirable person. During his time in Pleasantville, David discovers abilities he did not know he had in the real world. He is in the school’s basketball team and tells people what to do. This knowledge of David’s helps him find the confidence for him to be secure as he is in a way Pleasantville’s ‘messiah’. For example, he tells the people not to be scared of rain and shows them it is safe. But in the courtroom scene with Big Bob, David’s leadership abilities is seen clearly. Gary Ross uses a similar camera angle on both Big Bob and David. This shows that David has grown in confidence and is able to stand firm, even in front of the powerful mayor Big Bob. Before this scene, David has been shown as an insecure and unconfident person due to the camera angle used on him, such as a high angle shot. This is the opposite of Big Bob, where Gary Ross used a low angle shot to show him being powerful earlier on in the film. The quote from David “It could happen” further emphasizes the fact David has changed to become more admirable and confident as his delivery and tone of his voice is further evidence of David as a admirable and secure, speaking just like a great leader. He is also admirable as he helps the people of Pleasantville to not hide what is inside them but show it, helping the people discover themselves, just like David during his time in Pleasantville. Many teenagers may feel they are insecure or unconfident, or both. Some may feel that they are more confident as they have a good relationship with others or have a happy family, similar to what David found in Pleasantville. The teenagers that are secure and confident tend to be the people that step outside their comfort zone and discover abilities they did not know they have, just like David. David’s newfound confidence makes him much more admirable at the end of his journey.
Overall, David is much more admirable at the end of his journey compared to before as he is confident and secure. He has changed from someone isolated to a leader. In my opinion, David has changed rapidly during his time in Pleasantville. I think that he is the most admirable person in the film die to his leadership abilities and how he can be supportive in a relationship with other people and help others to discover themselves more as shown during the courtroom scene.