Pleasantville,
directed and written by Gary Ross, asks how we got from the
bland 1950s to the frantic 1990s and whether we should really
be so nostalgic about a time with little awareness of poverty,
sex scandals, and the like. The story begins with quiet David
(played by Tobey Maguire) and wild Jennifer (played by Reese
Witherspoon), twins of squabbling parents who are told at
school about AIDS, depletion of the ozone layer, and reduced
job prospects. David is fascinated with a 1950s black-and-white
situation comedy on television, and after a mysterious TV
repair person (played by Don Knotts) arrives unannounced to
adjust the family’s TV, the twins are transported back to
play parts in the show, much to Jennifer’s and ultimately
David’s dismay. The problem then is how to get back to the
1990s, and they decide that they must liberate the black-and-white
Potemkin village where everybody is naïve and nice so long
as you conform. For Jennifer, this means active sexuality.
For David, the town has to learn about modern art and to read
books. When bits of coloring appear, the townspeople react
by banning books, Lover’s Lanes, music other than Perry Como
and Johnny Mathis, and colors other than black, white, and
gray. David violates the ordinance by painting a color mural,
is put on trial, and pleads for the recognition of an inner
life and an implicit repudiation of mindless "family values,"
which include racism and sexism. A thunderstorm restores color
to the town. David then returns to the 1990s, but Jennifer
stays on to read books and prepare herself for college. Ross,
the son of a blacklisted Hollywood screenwriter, conceived
the idea for the film one day after Newt Gingrich was elected
Speaker of the House of Representatives. The eloquence of
the film, not unlike the 1995 remake of The Scarlet
Letter, is that it tells reactionaries in the United
States that turning back the clock is not only impossible
but totalitarian. The ironic tagline of the film is "It’s
just around the corner." Sadly, those who want to bring back
the "Christian nation" of the Salem witch trial era are likely
to interpret Pleasantville as a manifesto for
their cause. MH
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