Series 7: The Contenders

It is, frankly, alarming, how ahead of its time and insightful Series 7 is. It is presented as a binge watch of a reality show called The Contenders, a competitive reality show in which people are drawn from a national lottery, armed with a gun, and the goal is to be the sole survivor. A deadly game show is nothing new for sure -- The Running Man, Battle Royale, and Death Race 2000 all precede this, and one could make the argument that this is yet another variation of The Most Dangerous Game -- but it is Series 7's presentation that sets it apart, and turns what could be just another human-hunting-human movie into a sick, black satire. Every reality TV trope you can think of is done here. The cut to commercials (although there aren't any) having a tease for what's to come or a mini-cliffhanger, for instance. The post-shooting confessionals, edited to fit the crafted narrative, and the staging of shots to help fill in time and bolster said narrative. The use of sappy, syrupy music to tug at the viewers' heartstrings during emotional moments. Fast editing and crash zooms, and forced dramatic pauses that created in the editing room. Cliche-ridden narration from the host. Series 7 uses every trick, every shortcut, and every trope you've ever seen in every episode of American Idol, Chopped, Ink Master, and a hundred other competitive reality shows, all designed to hook the viewer and keep them there. Given that this came out in 2001, only a year before American Idol debuted and a year after Survivor's first season, it is downright astonishing, and somewhat depressing, how much of the genre they were able to nail -- and in the process call out -- when it was still in its infancy. The satire doesn't just stop and skewering reality TV, though. Through this lens, there is a deeper, and ultimately more disconcerting commentary on American society and the way it views violence. There seem to be no safeguards to who is included in the lottery; an 18 year old girl is among the five chosen, and her father seems uncomfortably enthusiastic about the idea of his baby girl kicking ass and taking names. Another participant is a man in his 30's battling stage 3 testicular cancer. And the two-time reigning champion (who can win her freedom if she wins a third season) is eight months pregnant. Society at large has not only fully accepted what amounts to a murderous manhunt out in public, it has made accommodations; at numerous points, the Contenders walk into public areas, visibly armed, and nobody bats an eyelash. During one scene, when a theater full of people is taken hostage, the Contender tells authorities they will start killing people in a half an hour if their demands aren't met, and the crowd is so bloodthirsty and forgetful of what's going on, they applaud the idea of a massacre until the Contender reminds the room that they are the ones on the chopping block. And participation in this contest is mandatory; the agents in charge, working for a shadowy agency called the Department of Control, show up to compel participation. A lot is left unexplained, and that's by design, but one thing is for sure: this is a society that has not only accepted violence as a facet of daily life, but have become fans of it via this show. It is a not-subtle-at-all commentary on the logical endpoint of desensitization, and how that can lead to it being exploited and even commercialized. As devilishly insightful and disturbingly accurate as Series 7 can be, it does have some downsides. The characters are as thin as it gets. That is, of course, a consequence of the format of the movie, and to an extent, it's excusable, but it does mean that the format and the satire are more important than the characters. It does make cheering for any of them a little more difficult. And that format is also a bit of a tripping point. If you've seen CSA: The Confederate States Of America, you know that it uses a similar format, but breaks up the mockumentary with fake commercials. Series 7 does not do that. This is one, uninterrupted run of the show's seventh season, and all of the high-octane, early 2000's editing style that entails. It can leave the movie feeling frenetic and hyperactive, and ultimately, exhausting. It's barely an hour and a half, but at times, the commitment to the bit can grate, especially if you're not fond of reality TV as a whole. That being said, this is still a smart and effective movie. It's something of a downer, considering how prescient it turns out to have been, but for those willing to not just watch it as a stupid kill-or-be-killed contest and actually get into the satire here, Series 7 sticks the landing.