R E V I E W S
Series 7: The Contenders (2001)
Starring: Brooke
Smith, Glenn Fitzgerald, Marylouise Burke, Richard
Venture, Michael Kaycheck Studio: USA Films Review Posted: 3.11.01 Rating: 8/10
By Stephen.
"The kind of reality show we'll never get to see"
This is the ultimate, yet most dangerous and violent reality-based "TV show" you're ever going to see. Series 7: The Contenders is fictional of course. But what makes it feel pretty close to reality is that it's all shot with hand-held cameras in a style resembling "Survivor." The Contenders is a game/reality show where six people, randomly chosen from a lottery, are given guns and assigned a camera man. Their object is to stay alive and kill the other contenders.
Dawn (Brooke Smith) is the champion from Series 6 Marathon and is again asked to kill in Series 7. Each of the six people are introduced in TV style by means of interviews, both sentimental and sappy. Franklin (Richard Venture), the unemployed husband, is the type of guy who gives and risks everything. Connie (Marylouise Burke), the retired nurse, is rather quiet but has that small killer instinct in her. Jeff (Glenn Fitzgerald), the testicular cancer patient, is the one person who doesn't care if he lives or dies the next second. Lindsay (Merrit Wever), the 18-year old girl, is the type of teenage girl not to be underestimated. Lastly, there is Tony (Michael Kaycheck), the drunkard of the bunch.
There is some concern regarding the "true nature" of this story. Here, we have people running around with guns, endangering not only themselves, but almost "everybody" they confront or approach. If stopped by marketplace or mall security for carrying guns, the phrase "I'm a contender" excuses them promptly; no questions asked. This raises the question: If security and the police force acknowledge these exceptions, then the government must be somewhere behind the scenes of this show, which promotes violence, guns, profanity, death, etc. Also, this movie presents a view of how "fucked up" society and some people are or can be. The characters in this movie don't have morals, because they are out to kill and be killed by others. It's actually pretty scary to see innocent people having to die just to entertain an audience and act as puppets for the cruel media production behind The Contenders.
Writer/Director Daniel Minahan creates the perfect farce to make fun of and ridicule the absurdity of today's "reality-based TV show" fab. Series 7 is filled with character interviews, sentimental music playing over home-made videos, violence, foul language, cruelty, dark humor, misinterpreted morals, and much more. The entire movie, running a mere 90 minutes, is basically a stretched-out TV show. Yet, there is no explanation whether it's taking place in the future or if the town is real. Then again, I think that it's an indication to the absurdity of it (these types of shows) all anyway. There are commercials to every TV shows, and sadly, they are missing here. When it fades to black, you'd expect commercials, but it fades right into another scene, therefore omitting, yet also sparing us the commercials.
Series 7: The Contenders is both hilarious and cruel. But, how can there be something both hilarious and cruel? It's unimaginable and inhuman, which incidentally, this movie cared enough about, or the lack thereof, to exploit and spoof it all. It's definitely worth watching. This movie is "Survivor" (the idea is to survive) genetically cross-spliced with "Big Brother" (you're being watched) and some "Temptation Island" (the temptation/command to kill).
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