Series 7: The Contenders (2001) Reviews

• "Reality" to the Nth Degree

  jhclues2002-09-06

  Fans of `reality' TV are going to love this one, and even those whose tastes run contrary to such offerings are going to find this indie film a riveting experience. Like `Survivor,' the name of the game here is, well...survival; but with one significant difference from any of the shows you've seen on television: The winner in `Series 7, The Contenders,' written and directed by Daniel Minahan, will be the only one from among the contestants still standing at the end of the show, meaning `alive.' Yes, that's right, the object of the game here is to eliminate the opposition, as in `kill' them-- by whatever method available. Guns, knives, bombs, blunt instruments, anything goes; whatever it takes to do in the other guy (or gal). And it ain't over till it's over, which means when five are dead, and only one remains. Of the six in contention this week, the returning champion, with ten kills to her credit, is 30ish Dawn Lagarto (Brooke Smith), who also happens to be eight months pregnant. She'll be pitted against Connie Trabucco (Marylouise Burke), a nurse; Tony Reilly (Michael Kaycheck) a husband and father of three; Franklin James (Richard Venture), the oldest of the bunch; teen Lindsay Berns (Merritt Wever); and finally, Jeffrey Norman (Glenn Fitzgerald), an ex-boyfriend of Dawn's, who has his own reasons for being in the game. And so it begins; and the question now is, of the six, which will become the hunters, and which the hunted? Does Dawn stand a chance of putting five more notches on her scorecard? Or this week, will one of the other five prevail, and walk away with the cash? Or, more notably, be the `one' who is able to do so. It was inevitable that this film-- or one like it-- would be made, given the way television has been saturated with `reality,' the past few years. And since it had to happen, at least it was born of, evolved and guided by the artistic capabilities of Minahan, who has crafted and delivered a gripping, thought provoking satire that reaches it's apex of effectiveness hours, or even days, after the film has ended; because for anyone with any scruples at all, this film will linger in the memory like a phosphene caused by rubbing the eye, and it'll take that long to even begin to sort out the myriad implications of it all. The obvious question/message of the film is, of course, just how far should/could/can society go in this direction before realizing the consequences of the moral turpitude `reality' shows must necessarily embrace to be successful. Minahan does not moralize overtly, however; rather, he very subtly plants the suggestion of what the next step in real life may be within the matter-of-fact presentation and context of his story. And he does it with such precision that it is not until much later that the full impact of it hits you, and it's then that you understand how extremely appalling and depraved the concept is when extrapolated to the nth degree, as Minahan so aptly illustrates here. Minahan's approach may be more clever than imaginative, as his film plays out as if it were lifted from the negative of `Survivor' or one of it's clones. But it's cleverness at it's best. A film cannot seem this true-to-life and entirely natural without a lot of hard work that includes technical knowledge, an eye for detail and an impressive grasp of human nature; Minahan didn't just walk onto the set one day and crank out such an accurate duplication of a `reality' show. It begins with the astute insights Minahan weaves so incisively throughout his screenplay, and culminates in the way he translated it all to the screen. Watching this film is something akin to watching Jim Carrey early in his career doing Henry Fonda, or Kevin Spacey doing Christopher Walken or Pacino; it's the kind of professional impersonation/interpretation that just doesn't get any better. What makes it so enthralling is that Minahan so succinctly captures that documentary look and feel of what has become a `genre' of television, and like the best of them, he lets you get to know the contestants-- through interviews and `mini-bios'-- before the bloodbath begins, so that you can pick your favorites and put your money on the one you think has what it takes to win. He creates a genuine `sporting event' atmosphere, which works at the time-- it puts you in the moment and draws you into the action-- but in retrospect, it makes all that has transpired and everything you've witnessed seem even more disconcerting (which is, of course, the idea). And you realize, finally, that you've been duped into accepting the unacceptable, and moreover, made to believe by some perverse rationalization of thought that it was all right; which in itself is a keen observation of the power of the medium through which it is proffered. To make the `reality' convincing, the performances, of course, had to be convincing; and they are. Minahan extracts precisely what was needed from his actors to really sell the show, beginning with Brooke Smith's portrayal of Dawn. This is the central character of the film, so it was imperative that she be especially believable, and Smith pulls it off beautifully. As you watch her, you never get the feeling that you're watching an actor; in keeping with the documentary feel of the film, this is Dawn, a young, pregnant woman involved in a game of killing for cash. it's a solid performance, the kind of which is often overlooked or taken for granted precisely because it is so natural. The supporting cast includes Donna Hanover (Sheila), Angelina Phillips (Doria), Nada Despotovich (Michelle) and Alex Yershov (Nathan). To call this film pure entertainment would be wrong; to call `Series 7, The Contenders' an entertaining indictment against moral sense and sensibility, however, would be accurate. It's one that's definitely going to make you stop and think; and consider. 7/10.

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• sharp, kinetic reality TV satire

  fertilecelluloid2004-12-24

  These days it is difficult to satirize reality TV and reality video because material like THE LITTLEST GROOM, THE AMAZING RACE, BOOT CAMP, SURVIVOR and BUMFIGHTS already exist. SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS is an ultra-efficient rendering of the imagined next step in reality programming in which "contenders" must kill in order to survive. To their credit, the filmmakers never step outside the game itself. Clever graphics, voice-overs and reality-style camera-work achieve a high level of illusion. The "contenders" themselves are well characterized and we get to understand the complexities that drive them. As entertainment SERIES 7 is seductive and exciting. As satire it is sharp and black as pitch.

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• Only A Matter of Time Until Actual Reality Shows Go This Far...

  dtb2006-07-21

  SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS is both a taut thriller and a deft satire on the outlandish lengths TV networks will go to in order to lure viewers. Set in the near future, SERIES 7 is cleverly constructed as a marathon of seventh-season episodes of "The Contenders," a hit reality show in which contestants are selected via state lotteries and given guns with which they're expected to hunt down and kill their fellow contestants (although they're free to use their own weapons and be inventive). The object: to stay alive. The prize: whoever remains alive after 3 Contenders seasons wins his/her freedom from the high-rated program/ordeal. The champ is Dawn Lagarto (Brooke Smith of SILENCE OF THE LAMBS), a pregnant, troubled but essentially decent drifter. Trapped in the program for the past two seasons, Dawn's reluctantly willed herself into becoming a frighteningly efficient killing machine to keep herself and her unborn baby alive. For her third and final season, "The Contenders" sends Dawn to her hometown of Newbury, Connecticut. Her fellow contestants/adversaries include prim but ruthless ER nurse Connie (Marylouise Burke of MUST LOVE DOGS and A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION); teenage Lindsay, whose well-meaning but overbearing parents (Mom is played by Donna Hanover, TV personality and Rudy Giuliani's ex!) coach her for the show as if she were trying out for an athletic competition; unemployed asbestos-removal worker Tony, who's trying to use this cruel TV twist of fate to unite his family; crazed conspiracy theorist Franklin; and Jeff, an artist who's dying of testicular cancer -- and who also happens to be Dawn's high school sweetheart. The lingering flames of love and resentment between these two, and the reactions of Jeff's long-suffering wife, provide the film's most poignant and suspenseful moments, as well as one of its funniest: clips of the low-budget student film they made in high school, including every 1980s video cliché imaginable and Joy Division's technodirge "Love Will Tear Us Apart" on the soundtrack. SERIES 7's authentically television-like feel is augmented by its story being told entirely through such TV conventions as bumpers, interviews, voiceovers, cutaway footage, dramatic re-enactments of events by doubles, and exciting tag lines ("Real people...in real danger...in a fight for their lives!"). We even meet most of the characters as they're notified of their selection for "The Contenders" on-camera, as the show's masked, armed minions come to the new contestants' homes like sinister Publishers Clearing House representatives. These TV gimmicks create deliciously satirical overtones in and of themselves, and yet the movie's irony and gallows humor works precisely because it's all played absolutely straight, not with the "nudge nudge wink wink" air that too many recent thrillers have overdone in their attempts to be edgy and postmodern. But the film's brilliant craftsmanship wouldn't be nearly as effective without the power of the fine cast's performances, particularly Brooke Smith; her riveting performance makes Dawn the emotional center of SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS. That said, the film also chillingly portrays the way fear and self-preservation can turn even the most decent human being into a stone-cold killer. This sharp, smart, exhilarating thriller works on so many levels, and it's got one of the niftiest twist endings in ages, too! Somehow, I suspect it's only a matter of time before a real-life reality show figures out a way to go this far... :-)

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• A sensational satire

  james_norman19812006-05-12

  I don't know about you but I'm pretty much 'realitied' out. If I see another behind the scenes, fly on the wall or real people confined to a televisual prison program I think I might well have to tear up my TV licence... and with Big Brother 7 (I think) on its way here in England that might well happen (although, now that I think of it, BB 7 might well end up sharing some unintentional similarities with Series 7 of the Contenders... more on this shortly). To tell the truth, I have never liked any reality TV shows. Instead of showing you something positive they seem to rejoice in the negative and encourage only the worst sort of backstabbing, vindictive and childish behaviour we should be discouraging, rather than rewarding. Unfortunately the trend doesn't look to be slowing down any time soon and this is a very worrying possibility. In recent years there has been a counteract against the reality TV boon, best personified cinematically in Battle Royale (which is close if not quite a reality TV satire) and, bang on the money, Series 7: the Contenders (henceforth Series 7). There are other voices of sanity out there, particularly in books (see Ben Elton's Dead Famous for a brilliant example), which seek to satirise reality television, but only the medium itself can really show us where the end will finally happen, television and real life of course... Series 7 represents a logical step in reality TV. With audiences losing interest in physical and psychological hardship of volunteers, an alternative will have to be found. Therefore why not have a lottery based killing game where five people, along with a sixth champion of the previous game, must compete to slay each other within the limits of a small town in American. As I'm sure you can guess, this barbaric program has yet to be made but it is highly likely that television executives have thought long and hard about the possibilities... it wouldn't take a genius to think of the boost in ratings that, for example, Death Row inmates given a chance to win their freedom if they kill five of their fellow cons in some sort of last man standing style battle royal. Those men would all be scheduled to die anyway, so why not make it for entertainment rather than just justice...? Such a possibility, very fortunately, hasn't yet come to fruition, nor am I aware of any attempts to do so, but one only has to imagine such a show to see that it would be very possible to make it and, moral concerns aside, it really would sweep all before it for audience popularity. Series 7 represents such a program to the nth degree and, very accurately, portrays the emotions a disparate group of the lottery 'winners' might feel upon being selected. I won't dwell on the film itself, simply because I don't want to spoil the humour and utterly spellbinding violence it creates, particularly the juxtaposition of both aspects... you find yourself giggling at an 8 month pregnant woman's attempts to psych out a 50 year old nurse, only to feel the laughter die in your throat as the same woman garrotes, drowns and shoots three people, amongst others, seconds later... The closeness of Series 7 to the formats of other 'reality' shows is striking, from the hideous melodrama, 'I'm going to win' speeches and sad, pathetic individuals more needing sympathy and a bit of cash than the fame they crave. When this is held up alongside the same people brutally killing each other it makes for a very real and chilling portrayal of reality television, particularly in America though by no means limited to that country. These people don't have to fight. They don't have to kill each other. THey certainly don't have to put up with being videoed, attached to GPS monitors and hooked up to microphones 24/7. If it was me I'd blow the cameraman away and go from there... but these people obey the rules of the game, even though the show purports to have no rules, and hence are hostages in a very real sense. This is best demonstrated by the subtle allusions to the fact that the game may well be fixed. By a staggeringly remote chance, Dawn (the pregnant woman) ends up face to face with a former school friend... one of the competitors claims the show is faked... one man suffers a 'self inflicted stab wound to the back' while fleeing... and footage of various situations disappears and must be 're-enacted' by actors. These are just some of the issues mentioned but, as we are supposedly watching the TV show rather than a film about the show, the details aren't explored, which is a place the film falls down a little. Other problems are the TV gimmicks, like sudden 'what will happen next?' montages every 10 minutes or so. Sure, this would happen on TV, but in a film (I saw this at the cinema) it gets quite annoying. However, these quibbles are mostly minor. Anyone who is addicted to reality TV shows and people who genuinely despise them will find something here, although they might not like what they see. As for the Series 7 scenario...? Just how implausible do you think it is? I only ask because, in one of the series of Big Brother in Australia, one of the 'cast,' while making out with another member of the cast, asked her whether she was excited. When she gave her answer he then picked up a knife and held it to her throat. 'How about now?' he wondered. This man was subsequently taken out of the BB house but the question remains... how far will TV executives go with reality TV? Series 7: the Contenders shows us the depths to which it could stoop eerily accurately.

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• Surpassed My Expectations in Every Way

  Soujiro2001-03-21

  This movie is for people who like their comedies so black that the light from the screen can barely escape the film's gravitational pull. Fortunately, I'm one of those people, and I found the film to be hilarious beyond my wildest dreams. The main thing that makes the movie's premise work is that the movie takes itself seriously. It's similar to Christopher Guest's mockumentary style in that the people in the movie are for the most part unaware of their own ridiculousness. Now, that being said the acting in the movie is excellent. There is very nice character development of the main characters, and Brooke Smith's character has to be the most appealing and interesting assassin I've seen on screen ever. Most importantly, the movie is presented exactly like a reality show which eventually draws the viewer into suspending their disbelief and accepting the ludicrous world these characters inhabit. Even the bad parts of reality shows are accurate, the narrator's overly dramatic voice, the cheesy melodramatic music to inject some false drama, the corny stock footage of the flying bird. It's all so accurate it's wickedly funny. It even parodies cop shows during a car chase. Finally, the icing on the cake is that as ridiculous as everything is, you realize that American society isn't too far off from this extreme today, and that gives the film the added bite of seriousness that propels it above being simply entertaining and makes it a true satire, This film is even more impressive considering the fact that the idea was conceived 5 years ago before the reality craze began. I encourage people to watch Series 7 once, it's destined to become a cult classic. The last line of the movie is also laugh-out-loud funny.

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