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Much ofThe Contestantplays out as a chilling meditation on the grotesque dynamics of reality television and celebrity.
The stunt in question was part ofSusunu!
Denpa Shonen, a popular turn-of-the-millennium Japanese reality show that specialized in dropping unwitting participants in extreme situations.
Its excruciating to watch Nasubi endure the numerous indignities of the challenge.
He eats dog food.
Hes deprived of clothing for most of his ordeal.
His body withers under malnourishment.
But evoke is all it does.
The documentary almost completely declines to say anything specific or provocative about the subjects its looking at.
We watch Nasubi go from winning a lone bag of rice to scoring an array of supplies.
For the experienced reality-television consumer, the footage will likely evoke all sorts of other contemporary touch points.
But the specific cruelty imposed on Nasubi rises to a whole different level.
Tsuchiyas occasional appearances on A Life in Prizes adds further agony to the managed cruelty.
It emphasizes the complete power Tsuchiya has over Nasubi.
But did Nasubi, malnourished and broken, ever have a choice?
Nasubis ordeal culminates in a surreal climax.
But Tsuchiya has one more act of cruelty up his sleeve.
Hes prompted to strip down to nothing once again, which he does.
But the footage is irrepressibly hypnotic.
You might even come close to seeing what Tsuchiya had been obsessing over all this time.
Here, Nasubi comes across as a person who converts his trauma into something beautiful and powerful.
Its a heartwarming arc.
But at the same time, its hard not to feel likeThe Contestantwas hunting for a clean conclusion.
That pursuit of narrative closure even appears to extend to Tsuchiya, Nasubis unambiguous tormentor.
There is even the suggestion that Tsuchiya feels at least some remorse.
Titley doesnt press him.
Nasubi was a man exploited to every inch of his bone.
There are so many waysThe Contestantcouldve been about something bigger, so many compelling interior questions it couldve explored.
What do we make of his eagerness for celebrity?
Howhasreality television changed in Japan since, and how has it stayed the same?
How should we grapple with the genres ethics today?
A Life in Prizes distorted Nasubis experience by leaving out the complicated fullness of his ordeal.
Its a move fit for reality television.
