The Contestant
2023 · Movie · R · 91 min · ★ 6.9 · 81% critics
A man agrees to take part in a bizarre reality TV ordeal, confined alone in a small room while having to rely on magazine sweepstakes to get essentials. Unbeknownst to him, his experience is broadcast to huge audiences, turning private suffering into mass entertainment.
Where to watch
Streaming on Hulu and Disney+.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Years
- 2023
- Release date
- 2023-09-08
- Language
- English
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 91 min
- Max quality
- HD
- Critic score
- 81/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.9/10 (59 votes)
About
Watch if you’re drawn to unsettling true-crime-style reality TV stories and can handle stories of exploitation; Not for you if you want light entertainment, or if you’re not prepared for intense, cruel scenarios like those in Oldboy or The Truman Show.
Pros: shocking real-life premise; unsettling dark humor; powerful endurance | Cons: hard to watch; controversial ethics; some pacing feels flat
Themes
- japan
- based on true story
- naked
- television broadcast
- locked in
- locked room
- reality tv
- locked inside
- reality show
- naked life
Cast & crew
Nasubi
as Self
Toshio Tsuchiya
as Self
- KH
Kazuko Hamatsu
as Self
- SH
Seiichi Hirai
as Self
- HK
Harutaro Kagawa
as Self
- JH
Juliet Hindell
as Self
- IH
Ikuyo Hamatsu
as Self
- JA
Jun Anzai
as Self
- KK
Kenji Kondo
as Self
Fred Armisen
as Denpa Shonen Narrator (voice)
Directed by Clair Titley