The Contestant

A largely sober tone allows The Contestant to avoid the kitsch that the subject of Japan’s extreme brand of TV competitions typically attracts.

The Contestant, Clair Titley’s thoughtful, troubling film shown in the Storyville strand, took us back to the mad world of 1990s Tokyo TV, except this time you won’t have laughed once unless you really are a sadist.

Any wider commentary on reality television or stardom, not that much is attempted, is subsumed by the brutality of Asubi’s nightmare, leaving the viewer to shoulder his burden with no sign of reprieve.

The film feels almost too bizarre to believe, and yet entirely in the realm of possibility in a world where so much of our lives, willingly or not, is broadcast to others.