It’s a wierd time capsule to revisit. Nonetheless, within the new Hulu documentary “The Contestant,” director Clair Titely makes an attempt to make sense of this weird entry in TV historical past by exploring it as a harbinger of issues to return: the explosion of actuality TV, live-streaming celebrities, and parasocial relationships with onscreen strangers.
Guided by candid interviews with Nasubi, his household and mates, and even a few of the TV crew, “The Contestant” recounts his humble beginnings in scenic Fukushima, discovering comedy as a strategy to keep away from bullies earlier than leaving house for Tokyo the place he lands an audition for “Denpa Shonen,” an early entry for stunt actuality tv within the spirit of “The Superb Race” and “Survivor.” Seeking to diversify their premise, they select Nasubi to outlive solely on journal contest prizes — ,remoted from his family members, stripped naked of his belongings, and unwittingly filmed in any respect hours of the day and evening with the promise they might not present every part.
“Denpa Shonen: A Life in Prizes” was the brainchild of TV producer Toshio Tsuchiya, who shortly establishes himself as a sort of unrepentant unhealthy man within the narrative, coldly pushing Nasubi into uncomfortable conditions time after time. Though technically Nasubi may have left the present at any second, he threw himself into the problem as a hungry younger man trying to show himself, studying to outlive on meager provides and repurposing objects. His obsession with profitable retains him in these situations for a 12 months and three months.
Watching the footage condensed into a way more manageable hour-and-a-half documentary, I can see the enchantment and curiosity of an unsuspecting public who won’t have recognized he wasn’t in on the joke. Like Jim Carrey’s character on “The Truman Show” (which the documentary notes got here out later that 12 months), he was a seemingly extraordinary synthetic well-known, a brand new sort of movie star who didn’t hail from a rich household, arts or sports activities background.
The novelty of watching one another was nonetheless fairly recent on the time versus at this time’s saturated panorama of Twitch streamers, Instagram Dwell hosts, and infinite social media feeds. Folks rooted for him as a result of they might see themselves in him or have been inquisitive about what he would do subsequent. The query of “What would I do on this situation?” retains audiences hooked on the drama and spurs dialog about what he did proper or unsuitable. Poor Nasubi had effectively over a 12 months to reply that query for himself dwell in entrance of a captivated viewers of tens of millions.
