The Contestant
★★★ 1/2
There is a sad reality that one faces while watching Hulu's documentary, The Contestant. It's pretty shocking to see how Japanese TV producer Toshio Tsuchiya exploits Nasubi on reality television, forcing him to live 15 months trapped inside a small room, naked, starving and alone. Nasubi, unbeknownst to him, becomes a sensation. It's easy to judge everyone involved and wonder how such a thing could happen, but anyone who has indulged in some sort of reality television is culpable. Director Clair Titley does a good job pointing the magnifying glass on the audience and tries to find some good in the exploitative journey of Nasubi's life. Based on its initial premise, I was curious to see how this documentary would capture my attention, and I was even more surprised to see what ultimately happens with this story. The Contestant isn't the most groundbreaking documentary ever, and though I haven't thought a lot about it since I finished it, I have surprisingly found myself recommending it and telling a lot of people about it.
