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Movies / On DVD / Series 7: The Contenders
Series 7: The Contenders

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Series 7: The Contenders (2001)

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Reviews Counted:79

Fresh:55

Rotten:24

Average Rating:6.5/10

Consensus: Boasting no big-name stars, Series 7 is surprisingly well-acted. Its timing is impeccable, with its dark humor casting shadows over the enjoyment and popularity of today's reality-TV shows.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for strong violent content and language

Runtime: 87 mins

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Mar 2, 2001 Limited

Synopsis: SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS consists of six episodes of a fictional television game show called The Contenders. On the show, non-actors are given handguns, quickly explained the very basic rules (kill... SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS consists of six episodes of a fictional television game show called The Contenders. On the show, non-actors are given handguns, quickly explained the very basic rules (kill the other contestants) and told to "play," with a goal of winning by staying alive. Ultraviolent and psychologically disturbing, the film unrolls in the frenetic style of network television, never pausing for reflection. Written and directed by Daniel Minahan (cowriter of the screenplay for 1996's I SHOT ANDY WARHOL), SERIES 7 makes a timely comment on the rising popularity of actual television reality games shows. It's the ultimate game show. The contestants are chosen in a random drawing, handed a weapon, and instructed to watch their backs. Then, the entertainment begins. The prescient SERIES 7 skewers American popular culture with wit and style. Conceived long before the phenomenal success of the television program, SURVIVOR, and the subsequent deluge of "unscripted entertainment," the film takes the idea a step further. The manipulation of lives in SERIES 7 is in bold face. The film is shot on digital video in a hand held, breakneck style, with a hysterically solicitous voice over narration and bold, jarring graphics pumping up the drama of every frame. Using unknown actors, the audience accepts the characters as ordinary citizens. These actors generate tremendous sympathy, even as they commit desperate and brutal acts. Brooke Smith is particularly engaging as Dawn, the pregnant reigning champion. But Minahan reminds his audience again and again that all of the images they're seeing have been filtered, and even what seems to be the direct presentation of an actual event, cannot, in the end, be trusted. [More]

Starring: Brooke Smith, Marylouise Burke, Glenn Fitzgerald, Michael Kaycheck

Starring: Brooke Smith, Marylouise Burke, Glenn Fitzgerald, Michael Kaycheck, Richard Venture, Merritt Wever, Donna Hanover, Angelina Phillips

Director: Daniel Minahan

Director: Daniel Minahan
Screenwriter: Daniel Minahan
Producer: Jason Kliot, Charles J. Rusbasan, Joana Vicente, Christine Vachon, Katie Roumel
Composer: Girls Against Boys
Studio: USA Films

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Dec 18, 2001

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Series 7: The Contenders

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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
02/09/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out

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Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

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Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
04/09/05
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: This is London | comment Comment
12/15/03
Alexander Walker
Alexander Walker
This is London

It really is the next logical step in reality TV . . . kill them all, and let the Nielsons sort 'em out.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
03/19/03
Brian Mckay
Brian Mckay
eFilmCritic.com

...takes an intriguing topic but essentially beats it to death over the course of about 90 minutes...

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
02/25/03
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

Frazzled and edgy, Smith invests Dawn with the required measure of world-weariness and, crucially, she never succumbs to the temptation to slide into flippant, mocking territory.

Full Review Source: RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland) | comment Comment
02/13/03
Tom Grealis
Tom Grealis
RTE Interactive (Dublin, Ireland)

Absolutely relentless in its bashing of the American public and what we consider entertainment.

Full Review Source: Supercala.com | comment Comment
01/23/03
John Venable
John Venable
Supercala.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Hot Button | comment Comment
01/07/03
David Poland
David Poland
Hot Button
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Daily Mail [UK] | comment Comment
12/16/02
Christopher Tookey
Christopher Tookey
Daily Mail [UK]

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/08/02
Film Threat
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Kill-or-be-killed reality-TV satire is uneven -- and unforgettable.

Full Review Source: Netflix | comment Comment
11/07/02
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Netflix

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
10/30/02
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

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Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
10/10/02
Mark Halverson
Mark Halverson
Sacramento News & Review
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
09/26/02
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News | comment Comment
08/09/02
Robert Denerstein
Robert Denerstein
Denver Rocky Mountain News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Suffers from the same problems that the "reality" television shows it satires suffer from.

Full Review Source: Goatdog's Movies | comment Comment
04/14/02
Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
Goatdog's Movies

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | comment Comment
04/05/02
Globe and Mail
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/24/02
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Will have a short shelf life, and just as reality TV offers instant-gratification entertainment, The Contenders offers instant-gratification satire.

Full Review Source: Mark Reviews Movies | comment Comment
02/26/02
Mark Dujsik
Mark Dujsik
Mark Reviews Movies
 
 
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