TOKYO – Naked and fragile, a man with shaggy hair films himself as he endures loneliness in a tiny room for months, and months more.
“The Contestant,” directed by Clair Titley, explores the story behind the hit late 1990s Japanese reality show “A Life in Prizes,” in which a comedian nicknamed Nasubi is forced to survive with whatever he can get. retrieve from the mail. coupons, as he is denied contact with the outside world.
The film premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival and will stream on Hulu starting May 2.
Tomoaki Hamatsu – whose nickname “Nasubi”, which means eggplant in Japanese, jokingly refers to his long chin – never manages to get dressed and remains naked throughout the show. But he dances to celebrate the things he gets, especially food, even if it’s just a pot of kimchi.
Canada’s National Post, in a review of Titley’s documentary, described the TV show as “’The Truman Show’ meets ‘OldBoy,’” referring to the 1998 American film starring Jim Carrey about a man who unwittingly stars in a reality show about his own life and the 2003 Cannes-winning Korean film about a man in prison.
British director Titley said she found the reality show by chance and reached out to Nasubi because she felt no one had ever told his side of the story.
“I felt like they were kind of dismissive and even derogatory to the point of, you know, looking at those crazy Japanese people. And I really wanted to know Nasubi’s story. I really wanted to know what happened to him, why he stayed there,” she said in a recent Zoom interview with the Associated Press.
What makes his documentary more than just a satire of Japan for laughs are the interviews Titley conducts with Hamatsu’s mother, sister and friend, who express outrage, sadness, pride and a mix of other emotions as the program unfolds. transforms. a prime-time hit. They said they were sorry for what he suffered, including his nudity.
The film also explores Hamatsu’s childhood experience of being bullied because of his long chin and how he began to laugh to protect himself.
Hamatsu says the hardest part of the show was the loneliness, although being without clothes – and very little food – for a year and three months also took its toll on him. The comedian was moved to tears when he received a standing ovation at the screening of the documentary in New York.
“I feel like I was able to convey a positive message through the documentary,” he said.
“The Contestant” raises serious questions about how far society can go in terms of entertainment and the mass audience and money it represents.
The show’s producer said in the documentary that he just wanted to “capture the moment” and made no reservations about the show’s production.
“I think to some extent we are all complicit in these narratives. I think this is something to be aware of. It’s very easy to step back and look at all of this and think, ‘Oh, look what those producers did.’ But, you know, as viewers, we need to take some responsibility,” Titley said.
The film explores the different emotions of being trapped in different ways, including relationships, difficulties or just feelings of meaninglessness.
Hamatsu is from Fukushima in northeastern Japan, which was hit by the triple disaster of March 2011, when a giant tsunami followed a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and devastated the coast, triggering the world’s worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl .
Hamatsu, who still works as an actor, also dedicates his time to rebuilding Fukushima and raising awareness about the region.
“I want everyone to know that the people of Fukushima are working hard,” he said.
“Life is gradually returning to what it was in the exclusion zones. Of course, I realize that the path to dismantling nuclear power plants is still a long battle. But I would like people to experience today’s Fukushima, feel hope when visiting Fukushima, and watch the reconstruction of Fukushima.”
In a kind of justification at the end of the documentary, Hamatsu becomes a climber and conquers Mount Everest, a feat he dedicates to Fukushima.
Many people think the famous show from 25 years ago was the highlight of Hamatsu’s life, as he no longer appears on TV, he said.
“But it’s exactly the opposite. That was the worst moment of my life. I’m over it. And now I’m free to do whatever I want.”
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