Sadistic Game Shows

From Dance 'Till You Drop marathons to specticle games performed on skates, today we are looking at the history of Sadistic Game Shows.
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Patreon: / praiseofshadows

[@InPraiseofShadows]

Hey everyone, hope you are doing well and having a nice summer. Things have gotten a bit behind for me lately, but I do at this point have several scripts banked and hope to be able to make them fairly regularly for the rest of the year. Goal is to have two franchise videos for next month which I have been looking forward to. Take care, and I'll see you again real soon!

[@jackbritt1237]

Thanks for making good content. I can’t wait for the Carrie video

[@thesultrystrangerdanger6824]

It is hot down here... But I have no pants so I am OK

[@juliuskleinert3634]

This was wild, still wrapping my head about that (accurate) Mr Beast comparison. Thank you Sir!

[@fmsyntheses]

Make what you want, take all the time you need. KZbin is overstuffed these days anyway.

[@cartoonhistory353]

Where’d you get that footage from 5:00 to 5:06

[@elliot2331]

There's something so frustrating and ironic that seemingly every time a piece of media shows a fictional competition or sport like this, that's purposely saying "this is terrible and wrong," it seems to be everyone's first reaction to say "let's do this in real life."

[@sugarwater8859]

Don't Create the Torment Nexus

[@SingularityOrbit]

That's because they made the film out of worry that people would really do something like that, because they observed the world and realized that people would. People don't do shows like that because of filmmakers' films about human evil -- they do it because of the human evil that already exists.

[@Bokkensword]

6 minutes in and already teaching me about horrors i never knew about

[@a.j2221]

Such a typical Gen Z ass comment. Say something more meaningful

[@CacophonyOfDestruction]

Same here I remember watching that Gilmore Girls episode in my younger years about the town dance marathon. They even dressed up like they were living in the 20s-40s. The way it was presented seemed like a funny quirky town tradition. Now watching this I’m stunned at the horrors of the real event and movies that must have inspired that episode.

[@YumiAsuka]

it's pretty sadistic isn't it, people are intriguing and disgusting

[@darrylatkins5049]

Good for you, I wish I didn't already. Nothing like watching a video full of stuff soo many others on KZbin have already talked to death about 🙄 really so uninspired

[@ThePastaMiner]

oh my god i had no idea about the great depression dance competition. what the audience and announcers would do is beyond sadistic. human voyeurism is insane to me.

[@picahudsoniaunflocked5426]

Those "endurance fads" like "pole-sitting" or the dance competitions sound so quaint til you get the details. I was openly crying from the footage. That was an amazing video that covered so much ground.

[@EndTheLifeOfConservatives]

I knew about it, saw it on one of Simmons Channels and yeah it was pretty messed up , you should look into what they did to Jessie Owens, after winning all the gold in the Olympics the literal Nazis treated him better than his US handlers, who mind you didn’t pay him, didn’t feed him , didn’t provide transport for his cross Europe tour and eventually had him running against literally animals for pennies. Exploitation is the name of the game

[@Raph584]

I Heard about those, but didn't know it take during the great dépression. I thought it was just a silly fade, but it now seems very sad

[@WobblesandBean]

Yup. I used to be quite optimistic about humanity, but then I became a history buff. Now I'm a misanthrope.

[@julias.7534]

I read about in an American Girl book -- they used to publish these really big books that was supposed to talk about the time periods and how they interacted with the girls the dolls were made to represent. It all sounds very quaint when you hear that Kit Kittredge might've been at home listening to the radio for a dancing contest or saw an ad for flag pole sitting competition and just went on with her day instead of. you know. the deep human suffering aspect.

[@bratman5096]

A film I wish you would have mentioned is Punishment Park, from 1971. It's one of the earliest examples of a faux-documentary film. It follows various people associated with 60's countercultural movements (hippies, black panthers, feminists) as they are forced to choose between a long prison sentence or a shot at freedom in, you guessed it, Punishment Park. It's a really good movie, and touches on a lot of really prescient and relevant topics such as injustice and police brutality. It seems like something right up your alley, and I think the film (and the other work of director Peter Watkins) could make for an interesting video.

[@Artretha]

I'll definitely have to look into this one.

[@mrmogford8117]

Have this on bluray and have been meaning to watch for ages but always slips my mind- this reminded me and will take action and watch it this week!

[@fusionspace175]

You mentioned The Running Man, but there's a more apt King/Bachman story with the same ending and theme as Horses and Rollerball, and it's The Long Walk. It's also a televised state run event, but it's open to volunteers and the prize is literally your greatest wish granted, but in the end the process of competition, of walking without end while others die around you, shatters the winners mind and he can't even perceive that he has won. The prize is meaningless.

[@jwnj9716]

Love the Long Walk. Easily my favourite King story.

[@AsteriskTrine]

One of my faves

[@aileenmorgan8276]

Kept thinking of that throughout, definitely one of the most haunting King/Bachman stories I've read

[@thesultrystrangerdanger6824]

And you're crazy person like me and room 1408 in the beginning of the movie he is doing a book signing a girl mentions The Long road homealso again Samuel Jackson's character mentions The Long road home now is this a reference to the Long Walk I've not read a long walk I think someone needs to deep dive into this

[@thesultrystrangerdanger6824]

@@jwnj9716 I have to ask you that you said you read the book do you think it's you think the reference in room 1408 to the Long road home is about the long walk .. it was obviously put into that movie for a special purpose

[@algarcia689]

Just today I had to explain to my parents why a high subscription count does not mean a particular youtube channel is better than others (in fact in some cases the opposite is true), and this was one of my points. That some of those high subscription channels are explotative, incensiere and toxic, that they would do anything to increase the view count; while most of the channels I follow and love, much like this one, tend to inform about problems whithin our society that are not apparent to most people, which expectedly is not as popular.

[@hollandscottthomas]

Yeah, like 5min Crafts actively spreads harmful and dangerous misinformation, but they have billions of views, while the channels trying to explain why those same "tutorials" should never be attempted go completely unwatched.

[@KingofCrusher]

I would say that any channel that has millions of subs is suspect, like you only generally achieve that level if your content is garbage for little kids or pure AI generated clickbait, with a few exceptions. Over a million you really gotta do some research on that channel.

[@lainiwakura1776]

@@KingofCrusher Not necessarily true, just because you only see the bad side doesn't mean it's all bad and being jaded like you are is kinda sad.

[@KingofCrusher]

@@lainiwakura1776 It's kinda sad that I don't waste my time watching garbage content farm channels?

[@searchingfororion]

I would say an exception to this are people who have been creating content for a *very* long time and/or have a crossover following from something else. Philosophy Tube for example had been making content for a decade then *really* exploded when coming out publicly.

[@cassandracastro2759]

The Running Man changed the original book's story, including the ending, which I feel was more in line with the criticism given by this kind of story. In the end, the protagonist is not able to escape the game, and is fataly wounded before he hijacks a plane. Instead of gettikng away and die a free man, he chooses to take the show with him while he crashes the plane at the TV station.

[@snakefang1123]

That really gives off THEY LIVE ending vibes. Choosing your own life at a chance to stop corruption.

[@jondocs6071]

To my surprise, one of your much more haunting videos. I was almost immediately sucked in and horrified due to the societal reflections all this madness evokes. equal parts starkly horrifying and sadly hilarious. well done, Zane. you really are becoming a master of your craft. thank you.

[@regularshowman3208]

Honestly out of everything here, the dancing competition and "They Shoot Horses Don't They?" disturbed me the most. Imagine being trapped in this nightmare for months because you're somebody suffering heavily from the effects of the Depression, so you join this competition where your body is worn out for days and weeks and even months, you're always exhausted all the time, you can only get 15 minutes of sleep, if that, every hour, it's hot, sweaty, claustrophobic, and the entire time while you're in abject misery, you have an entire crowd of jeering people who delight in the Hell you're going through, and even pile on more torment for their own amusement. I genuinely have to wonder what an audience member might say if they were sat down and explained in thorough detail just how horrific this experience actually was for its contestants. I know for a lot of people what must prevent their consciousnesses from kicking in fully must be the layer of separation and legitimization. "Oh, this is a competition hosted legally, isn't it? These people volunteered to be here. They could just quit anytime they wanted, so it's all fun and games", when really, no, these people aren't really here by choice. Maybe if more people understood that, we wouldn't have things like this, not as often, at least.

[@juusolatva]

it's like an allegory of working without a living wage

[@actualturtle2421]

Most people probably wouldn't care. The only reason it seems so horrific now is that we, as a society, don't actually struggle anymore. We don't have any real problems and we're soft. It's not any more "horrific" than MMA where people literally beat the shit out of each other for our entertainment. Gladiatorial and endurance competitions are as old as humanity. You can pretend you're "above" it, but you're not any different or better or more enlightened than any other average person from any other time period. You just live in an age of decadence that has made you weak.

[@regularshowman3208]

@@actualturtle2421 I mean not to play into the fallacy that we as a species have 100% become more enlightened and civilized in recent history because a lot of the things we look at from the past as having been barbaric have really just been shifted in some way in the modern day to be more palletable, but also the idea that we don't have any real problems today as a society is a notion genuinely detached from reality.

[@actualturtle2421]

@@regularshowman3208 "Inequality" isn't a real problem. It's a fake problem that has come about as a result of not having any actual problems. Abstract concepts aren't real problems, they're the problems you have when you have a full belly and a roof over your head. Social issues that suburbanites think are the whole world don't actually matter at all, they just seem huge because we don't have any existential problems. "Barbarism" definitely isn't a real problem, at least not in any way you'd be willing to address.

[@crypticcorvid]

@@regularshowman3208 Just ignore the troll bait. Anyone with half a working mind already understands that the current day is definitely not some utopian society free of any burdens and inequality.

[@user-mn5du9te4j]

This is, Hands down, No questions asked, One of the Best Channels on KZbin!

[@BrainRotfilms]

I'm glad u are not scared to say things about public figures online it's genuinely a breath of fresh air to get out of the hug box's of the internet for a change

[@valeriacaissa4552]

What I find fascinating is, that violence is so okay, that you can't even really discuss something sexual without saying "I can't show you..." or "I don't think I can discuss...". This makes the porn movie actually being closer to reality, than Rollerball itself.

[@Gabreya]

WOW. What a video. Awesome commentary, Zane. It’s astonishing how throughout history, human beings have always forgotten their humanity when they use other human beings for their own sick and twisted entertainment. By indulging in such ghastly behavior, it’s easy to live long enough to see yourself become the villain. This is why boundaries and morality are extremely important.

[@I.____.....__...__]

Humans have been using animals like that forever because they don't value others' lives, why would they not use humans the same way? 🤷

[@Jigardo]

Kinda funny that the majority of the time it's the rich offering prize money (which is peanuts to them) in exchange for subjecting people to perform despicable acts

[@SingularityOrbit]

The author Terry Pratchett summed this up well: Sin begins when you start to treat people as things. I'm not religious, and I used to say that there's no such thing as sin, just good and bad. I thought sin was based on violating a religion's rules. Then I realized that sin is breaking relationships -- sinning against a god, sinning against a neighbor, and so on. When one person treats another as an obstacle, or a tool, or an object lesson, or a toy, that is sin by definition. And, exactly as you said, that is why boundaries and morality are important -- and why, as we say in America, "Your right to swing your fist stops where my nose begins."

[@t0ss]

Haunting and yet necessary. Thank for another super informative and thought provoking piece!

[@Actalzy]

The Running Man novel is so different they basically only used the names for the movie btw. Was also very surprised that no mention of Fear Factor was used, because that show really seemed to push it into the realm of way to far.

[@erichansen2860]

It always made me sad in the early 2000s when I'd hear about people assembling their own Fight Clubs. Media literacy in America is broken beyond all repair.

[@ronofthesea5953]

I remember that. I thought: 'Morons missed the point completely, just want to hit someone...'

[@sixe9095]

Kids form them too, me and my friends at age 12 and 13 formed one without even knowing anything about fight club. A lot of people think displaying strength is cool, which it is, its the extreme aspect that comes from sadism or insecurity that ruins it.

[@viljamtheninja]

@@ronofthesea5953 Or maybe the movie missed the point about why people want to hit someone, and it's just a movie and not an accurate description of reality. The fact that you "understood" a movie doesn't mean that people's actions are somehow wrong - people don't need to act in accordance with authorial intent. That's about interpretation, not necessarily how you implement something in your own life - you don't have to agree with the intent of something in order to take some of it to heart. Or maybe the movie was spot on, and fight clubs really did seem like a way to take out one's frustrations on a soul-crushing life with no other real outlet because movies are movies and reality is reality. Maybe you're the one who missed the point about why people started their own fight clubs. Maybe it's not about media literacy, because the world is more than just academic studies. For some people, it's real life.

[@viljamtheninja]

Same comment to you as to the other guy, basically. There's a difference between media literacy and reality. Being able to interpret an artistic work doesn't mean that artistic work understands reality, or that people will take its ideas to heart. You guys both sound like you've never stepped out of the academic life and into the real world. Remember, it's good to have one foot in both. An academic who doesn't know the world is a worthless judge in an ivory tower.

[@xandergonzo4853]

​@@viljamtheninja damn spot on, these guys are just being pretentious, they forget about the nuance of people and reduce everything to their personal interpretation or even worse, an essay they saw on the internet, it's just behavioralist bullshit for their minds desperate to put someone down and point to them as lesser than themselves. Some people admire Patrick Bateman's discipline and looks, the emotion and challenge of a fight and the safety of willing and consenting rivals can be enjoyable to people like me... no further elaboration needed unless they're trying to virtue signal or stroke their own egos with this "media literacy" bullshit they learned on Twitter, I'm not a psycho and I'm not a terrorist for liking these aspects of two movies popularly held as "movies people misunderstood 🤪". They forget they can make their own decisions, they can take good things without bringing negative connotations with them, they forget about a huge part of media literacy, nuance.

[@SunFlowerLSD]

I genuinely wasn't expecting for you to equate these stories to such a modern example as Mr.Beast. These videos of yours often catch me like that, giving me something to think over. Perhaps the initial comparisons of games shows should have tipped me off to that but regardless, this video has given me an interesting and educational experience. Thank you.

[@SlapstickGenius23]

Is Mr. Beast a sell out?

[@viljamtheninja]

That was the one part of this video that was completely idiotic and dragged down what was otherwise a masterpiece. There are zero elements of humiliation or sadism in Mr Beast's handing out surgery money to cure blind people. He's literally just handing out money and permanently changing people's lives for the better. Sure, he might've done it for clout, but his doing it public is also putting pressure on other influencers and people with money to do something good with it - unfortunately, a bunch of people with moral high horses and no money to make the world better are acting like they're superior just by taking the most cynical view possible, likely discouraging others from giving their money to charitable causes because of this cynicism, indirectly preventing perhaps countless other suffering people from getting the help they need from similar actions. There is a world of difference between simply giving people money for surgery and filming their reactions, and putting people through brutal and painful humiliation in order to MAYBE win a cash award while a bunch of others walk away as losers. The connection between charity (because the attack on Mr Beast is, really, an attack on charity, from the annoying moral standpoint that "if people know you're doing it, you're actually just doing it for yourself, and then it doesn't count", as if that made any difference to the people that actually receive the help) and the type of spectacular dystopian sadism that most of this video is about is so tangential that it's completely pointless. I have no love for Mr Beast, I don't care, I've never watched a single video of his, but this knee-jerk reaction against charity seems to come from a place of longing for a world suspiciously similar to that perfect dystopia where the individual has been annihilated.

[@SingularityOrbit]

@@viljamtheninja Mr. Beast makes videos for clicks -- for clout, for fame, call it what you will. His "charity" in that example was actually a transaction, paying those people with something they desperately needed in exchange for being characters in his video. Real charities don't do that. Instead, real charities invite people in, find out what they need, and supply it if they can, and then the person goes on with their life in a better position. If the people helped are willing to say something nice in a testimonial then they sometimes volunteer to do so, but usually are paid for their time because charities have advertising budgets specifically for that purpose. The precise reason that it's traditional for charitable people to donate anonymously is because they recognize that charity is not a transaction, it's a gift.

[@slayertakim1]

​@@SingularityOrbit it adds this layer in knowing that if the cameras were not rolling then Mr.Beast would never do any of this shit of his own volition. Everything he does is meant to earn himself more money.

[@chrisnelson6663]

Covering adult film in a respectful way, and going at Mr. Beast (and the billionaires behind him) all in one vid? I am loving this bold direction :)

[@Hudson_Hawk2024]

This guy, just like Matt Binder, looks like someone who lurks at playgrounds and drives around in a busted ice cream van to lure children to him.

[@Dawnbreakerr]

No exaggeration, but I think this is your best video you've ever made. It's so good and such a niche subject that I've never seen any other channel tackle.

[@grigorikarpin]

Holy shit, I’m not surprised but I am shocked by those dance competitions Killer video, as always!

[@sbef]

You're a great essayist, Zane, and this is one of my favourite videos of yours. Thanks for introducing me to these horrors, especially the dancing marathon, which I didn't know anything about.

[@Nintaboy]

I'm amazed you could deliver us a 30 min vid and still provide a video as interesting and as educational as your longer videos. Well done, really great job.

[@monkeywizard7919]

New In Praise of Shadows video, always a highlight. Keep up the great work!

[@JerryBoy245]

Thank you for the videos you make they always come when I’m feeling down or sick, never fails to make my day ❤

[@CarolineBearoline]

Wonderful synopsis on this style of film and the messaging within ❤

[@user-fy4uv9wb7o]

Netflix: "At long last, we have created the Torment Nexus from classic sci-fi novel Don't Create The Torment Nexus!"

[@Nasedo34]

Excellent essay, as always! There was an episode of the 2005 Fox TV show "Point Pleasant" that was heavily inspired by "They Shoot Horses..." which was how I found out about the film. I rarely hear it mentioned. Keep up the great work!

[@theorangecollective.7663]

In Praise of Sadistic Game Shows

[@Goblincow]

This is a great video, they always are, but I love how you've refined the sweeping genre lens you use over the time you've been doing this & the method really pays off here! Love it!

[@corey6536]

I've watched just about all of your videos at least once, they're very high quality and single-handedly got me into the entire genre of horror. Just putting a comment to give your stuff a boost in the algorithm like it deserves.

[@joshuacampise1449]

love your channel and you as a creator. you always have something interesting to say. in general i just like the way your mind works. thanks for the excellent content my friend, i appreciate you with all my being

[@Tirando_Ideas]

Every video is just fantastic to watch. You put some great things pieces. I really like your content

[@thiagoabdo3370]

Your videos are something else. I love it

[@nolimitsgrandmaster]

Great stuff as always, I like this format!

[@MegapiemanPHD]

I always took the end of Rollerball being that James Caan's character won what was considered an unwinnable game and finally became bigger than the sport itself. In doing so, he showed the public how horrible Rollerball actually is causing the purpose of the game to backfire on the executives who made it. Maybe that's just wishful thinking though.

[@coyoteartist]

There's validity to that thought.

[@BulldozerBilly]

Love your content, you always bring interesting ideas and opinions to things I'd never even noticed!

[@juusolatva]

I mean speaking of Rollerbabes, the Golden Age of Porn was about trying to marry porn and mainstream films together, so several porn films of that time actually had detailed plots and tried to be like mainstream cinema, except with nudity and explicit sex scenes. of course, this was also an useful way to get around censorship of hardcore porn, since you could appeal to freedom of speech, if the films could be considered as art and not just mere pornography.

[@BIGDAWGSUZZY42069]

Seems like a good topic ....hopefully some one else makes a video on it

[@GreatPirateSolomon42]

Damn, shots fired at Mr. Beast

[@aid_as]

Rollerbabies search skyrockets for some reason

[@craigford9360]

This was absolutely brilliant. I remember catching that first episode of The Chamber and while my first thought was "who would do this for money?", the thought i remember lingering in my mind for a long while after it was who would want to watch it. In a lot of ways, this video really cleared that up for me. A lot of us would, and a lot of us have throughout history, and a lot of us still do. Crazy. Great video

[@mrflipperinvader7922]

Ryan Hollinger talked about these kinds of shows (more of a psychological approach) in his video talking about the movie "Circle"

[@babymariobrother3793]

This is one of the best video essays I've seen in a while.

[@MRC_5000]

oh man, i just found out that i already watched this the other day and i am sad. i love your narration and all that tasty information you provide. i find your content incredibly interesting. for example, a few years ago i saw your video series about the witch hunts and thought that i could bookmark that for a boring day, because i wasn't particularily interested in that topic (since i am rather a movie/horror person). then i watch about five minutes of the first video and was so hooked that binged all of that series.

[@erickleppel2732]

Spot on and insightful analysis as always. If you haven’t read the Horror Show, I think you would love it. His chapter connecting Shellshock, Dance Marathons, and Freak Shows to specific horror films is brilliant.

[@rosienroller]

For the first time in history, they tried making "The Torment Nexus: from "Don't Make the Torment Nexus", as that was being made!

[@XitwitchX]

Best KZbinr until 1mil subs. EVERYTHING you do is fresh, high quality, insightful and incredibly entertaining. Thank you.

[@InPraiseofShadows]

Thanks so much!

[@SuperKendoman]

Did producers of these shows ever get sued for causing so much harm to the contestants?

[@RustedOatmeal]

The most sadistic thing happening here is listening to you go on

[@BassManiac07]

Everyone should report this guy. He deleted/unlisted his most recent video where he is bullying Wendigoon. He is attacking another youtuber for no reason and I don't feel safe.

[@ScowlieMeerkat]

This is great work man.

[@NoMoreCrumbs]

Endurance dancing is the framing device for the music video for Dark Blue by Jack's Mannequin

[@xhxhhdbdb7765]

Lovely video as always!

[@Blake-gh8xl]

Amazing sir!!! And the history knowledge drop, had no idea...

[@breezus3928]

Excellent essay! All your examples, both fiction and non-fiction, were well tied together. I never wouldbhave thought of those dance competitions as a continuation of gladiator entertainment.

[@LondraCalibro9]

a+ video. thank you for the hard work.

[@ericjourdain892]

Great video, thank you!

[@Satuneonred]

top tier video as always

[@defmeta]

Excellent piece.

[@infctdppt]

One of your best for sure

[@tommyz1082]

buckle up & strap in, this is going to be a fun one

[@GojiGuy]

Another great videi. One of my favourite "game show of death" depictions in media is probably Mad World for the Wii. It's essentially Escape from New York meets Sin City. That being said, my absolute favourites are Speed Racer (2008) and RedLine (2009).

[@pronoydutta614]

Awesome video!

[@aidschbe]

Wow, I never hear anyone talk about Rollerball. I watched it when it was already several decades old and rewatched it a few years ago and it honestly holds up pretty well. A 90s Dutch film I've been meaning to revisit for a while now with the same themes is Temmink, where convicts are put in gladiatorial games for entertainment but obviously everything is fixed there as well.

[@CrownMe13]

One of my fav channels. You remind me of Imaginary Axis, you focus on quality over quantity

[@godzillasaurbuttersworth3176]

Another film (or in this case, filmed production of a stage show) I think fits in really well here- Jerry Springer the Opera Act one is essentially just a musical retelling of an episode of The Jerry Springer Show, ending with Springer getting shot by a guest In act two, all the actors who played trashy guests in act one come back to play biblical figures begging Jerry Springer to help them solve their problems It’s a shockingly grim exploration on the efficacy’s of reality tv

[@renatocorvaro6924]

Damn, I am so glad to see you covering this subject, and Rollerball in particular. Rollerball was one of the first movies I remember seeing as a kid, and I credit it with helping to define my taste in films.

[@danielanderssonboe3518]

great work.

[@chomama9768]

great vid!

[@ashfranceschi]

excellent video

[@Kate-uj9rx]

I haven't watched the video yet but i screamed when i saw this was posted! I have a huge interest in bad and irreparable gameshows as well as safety violations in general!

[@morganahart2575]

This will make my commute to work much better

[@konsfuzius86]

top tier content, again, sad that YT lets me actively look for it despite being subbed

[@billstewart147]

Another banger!!

[@tylerschwartz9313]

Love your brand of anti authoritarian message mixed with analysis and an obvious love for schlock and horror. You've been one of my favorite artists on this platform for some time now. Thank you for your work. Would love to see a franchise vid on Carrie. The King novel, the Spacek film, the 90's sequel that never gets mentioned, both remakes. I think it would be right up your alley. Really though, for those like me who grew up on Black Flag and John Carpenter, your stuff is very refreshing and thus quite distinguished from the rest of the pack. Thank you again, and please keep up the good work. Cheers.

[@InPraiseofShadows]

Thanks so much! Carrie Franchise video will hopefully be in a couple of weeks actually it’s getting close to being done.

[@tylerschwartz9313]

@@InPraiseofShadows dude! Fuck yes! You rock!

[@IkariLoona]

I know that the Motorball game in the Gunnm/Battle Angel Alita manga is based on Motorbal, and that made it into the live action adaptation Alita Battle Angel, but now I see that a line added for the movie, "nobody is greater than the game", also derives from Rollerball - neat! Great work!

[@Homus1337]

silly billy

[@alexredell5046]

Fantastic as always. Made a great triple feature with Barbie, Oppenheimer, then this before bed. In Praise of Barbenheimdows? A lot to reflect on tonight.

[@russellst.martin4255]

Excellent

[@MHDebidour]

The running man producer were sued and lost in french court for plagiarism of Le Prix du Danger (The Prize of Peril) a 1983 dystopian movie about a popular television game show of the near future about people to be hunted to be kill by a team of pursuers or surviving and winning a cash price.

[@LveDanda]

The king returns 🙌

[@ImmaURq]

I need to watch every single movie you mentioned here omg

[@lorenzomeulli750]

Violence and death aside, and focusing on the classic and regulated gladiators we know strangely a lot about, Romans probably treated them better than how people partecipating in some game shows, Mr. Beast videos and the likes are treated. Of course, it's absurd to compare a 2000 years old blood sport with modern TV shows, but the cultures and worlds are also entirely different. Those people were basically wrestlers in a world where violence wasn't a taboo but rather commonplace. They could become more popular than many others, and those that didn't suffer terrible wounds may actually get a more comfortable lifestyle out of it. It's crazy to me that literal warriors in a blood sport inspired people to want to be in their place while we use poor people with disabilities as cannon fodder for one guy videos

[@WobblesandBean]

1:35 *_HOW DID THIS GET GREENLIT?!_* Spraying WATER on a person's face in subzero temperatures? This had to be cleared by a lawyer, or even a team of lawyers. You'd think at least one of them would go "hey, maybe we should run this by a medical professional first to see if this is safe".

[@cjokersl]

Great video!! Now i wanna watch Rollerball

[@orangutanman2470]

severely underrated

[@MrZidaneValor]

Just found you! Great shit bro

[@gmckart]

Never knew about the dancing competition, definitely going to checkout They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? now

[@chiefobeef]

Watched this w/ my 13yo sitting on the couch next to me, he didn't believe the dance marathon thing was real. Great stuff.

[@dmonvisigoth1651]

I saw Rollerball when I was a kid but I didn't realise how poignant and believable it was until you broke it down for me. I must give it a rewatch. Seems a bit prophetic now in this era. I could see something very much like Rollerball taking place in our corporate government driven pseudo-Dystopian world.

[@calebmarmon1310]

Thank you for making this informative video. Now I need to take a shower and take some alone time.

[@the_Googie]

Amazing video. I will never not be astounded by people's sadistic joy of others suffering. Watching "funny fail" compilations really is just the same thing today. I hate all of it

[@GremlinBones]

I remember an early episode of Gilmore Girls where the town held a Dance til You Drop competition, I had no idea the history actually behind that type of event. That episode could have turned into a horrorshow.

[@joshuabushman7]

Maybe it’s not the same genre, but kid nation has got to be the craziest how I’ve seen. They made children kill chicken to eat, and some kids had to be ejected in ambulances

[@WonderWolf13]

This is definitely a good video, though I will say I initially thought it would focus on actual gameshows, like the two mentioned at the start of the video, rather than largely centering on films depicting sadistic gameshows. An excellent deep dive on the subgenre, though the title is slightly misleading.

[@Riverside_23]

God you make such good videos

[@chibiNATHA]

Every time I learn the story of American game shows it’s like… horrors beyond my comprehension

[@biscutbuu69]

I swear Zane, without flipping fail, every time I watch one of your videos I usually have to add at least one movie to my watchlist. Rollerball is a movie I finally got around to last year and adored it. This bizarre sci-fi sports thriller with Yorgos Lanthimos-esque dystopian horrors, absolutely made for me. Up there with Rocky as my favorite sports movie and I don't give a crap about sports films.