Maybe I've watched this on the wrong day. Or possibly the right day. I have the closing credits still on, it's that raw. Just 10 hours ago I contemplated suicide. Not for the first time, but I had reasons. Strong reasons.I didn't go through with it because of my family. Because of my future. But I've come home low, and obviously didn't tell my wife how close I came. So watching this... quite accidentally, actually. I didn't twig what it was about and how ironic it was until I was some way in.It's helped. Helped me see that as down as you can get, it's such a final solution. I've always thought I've not gone through with it because the way I'd prefer to do it with a gun. Being English, I can't just walk into a store and buy one. I don't even know how to get one illegally - I guess I'm one of the good guys.So as someone suicidal, this film totally resonates. Would I go on it? Quite possibly, yes. Not for the money, we're not in trouble. But because it legitimises the act. It makes it less personal, as I'm sure you'd feel a purpose to it. And suicide is about losing your purpose.I know I'm not at that stage. Hopefully, I never will be. But this film, whilst I wouldn't say "it's saved my life" it's a help. Today of all days.Thank you to all involved, if any of you ever read this.

Adam Rogers (Josh Duhamel ) hosts a TV show which televises people who commit suicide for money to make things better for their loved ones or raise money for a cause. Not as topical as "Network." Not as funny as "Death Row Game Show" and not as entertaining as "Running Man." The film attempts to make a statement about reality TV shows and more important, their audience. Mildly entertaining.Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity

We turn our blinders on to the ugliness of this world for there is so much ugliness. The news is a barrage of horrific tales. The internet is infinite with fact and fiction. Games and Apps claim our minds, throwing the white wool over our eyes to distract us, but the scars remain. And we are angry. We are hurt, broken, and mortified at the society that we live in today, and we want escape, an outlet to take us away. But the golden age of television is long dead and burnt to an ugly crisp, and Reality Television is king, shedding light on corners of life that maybe are better never to be known at all. But we got a taste for it now.Our attention spans have shrunken down to the size of dimes, and we may only remember yesterday. But days long ago, ugly videos have crept across the internet, showing horrific scenes of death. In the late nineties, there was a series called, Faces of Death, and even Saddam Hussein's execution was live and viral. Some of us didn't turn away. We watched instead as the lights went out and blood was shed, and maybe we even told ourselves that this was entertainment. But how hard have we fallen to become primal once again, bent on other people's misery and even their death?The sad truth is that we are numb to misery and death. It is no longer fiction. It is entertainment from shows such as Scare Tactics to Ridiculousness to Law & Order True Crime. We have a taste for it. We need it to forget our own ugliness, our own scars and lose ourselves in the lives of others, but what if those others took their lives right before us? Would we look away? Would we feel something, or would we want more, maybe even believing that their death would be justified by a kind deed or promise of a better future? But what kind of future awaits us, if we treat death as nothing but a circus act? The road to hell is paved with good intentions, a hard lesson learned for one, who has spun death around and around like a wheel of fortune, only to have it stop on another's fate, but in the face of death, he could not let go. And in that sacrifice for life did our numbness break for we are not barbarians. We are human, and we feel. And we hate to feel for there is too much ugliness to this life, but sometimes, we need a strong dose of reality to bring us back from the brink. And like with Disconnect and Trust comes The Show, another blunt movie to peel back the layers of society and make us question who we are.

This one was OK, I struggled between a 6 and 7 but decided on the latter as it does deliver (oddly) as a good entertainment piece. It struggles a little after the first 20 or 30 minutes when things begin to follow the recognise formula for development, but it picks up in places where the emotional content becomes more prevalent.It's far fetched, even a little silly, but it has a great cast and there are some solid performances that bring a good deal of presence and charisma to the proceedings, which is just as well because realistically even though this one may pull a few unpleasant hairs, there isn't much substance to it outside these performances.The plot is a bit thin in and is essentially a nightmare of morality that I imagine many will have difficulty with. Personally, I simply view this as film entertainment that it is no more or less questionable than horror movies which feature people being dismembered or action flicks where people are blown up maimed and killed on mass. There isn't really much substance outside the main premise, people consenting to death on TV as entertainment and as I said that aspect of it gets boring quite quickly. Fortunately there are some nicely interwoven sub plots to give if extra dimension.Some issues exist with character identities. Initially our lead is so traumatised by events he witnesses he's having difficulty coming to terms. That he would shorty become primarily responsible for instituting systematic practice of the same on network TV, and descending further into moral depravity... is questionable. Its a Jekyll & Hyde transformation and thankfully Josh Duhamel does an excellent job with the role. The janitor's domestic situation (played by Giancarlo Esposito) is similarly stretched, but I'll concede as some leeway is required for he movie to work in spite of some slightly flawed characters.Most everything else is done very well. Great directing, good script... a very able production in general. It may sound heartless even callous for me to label a film detailing on screen suicide as a little lacking but I maintain the basic plot is not where the enjoyment lies. All the interest really revolves around the personal situations, relationships, and the personal experiences detailed in the screenplay, and that does make the movie interesting.I think its definitely worth a watch. There is some emotional depth here, not in the subject matter per se, more in the portrayal of people and relationships.I recommend it, but as a caveat also recommend that you avoid it if you find such subject matter upsetting or offensive.