It's been twenty years since the first season of The Real World ("Are you a drug dealer? Why do you have a beeper?”) and pop culture has jumped on the reality show bandwagon and has vowed to never get off until the end of time, it seems. It's surprising that two of the best reality show parodies have only just come about this year. Earlier this year, Ken Marino starred in the Ben Stiller-produced Burning Love, a fantastic and spot-on parody of The Bachelor franchise.
I only recently became aware of the web series, Sex House, produced by The Onion Digital Studios. I know, right? Did you even know that The Onion had a network? Sex House is a mock reality show about people living in a house, and true to The Onion's abilities to produce brilliant satire, are there for simply the role reason to have sex for the camera. After all, once you strip away the pretense of a reason or competition, that's what these trashy shows are for, obviously.
That joke would be enough to sustain the comedy, but since this is The Onion, it of course takes a darker turn. Frank, the suburban father of three who won the chance to be on the show from a Tombstone Pizza contest, immediately impregnates the innocent eighteen year old girl on the first night. After the contestants don't perform the way the producers want, they are forced into "sexy challenges" that become sicker and more degrading. Eventually, by the sixth installment, the contestants have essentially become hostages of the show and the insanity sets in.
The realness of the show leads me to believe a lot of it is improvised, and the actors play their parts perfectly. In fact, their comedic timing is so spot on, I am surprised that they are virtually unknown. A new installment of Sex House is released every week on The Onion’s Youtube Channel. Believe me, it's worth a watch.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
