Death Games: A figure of speech that transcends genres and cultures. Whether it’s horror, dystopia, comedy, drama, or a mix of everything, people have been drawn to the idea of wagering games for thousands of years. But this trope has received special attention over the past twenty years. Why? Post 9/11 Fear of Threats Around Every Corner? Disenchantment with the dog-eat-dog rhetoric of capitalism? A combination of those?
Whatever the reason, here are some of the best Death Games movies and shows:
battle royale
Perhaps the most disturbing thing about this story is the fact that all the participants know each other; all of these characters have been classmates for years, so when they choose to kill each other, it’s not just strangers who hurt each other, but friends who desperately try to survive and fall victim to their former friends. I admit that the capitalist undertones are minimal and more focused on the dynamics of old traditionalism versus young modernism/individualism. But it remains a tragic tale of what happens when tyrannical traditionalism clashes with rebellious youth.
The hunger Games
So many young adults from the 2010s had a hunger games phase (I should know, I was one of them). And for good reason. A seemingly simple story about a girl in a fight to the death was rounded off with classism, colonialism, consumerism, ruralism versus urbanism, ‘pretty privilege’, ability/disability, race and a thousand other themes that turned a simple premise into one of the most ironic critiques of capitalism of the 2010s.
What would you rather do
Perhaps one of the most heartbreaking entries on this list, the movie What would you rather do is a demonstration of how competing for the favor of the rich ultimately only benefits the rich who manipulate the game from the start. Unlike many torture porn-style horror movies from the 2000s, What would you rather do focuses on the human aspect of the violence committed. These characters are not just meat for the slaughter, but a disabled woman trying to pay for her procedure, a young woman trying to care for a sick brother, a gambler trying to pay off his debts and start over. It’s a story as relevant today as it was when it first came out in the wake of Occupy Wall Street in 2012.
Ready or not
A deadly hide-and-seek in which a poor bride is hunted by her wealthy in-laws. What’s interesting about this is the intermingled themes of toxic families and the privilege that buys wealth. There is also an implication in the film that everyone in the family marries poor people because they know they wouldn’t be able to hide the deaths of richer, more important people. Even love cannot necessarily be overcome by the problems of wealth and power inequality.
running man
This was one of the first to bring television into the equation. Where some of these stories make these happen in secret, in the remote homes of the rich, running man analyzed the brutality of game show culture and the entertainment industry that treats people like props. It forces us to analyze what we are willing to tolerate being done in the name of entertainment, in addition to what we are willing to do for our own survival.
squid game
We all knew this was coming. squid game on Netflix took the internet by storm and for good reason. The intersection of brightly colored jumpsuits and children’s games only served to emphasize the horror of being forced to kill or die for the amusement of the rich.
variations:
The Jumanjic movies
The first is the one with the most explicit “man hunting man” metaphor, with big game hunter Alan following throughout the film; the fact that the game doesn’t end until Alan takes on this fighter (who’s played by his father’s actor for extra manipulation) seals it. But I want to emphasize Jumanji: the next level. After Spencer has a mental crisis, he wants to return to the world of Jumanji to escape the real world. Only he ends up as a mouse-like thief character instead of his usual Smolder Bravestone. This shows how escapist entertainment doesn’t help us solve our problems, it only helps us deny its existence, and only through self-actualization can we make lasting change.
The SAW movies
“I want to play a game.” That phrase spawned a 9-movie franchise, as well as many impersonators in the 2000s, and arguably marked the beginning of the torture porn genre that defined the horror of the era. An exercise in sadistic irony, the traps of the Jigsaw killer and his students seem designed to teach moral lessons in the most painful of ways possible. However, the games can vary greatly in the quality of the lesson they are trying to teach. Even those who have not been manipulated can feel extremely unfair; burn a liar’s wife alive instead of punishing the liar himself? I will say that the 2nd and 6th installments are probably the closest to getting it right; the second is a brutal removal of police corruption and brutality and the sixth is a condemnation of medical insurance companies that make decisions for both doctors and patients.
So why do we keep returning to this trope?
Some of these death games are a fun twist on childhood games, with a greater commitment to the characters. What if a board game/video game actually tried to kill you? What if hide-and-seek was a game of life and death?
But many are also ruthless condemnations of capitalist structures; Structures that keep employees in competition with each other, rather than working together. That prioritizes the status quo over the individuals.
“Oh, your coworker is quietly stopping. That creates more work for everyone else.” No, your colleague does his job and sets clear boundaries.
“Oh, unions take money from workers.” They also advocate for workers and fund the strikes that lead to real change in the workplace. Almost all happy endings on this list come when the individuals team up against the playmakers/wealthy owners.
So on this Labor Day, think about what’s really worth fighting and dying for.
Additional Death Game media from other Mary Sue writers:
- danganronpa
- Magical Girl Raising Project
- Tomodachi game
- Portal
- Bodies Bodies Bodies
- kaijic
- Kamen Rider Ryukic
- the sentenced
- The Belko Experiment
- Death Race 2000
- Smash TV
- CUBE!
(image: Netflix)
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