Entertainment
Raunchy End-Of-Days Comedy Is A High-Stakes Game
By Robert Scucci
| Published
The idea of playing video games until the world ends may sound like a lot of fun in the right setting, but 2018’s Relaxer will make you think twice. Set in 1999, just before the Y2K apocalypse, Relaxer isn’t one of those feel-good stories about getting together with your friends, chugging Mountain Dew, eating pizza, and going on an epic multiplayer adventure. Instead, it’s a solitary trudge through an isolated world of apathy and decay. It’s a tough watch, even nauseating at times, but if your video game habit is causing problems in your day-to-day life, Relaxer may be the wakeup call you’ve been looking for because it pulls no punches.
Set almost entirely on one man’s couch, Relaxer is claustrophobic, filthy, and enough to make you want to turn the Nintendo off and step on some grass. If you can make it through this one without tasting that metallic, “I’m about to throw up,” flavor on the back of your tongue, give yourself a pat on the back for being strong willed and possessing the kind of intestinal fortitude that escapes me.
The Ultimate Slacker Comedy
Relaxer begins with our hero, if you could call him that, Abbie (Joshua Burge), playing Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and chugging milk whenever his older brother, Cam (David Dastmalchian), looks up from his stopwatch. This “challenge,” as they put it, is the latest in a long line of failed attempts where Abbie taps out because he makes himself sick chasing whatever high score or record is in front of him.
Sitting in a pool of his own vomit, Abbie promises Cam, who’s rightfully frustrated with his slacker brother’s lack of contributions to rent and utilities, that he’s going to do the unthinkable. Legend has it that if he can document himself passing level 256 of Pac-Man, something that has only been done once before, he’ll win $100,000 and stop being such a burden. Cam reluctantly agrees to support him through the challenge, under one condition: Abbie cannot even think about leaving the couch until he accomplishes what he set out to do.
Taking Cam’s conditions seriously, Abbie gets to work but quickly runs into logistical problems. At some point, he has to eat, drink, and use the bathroom, and he has to make do. At multiple moments throughout Relaxer, Cam throws on a pair of 3D glasses that he believes give him telekinetic powers when the moment is right. It’s never made clear whether Abbie actually gains anything mystical while wearing the glasses, but enough strange coincidences encourage him to lean into the idea as he attempts to beat the unbeatable Pac-Man level.
Know What You’re Getting Into
While Relaxer’s premise is ridiculous on its own, the execution is absolutely nauseating. Abbie is dressed only in underwear, which are obviously soiled thanks to the conditions of his wager. When plumbing pipes burst, he gets sprayed with their contents. When the windows break, the elements pour inside. When somebody stops by, it’s either an acquaintance offering expired food from the fridge or an exterminator about to bug bomb the place even though Abbie refuses to leave.
Abbie sits through all of it, for months, maybe even years. He uses a reaching stick to collect rainwater from the broken window, nearly asphyxiates himself with noxious chemicals, and wallows in so much filth that if he ever beats the game, he’ll either be stuck to the couch or physically unable to stand. It’s all so disgusting. To make matters worse, every single character in Relaxer is catastrophically unlikeable.
While Relaxer may feel like an endurance test in every conceivable way, it does an excellent job of getting its point across. It’s meant to be unappealing to all senses. It’s meant to show how desperate Abbie becomes in pursuit of his challenge. It’s meant to be uncomfortable and claustrophobic. It’s almost as if writer-director Joel Potrykus made this movie specifically to bother people, and if so, he succeeds in every measurable way.
As of this writing, Relaxer is streaming for free on Tubi.