Surviving Eden

Loser takes all. Loser loses all… in “Surviving Eden,” a sardonic send-up of reality television and the culture that devours it. In the tradition of “Waiting for Guffman” and “Take the Money and Run,” a documentary film crew captures the pitfalls and pratfalls of fame as reality show winner Dennis Flotchky (Michael Panes) is thrust into the whirlwind world of instant celebrity. Dennis, a fat, charismatically challenged assistant manager of convenience store, becomes a contestant on reality show Surviving Eden when his room mate Sterno (Peter Dinklage) enters him into the casting competition as a joke. In spite of his utter lack of personality and ability, underdog Dennis develops a cult following and ultimately wins the competition. One million dollars richer and 150 pounds thinner but none the wiser, Dennis quickly and hilariously falls prey to the machinations of the Hollywood celebrity maker and the vultures and hangers-on that accompany it.