Indonesia's 'Millionaire' falls short of entertaining

JAKARTA (JP): The rhetorical British quiz show that has become a worldwide phenomenon has arrived on these shores, adding one more country to its long list of conquests. Yes, Who Wants to be a Millionaire? is here and will air every Saturday from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on RCTI.

This is just the latest entry in the emerging trend of Indonesian quiz shows offering big cash prizes and good clean fun, apparently in an attempt to help us forget about the never- ending economic crisis.

The show is hosted by emcee extraordinaire Tantowi Yahya and is all dressed up with an extravagant set that cost RCTI Rp 500 million for the stage and Rp 6 billion for the technology. Yet despite throwing all that money at the show, there is really nothing entertaining there.

Or, perhaps, the best is yet to come.

If you don't already know, this is how the game is played here in Indonesia and in the 71 other countries where Millionaire appears.

The game starts with 10 contestants, who are given a fairly simple question. The person who answers correctly in the least amount of time moves on, and only has to answer 15 more questions to become an instant millionaire.

The questions are general knowledge and are divided into three levels of difficulty. Some of the early questions are so simple that elementary students would probably roll their eyes at them. The further you get the more difficult the questions, and by the end you need some pretty good encyclopedic knowledge to get by.

At any point during the game, contestants can get help from three so-called lifelines: the "50:50", "Phone-a-Friend" and "Ask the Audience". Of course the lifelines carry risks, and you have to ask yourself just how smart is your friend or those people in the audience. Contestants are allowed to quit at anytime and walk away with their rupiah, even after hearing the question.

Winners can earn prize money ranging from Rp 50,000 (US$5.50) to Rp 1 billion.

So where's the thrill?

In other parts of the world the show appears to be a parade of celebrities.

The U.S. version of Millionaire aired on ABC involves celebrities like Rosie O'Donnell and comedian Will Durst.

O'Donnell helped contestant Jerry Halpin win $32,000 when she told him Diana had lost the title "Her Royal Highness" after her divorce from Prince Charles. Durst was a lifeline for Virginian Rudy Reber, but his suggested answer was wrong so Reber fell from $250,000 to $32,000 (no word on whether Durst made up the money Reber lost because of his blunder).

Last year, the Russian version of the show featured six presidential candidates minus Vladimir Putin, who eventually won the presidential seat (coincidence?).

The Indian version of the quiz is hosted by Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan, who made history by becoming the first Indian movie star to be immortalized in wax at Madame Tussaud's museum in London.

India proved that the host can be another attraction to bring in the viewers. And while the hosts may or may not become millionaires, the gig certainly has provided many of them with other rewards.

German host Gunther Jauch picked up the Deutschen Frensehpreis, The Goldene Henne and Goldene Kamera awards this year. He also added the Bayerische Fersehpreis award for Male TV Presenter of the Year to his trophy case.

The U.S. version of Millionaire earned its second Emmy for Outstanding Game Show and host Regis Philbin won an Emmy for Outstanding Game Show Host. In Greece, Millionaire grabbed two awards at the TV ETHNOS awards show.

But do we really need all these distractions? Isn't it enough just to see the contestants made fools of when they fail to answer the simplest of questions? (ivy)