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For those not familiar with cult films, 'The Disaster Artist' is about the making of notorious box office flop turned midnight movie sensation 'The Room'; written, directed, produced and financed by eccentric man of mysteries Tommy Wiseau, who also starred in it. Wiseau allegedly spent around $6 million on the film, with an opening box office week of $1800, and kept it in two theatres for 2 weeks to qualify for the Academy Awards...without success, in case you were wondering.
According to most, 'The Room' isn’t just a bad film: it’s the worst film ever made, and/but 99 minutes of non-stop laughter. This earned the film an Audience Award in New York, and it later turned a profit through the Midnight movie circuit while reaching cult status. And nearly 15 years later, it’s still playing regularly in theatres such as the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square, in case you’ve missed it until now ('The Disaster Artist' actually begins with various film personalities-JJ Abrams included-talking about this phenomenon more than 10 years on).
According to most, 'The Room' isn’t just a bad film: it’s the worst film ever made, and/but 99 minutes of non-stop laughter. This earned the film an Audience Award in New York, and it later turned a profit through the Midnight movie circuit while reaching cult status. And nearly 15 years later, it’s still playing regularly in theatres such as the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square, in case you’ve missed it until now ('The Disaster Artist' actually begins with various film personalities-JJ Abrams included-talking about this phenomenon more than 10 years on).
Based on the book The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made written by Tom Bissell and Wiseau’s co-star and friend Greg Sestero, 'The Disaster Artist' tells the story of Wiseau and Sestero, from their first meeting during a scene class in San Francisco, up to the film’s Hollywood premiere. With James Franco, Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Judd Apatow and Zac Efron in the cast, I went in expecting pure comedy from start to finish. And the film has plenty of hilarious moments, starting with James Franco’s first appearance as Tommy in a hysterical rendition of A Streetcar Named Desire, part Frankenstein’s Creature, part 40-something hipster-Goth-90s-rock (ie 120% Wiseau). Franco’s commitment to the part is spectacular, and completely fitting to Wiseau’s own “just let it go” philosophy.
Against Dave Franco’s self-conscious all American Greg, we have a classic comedic pair from the get go. But what keeps us involved in the story is something else. Franco’s commitment goes beyond walking around a film set directing his cast literally butt naked (except for some penis covering pouch. What was that?) then filming a bafflingly ridiculous sex scene during which he seems to be making love to his co-star’s navel. Franco also shows Tommy’s cracks. Ok, very bad timing. I DO NOT mean his butt crack. Well, that too (you’ll see…). But there are also the cracks that allow the light to get in, as Franco’s Tommy is also vulnerable, sensitive, dark, generous, childlike, tyrannical, exasperatingly stubborn.... It’s all there, making the character larger than life comedy gold, and yet completely 3-dimensional and believable. Even moving at times.
Against Dave Franco’s self-conscious all American Greg, we have a classic comedic pair from the get go. But what keeps us involved in the story is something else. Franco’s commitment goes beyond walking around a film set directing his cast literally butt naked (except for some penis covering pouch. What was that?) then filming a bafflingly ridiculous sex scene during which he seems to be making love to his co-star’s navel. Franco also shows Tommy’s cracks. Ok, very bad timing. I DO NOT mean his butt crack. Well, that too (you’ll see…). But there are also the cracks that allow the light to get in, as Franco’s Tommy is also vulnerable, sensitive, dark, generous, childlike, tyrannical, exasperatingly stubborn.... It’s all there, making the character larger than life comedy gold, and yet completely 3-dimensional and believable. Even moving at times.
Similarly committed are Dave Franco’s Greg, whose mounting frustration with his friend (yet love for him) is equality anchored; and Seth Rogen’s Sandy Schklair, Tommy’s dead pan script supervisor for 'The Room', who remains true to himself and his view of Wiseau to the very end, unlike many others which will have demanded some sort of bonding moments between Tommy and Sandy.
This fantastic balance between comedy and drama is also thanks to a great by Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber (who also penned '500 Days of Summer' and 'The Faults in Our Stars') and to Franco’s overall direction. (The only time the film lost me was early on due to a choice of guerrilla style camera movement that felt quite jarring, but it didn’t last very long at all.)
This fantastic balance between comedy and drama is also thanks to a great by Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber (who also penned '500 Days of Summer' and 'The Faults in Our Stars') and to Franco’s overall direction. (The only time the film lost me was early on due to a choice of guerrilla style camera movement that felt quite jarring, but it didn’t last very long at all.)
Last but not least, the themes of the film themselves - going for one’s dreams, fear of failure, reaction to failure, the importance of friendship and love, the ambiguity between friendship and love - are all so timeless and universal. This film about a film can definitely appeal to anyone and everyone, whether you work in the film industry or not.
(PS: ...but if you work in the film industry, some of the antics taking place on set might remind you of that project you said "yes" to. You know, the one that still gives you nightmares…)
(PS: ...but if you work in the film industry, some of the antics taking place on set might remind you of that project you said "yes" to. You know, the one that still gives you nightmares…)
Review by Sophie Martin.
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