"Los Angeles, everybody want to be star. You have to be the best and never give up."
- Tommy Wiseau (James Franco), The Disaster Artist
There is no one on Earth like Tommy Wiseau. Some have speculated he can not possibly come from Earth. But his story and how he became the 21st century equivalent of Ed Wood cannot be anything but some of the most human stuff you will ever hear about. I am talking about The Room, a 2003 film - a "dark comedy" masquerading as a Tennessee Williams-style melodrama - starring and written and produced and directed by Wiseau himself. It is a movie so laughably bizarre and enjoyably bad that it truly has become infamous. Hundreds of midnight screenings have been shown all over the world with Wiseau often attending and playing football with many of the attendees. But he has kept most of his own life shrouded in secrecy. It would keep even the most seasoned investigator up many sleepless nights just trying to decipher his accent. Fortunately, his best friend seemed to be up to the task.
Actor Greg Sestero, Wiseau's co-star in The Room and probably Wiseau's longest-lasting friend, found himself caught up in the cult cyclone following the film's release. The movie improbably had found an audience in people who loved “so bad it’s good” films. It had marathon showings on [adult swim] during April Fools’ Day (including an interview with Space Ghost). Wiseau and Sestero have both been on CNN, discussing the movie’s remarkable success story. Rather than dissuade himself from the potential embarrassment at being associated with it, Sestero decided to tell the full story of the making of the film. He and journalist Tom Bissell began writing the book, "The Disaster Artist" and released it in 2013 to worldwide acclaim. Fans of the film were delighted at all the behind-the-scenes madness being revealed while more serious critics were intrigued at the captivating story of not giving up on one's dreams. Naturally, Hollywood came calling.
Greg (Dave Franco) is a young man struggling to make it in Los Angeles and to be taken seriously as an actor. In the midst of one of his acting classes, he finds himself awestruck by the fearlessness of one of his classmates, a mysterious man known only as Tommy (James Franco) who, despite having dubious talent, gives his all. Wanting to get to know him better, Greg begins a reluctant friendship with Tommy who agrees on the condition that Greg will never divulge anything personal he may learn about him. As the two of them become close friends, they become frustrated that no one in Hollywood will take a chance with them. Offhandedly, Greg suggests making their own movie. This throwaway comment lights a creative spark in Tommy that launches a major production: The Room. Greg warily agrees to play a role in the film as the best friend of the lead character, Johnny, played by Tommy. As their fellow cast and crew slowly begin to realize, The Room is not just a multi-million dollar vanity project by a madman but also the fast lane to the breaking of their sanity.
The Disaster Artist is the culmination of one of the most surprising underdog stories in Hollywood history. It is a vindication to all who have suffered through the film that there was something there that perhaps they did not see upon first viewing. In lesser hands, the movie would simply collapse on its "you-have-to-see-it-to-believe-it" approach, but James Franco shines both as director and star. He builds a great camaraderie with his own brother Dave playing Greg. I must admit I had fears when the first teaser trailer was released as it seemed that James was simply doing a Tommy Wiseau impression. I am happy to say I was wrong and that he has enveloped himself in all things Wiseau in a way that almost does not seem possible, outside of Tommy himself. He perfectly captured Tommy's manners and speech patterns. The movie introduces a story element that does not come from the book so I am not sure of its authenticity: Tommy goes on various auditions and is eventually told by an acting teacher (Bob Odenkirk) that he may be best suited in playing a monstrous villain. Troubled by this, Tommy refuses this advice, believing he can be an American hero. This gives Tommy a humanity that might be harder to see without said motivation.
Where the movie falters is in the supporting cast. Ultimately, the movie is the story of Greg and Tommy. Casting a lot of famous faces brings the movie legitimacy but not much else. Naturally, fellow Frat Pack member Seth Rogen has a part as Sandy Schklair, The Room production's seemingly sole voice of reason, but he does not have many more scenes outside of what one sees in the trailer. Also, in the movie, he and Paul Scheer playing Raphael Smadja, The Room's director of photography, are fired off-screen. In the book, Schklair left the film's production because he was offered a job with Steven Spielberg's cinematographer Janusz Kamiński and Scheer's character stormed off the set after Tommy refused to find a new line producer after the job was basically forced upon Greg. I understand that it would have taken away a lot of screen time from the movie, but something better than nothing would have been preferred.
Another problem I have with the movie is the pacing. The movie, after a questionable "love letter" prelude featuring J.J. Abrams, Kevin Smith, Kristen Bell and Adam Scott, starts off on a breakneck speed going from scene-to-scene-to-scene. Once it stops and slows down to catch its breath, it does become very compelling. The book alternates chapters of the making of The Room and the real story of Greg and Tommy's friendship; it breaks up monotony and also allows for good laughs after very serious passages. The movie is straight linear from the first time Greg meets Tommy to the premiere of The Room; it takes forever to get to what the movie is being sold on - the making of the greatest bad movie ever made. There is also a whole section of the book dedicated to delving into Tommy's past; or at least a fairly convincing theory of his past. It is nowhere to be found in the movie. The ending of the movie finds Tommy quickly embracing the notion to call The Room a black comedy as opposed to the melodrama he intended it to be. This did not happen until after The Room was discovered by two college students in the final week of its bare theatrical release. But, I get it; it is only a two-hour movie and it needs a happy ending.
The Room is the best bad movie ever made. The story of how it got made is unconventional. The man who got it made is incomprehensible. The way it took the world by storm is unbelievable. I deeply implore you, if you have never seen the movie: please give it a try. You may be bewildered, you may be angered but you just might be enraptured by its madness. The Disaster Artist is the blaze of glory that The Room has finally attained; the same Hollywood that would not accept Tommy is now putting his implausible story onto the silver screen. As Tommy would no doubt say, "You can laugh, you can cry, but don't hurt yourself."
P.S. Wait around for the very end of the credits for a post-credits surprise.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
In the interest of full disclosure, this author must admit a serious bias towards the source material. In that I am a massive fan of The Room. I have been to both the RiffTrax version of The Room (in theaters, not live in Nashville) and the unriffed version (here in Memphis) with hundreds of shouting fans. I also bought The Room on Blu-Ray for $36 (it did not just come with the movie but also a draw-string backpack and the T-shirt you see me wearing above), but it was worth in that Tommy Wiseau signed it to me personally; you can request this if you purchase this through his official website. And to top it off, I was able to meet the one-and-only Greg Sestero when he came to town as part of a book festival. He talked about the book, Tommy, making The Room and near the end of his panel, he invited folks to come on stage to read from the original draft of The Room's script. When it came time to offer the role of Johnny, I turned around to see how many hands would go up. None of them did. Nobody was making their way to the stage. I thought, "Screw it. This is truly once-in-a-lifetime." So I went onstage to read Johnny in a shameful Tommy Wiseau impression opposite Greg Sestero. Greg was a true gentleman, very kind and patient. I responded by accidentally saying, "Hi, Mark," instead of his real name. Whoops! Still, the experience was genuinely thrilling. I got to take a picture with him, he signed my Blu-Ray copy of The Room and my hardcover copy of "The Disaster Artist". I think the world of Tommy and Greg and respect their immense talent. They have a new movie coming soon called Best F(r)iends that I am most definitely seeing the first chance I get.
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