Have you ever seen The Room? The likely answer is no because this film is considered one of the worst films of all time and has an incredibly chequered backstory. It was the creation of Tommy Wiseau a failed actor who wanted nothing in the world but to act and be recognised for it because it was his passion. He joined with his friend Greg Sestero to make this dream come true and with The Room they achieved infamy rather than acclaim. The film has never left the pop culture zeitgeist and so James Franco decided to bring this cult classic to a mainstream audience with The Disaster Artist and continue its slow domination of the world with Seth Rogen, Alison Brie, and his young brother Dave Franco in tow.
The Disaster Artist is an incredible true story because of the sheer bonkers nature of it James Franco and Dave Franco are an incredible double act. James is completely off the walls with his performance of Tommy Wiseau, he captures the insanity of this person perfectly and steals every scene he’s in. The straight man of this duo comes in the shape of Dave Franco’s Greg Sestero who is swept up in the mayhem of Wiseau. He’s a guy just trying to make it in the crazy world that is show business and with Wiseau with him it becomes all the crazier.
The real star of The Disaster Artist though is the story it’s an absolutely bonkers ride with so many twists and turns that surprisingly keeps raising the level of absurdity of the situations these characters find themselves in. It’s fascinatingly funny and engaging because these people are so interesting. The cast that has been assembled is some of comedies elites – there’s Seth Rogen, Hannibal Buress, and the cast of the hit comedy podcast How Did This Get Made? June Diane Raphael, Paul Scheer, and Jason Mantzoukas. Each member of the cast bring their own manic energy and it fills out The Disaster Artist nicely with a strong comedic theme.
To compliment the brilliant ensemble cast and quality acting of The Disaster Artist is the cinematography and direction which captures the insanity of the events surrounding the creation of The Room. A particular note of interest is how Franco (the director of The Disaster Artist) has lovingly recreated several key scenes from The Room. Audiences also get to see how many of these infamous scenes were created and there’s a disturbing edge to many of these scenes. These disturbing elements come from the mystery behind Wiseau himself who is an enigma wrapped in a riddle buried in a bottomless pit of money (it’ll make sense when you see the film). It’s another reason to see this film so you can try and figure out the ridiculousness that is The Room and try to solve the mystery that is Tommy Wiseau.
The Disaster Artist is a fascinating film filled with memorable performances, oddball characters, and a story that you’ll never forget so be sure and check it out if you get the chance.