James Franco directs this giddy tribute to eccentric filmmaker Tommy Wiseau and his friend, actor Greg Sestero, whose notoriously awful film The Room has become one of the most beloved cult classics of all time.
Since its release in 2003, The Room has captivated cult audiences on the midnight movie circuit with its discombobulated plot, discordant performances, and inexplicable dialogue. Every facet of the film baffles (and beguiles), none more so than the uncanny yet magnetic presence of its eccentric creator and star, Tommy Wiseau, inhabited magnificently in The Disaster Artist by director and star James Franco.
Drawing on the memoir of the same name, Franco chronicles the making of The Room as recalled by Wiseau's friend and reluctant co-star Greg Sestero (played, in a flourish of inspired casting, by Franco's brother Dave). Co-producer and frequent Franco collaborator Seth Rogen plays the foil as the bizarre Wiseau's incredulous script supervisor; also on hand is a cavalcade of surprise comedians and celebrities (no spoilers!), many of whom participate in pitch-perfect recreations of Wiseau's singular vision.
What could have been a mean-spirited mockery of one would-be artist's reach exceeding his grasp instead becomes an empathetic character study that is guaranteed to tear Midnight audiences apart! with uproarious laughter. It is a brilliant comedic portrayal of a Hollywood outsider by a Hollywood insider whose own artistic pursuits have consistently defied easy categorization — and the most sincere veneration of a Z-grade auteur since Tim Burton's Ed Wood.
PETER KUPLOWSKY
Screenings
Ryerson Theatre
Scotiabank 12
Scotiabank 1