A celebration of the unexpected magic found at the movies

Rating: 7/10 (7 March 2018)

It was a man named Michael Rousselet of online film group 5-Second Films who first clocked onto the rich vein of unintentional humour found in Tommy Wiseau's 2003 crap-fest The Room. He brought along friends, who had a great time throwing plastic cutlery at the screen in homage to the weird decorating choices found in the background of some of the film's interior scenes, and generally marvelling at just how any self-respecting film-maker could release such an utter shambles and compare it to the work of Tennessee Williams. It soon caught on, and The Room evolved into a cult phenomenon, playing for years and attracting a vocal celebrity fanbase that included the likes of Patton Oswalt, Paul Rudd, Jonah Hill and Kristen Bell.
Once Greg Sestero, co-star of The Room and somewhat reluctant best friend of Wiseau, released a tell-all book called The Disaster Artist, it seemed inevitable that it would someday find itself adapted for the big screen. And who better than super-fan and Wiseau-obsessive James Franco to carry out the task and don the thick black locks and questionable fashion sense of the man who still remains an enigma to this day. The Disaster Artist starts by detailing how Sestero first met Wiseau in acting class, with the latter impressing the young pretty-boy actor with his fearless, if abominable, displays of his acting prowess. Played by Dave Franco in the film, Sestero soon packs up and moves to Los Angeles to live with Wiseau, whose bottomless pockets are one of the remaining unexplained mysteries circling the clearly Eastern European weirdo. But as one producer tells them, they only have a million-in-one chance of becoming a success even if they had the talents of Marlon Brando, which they do not.
This spurs Wiseau into writing his very own movie, a melodrama called The Room which tells the story of a handsome all-American hero named Johnny, who'll naturally be played by Wiseau. Being the innovator he thinks he is, Wiseau wastes a fortune by going against industry standards of renting and purchases two cameras: one 35 mm and the other HD Digital, which he'll use simultaneously to shoot the movie. His bizarre spending habits don't stop there. He also builds a set of an outside alley when an actual alley sits just outside the studio, and Wiseau also goes to the expense of installing a toilet only he is allowed to use. Yet this is least of the crew's worries. As Wiseau's ego and paranoia spin out of control, he finds himself at loggerheads with everyone around him, including his best friend Greg. He also forgets his lines, fires members of staff on a whim, and remains the only one blissfully ignorant at the steaming cinematic turd he is creating. In his mind, nobody understands or respects his vision.
The moral of The Disaster Artist could be interpreted as not everybody should follow their dreams, despite what most people will tell you. But James Franco, directing himself as Wiseau directing himself, clearly adores The Room and is completely caught up with the weird charisma of Tommy Wiseau. At its heart, The Disaster Artist is a sweet rags-to-riches story that celebrates how greatness - and The Room is great - can emerge from the strangest of places and the unlikeliest of people. If it had been any other year, the older Franco would have been a shoe-in for a Best Actor nod, but recent allegations have seen the Academy distance themselves from the prolific film-maker. Of course, he doesn't look anything like Wiseau but, with the help of prosthetics, a tar-dunked wig and some good-old fashioned thesping, Franco becomes Wiseau before our very eyes, refusing to spill over into pantomime territory. It will make you laugh, cringe and possibly even cry, which is crazy given the subject matter. They could have taken the easy route and turned the story into pure parody, but Franco, along with writers Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, have helped sculpt The Disaster Artist into a celebration of eccentricity, stubbornness and the unexpected places magic is found at the movies.
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