Surprisingly disappointing considering its source material and the talent involved

Rating: 6/10 (10 December 2017)

I thought for sure "The Disaster Artist" would be a slam-dunk based on advance buzz and reviews, and eagerly got out and saw it when it went wide and opened in my hometown this weekend. I enjoyed the heck out of roughly the first third of the film, but then, when it got around to the lengthy section depicting the making of "The Room," the "best worst film ever made," and the supposed mayhem of the actual real-life production crew and cast, I thought it fell flat and became a cartoon riff on what likely actually did happen on the real-life set. For some reason, Seth Rogen, who I normally get a big kick out of (though sometimes his trademark snark wears out its welcome) irritated me, as did other actors laying it on thick with the script's "wink-wink-nudge-nudge" too-obvious reaction to the mystery of Tommy Wiseau and his approach to life and filmmaking: I'm sure in real life crew and cast members' reactions to actually working on the "The Room" had a lot more complicated depth to them-- especially since they were being paid well and their checks were clearing at the bank as the production proceeded. Instead, we get this obvious, wafer-thin, surface and stereotypical reaction to Wiseau, with well-known actors doing small parts and winking at the camera as if to say "isn't this funny"--which works for some films but just doesn't work here. Thankfully, the ending section of the film, depicting the premiere of "The Room" and all that's happened since, almost saves it, but it had flagged too much by then for me to feel I got my money's (or time's) worth. I like the Franco brothers, am truly a fan of their wide variety of mainstream and independent film efforts overall (I'm one of the few who actually liked "Why Him?" and "This is The End," two polarizing comedies that either brought belly laughs or annoyed people) but "The Disaster Artist" is not either of their best efforts. It's clearly meant as a star-studded-cameo playtime lark, but a lark that those same actors likely enjoyed more than we do as an audience--and in my opinion it doesn't serve the real-life people it depicts very well, either, except to make viewers curious about the real "The Room" film, and about the people involved in that production. I was surprised that in the end the Francos and all involved in "The Disaster Artist" seemed to be laughing at--and not affectionately with--the real Tommy Wiseau and actors/crew of "The Room."