Oh hi, reader. Biopics about directors in Hollywood aren\u2019t a new thing. Whether you have talent or not, movies like \u201cEd Wood\u201d and \u201cHitchcock\u201d show how difficult it is to make a feature film. With \u201cThe Disaster Artist\u201d, James Franco takes a close-up look at Tommy Wiseau, the producer, star, writer, and director of \u201cThe Room,\u201d which is infamous because it\u2019s considered the \u201cbest\u201d worst movie ever made.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Disaster Artist\u201d follows the making of \u201cThe Room\u201d and the bizarre friendship between Wiseau (James Franco) and Greg Sestero (Dave Franco), the cult film\u2019s line producer and co-star. Greg and Tommy meet at an acting class in San Francisco and become quick friends. They both have ambitious of becoming major Hollywood actors like James Dean. They move to Los Angeles, but have trouble landing roles in film and television. Tommy creates an opportunity for both of them by writing the screenplay of \u201cThe Room\u201d with the hopes of producing and directing it. He invites Greg to be the co-star and the pair get the ball rolling with casting and putting together a crew.<\/p>\n
A lot of the comedy in \u201cThe Disaster Artist\u201d comes from the unintentional comedy of \u201cThe Room\u201d itself. I\u2019m not completely sure if you can get the same kind of enjoyment of watching \u201cThe Disaster Artist,\u201d if you haven\u2019t watch \u201cThe Room\u201d (or at least watched its greatest hits on YouTube). In that respect, James Franco does a fine job recreating the scenes with a good performance as Tommy Wiseau.<\/p>\n
However, the film runs into trouble pretty early on with testimonials from real-life Hollywood actors and directors like Kristen Bell, Adam Scott, and J.J. Abrams talking about the ironic brilliance of \u201cThe Room\u201d at the beginning of \u201cThe Disaster Artist\u201d. I don\u2019t know if this was completely necessary, as it comes off like an inside Hollywood nod to an inside joke. It almost feels self-important and self-congratulatory. I think you can take this section out of the movie and it would still play out well. But as it stands it left a bitter taste in my mouth that thankfully the rest of \u201cThe Disaster Artist\u201d washes away.<\/p>\n
At its core, the movie is about the friendship between Tommy Wiseau and Greg Sestero. It starts off on the right foot, but slowly becomes sour when Greg starts to find a little bit of success outside of making \u201cThe Room.\u201d He\u2019s starting to find his own identity, while Tommy becomes jealous and alone. It\u2019s really a bizarre sight when the two characters are pouring their souls to each other, but it\u2019s tough to feel pathos for the pair when you\u2019re laughing at Wiseau\u2019s silly accent and mannerisms. The laughs are tart when you\u2019re caught between Tommy and Greg.<\/p>\n
I feel that perfectly sums up \u201cThe Disaster Artist.\u201d It\u2019s a sour look at the creative process of making a movie. James Franco does a really good job in front-of and behind the camera of an incomprehensible man who is just as lonely as he is sad. While there are plenty of laughs in \u201cThe Disaster Artist,\u201d it\u2019s also very bitter and hard to watch at times. <\/p>\n
Story \u2013 A-
\nActing \u2013 A-
\nTechnical \u2013 B+
\nOverall \u2013 A-<\/strong><\/p>\n