Tommy Wiseau's Terrible Movie: The Room
Cathartic Film Written, Directed by and Starring Wiseau Soon on TV
Oct 6, 2008
Written, directed, produced and starring the incomparable Tommy Wiseau, a man with an unknown accent and the ability to raise millions of dollars for such a horrendous film, The Room is used by some film teachers to show potential filmmakers every mistake to avoid. It’s the kind of film where a character casually tells her daughter she has breast cancer and never mentions it again.
It’s the kind of film that features and “Oh hi” greeting when any character enters the scene, and begins and ends nearly every scene with someone entering or exiting a room. It’s the kind of film where the main character, the theoretically Christ-like Johnny, who treats his girlfriend “like a princess,” smothering her with gifts.
But it’s a film that is too fun to miss.
The Modern Rocky Horror Picture Show
It might be the most unintentionally hilarious film of all time, described as the 21st century's Rocky Horror Picture Show. Rabid fans throw spoons at the screen, compare Wiseau to a cyborg and drink scotchka, a terrible combination of scotch and vodka the made by characters in the film.
It’s sad how enjoyable an experience watching The Room is, laughing as the characters say cliché after cliché, laughing at the oddness that is Denny, wondering in how Lisa, portrayed as a shrill harpy, is the object of such desire for the men of The Room.
The Wiseau Factor
Wiseau does little to stem his fans, as he appears at monthly showings in Los Angeles and deflects questions from inquisitive participants of the Room experience. He claims, in the most defensive manner imaginable, that everything in the film is supposed to be this bad, to provoke the audience.
It would be a little more convincing if he hadn’t included a question and answer section on the DVD, which does little to improve Wiseau’s image (but does reveal he doesn’t know what high definition is). He implores people to watch his film at least twice, to understand the deep complexities that make up The Room.
On the Other Hand
All it takes to understand The Room is an accidental glance at the front of the DVD cover (or the billboard in Los Angeles with the same photo). It features a shot of Wiseau’s face, a haunting image of the man behind The Room, his eyes unfocused but still somehow staring into the soul.
The cover shows Wiseau, which is the crux of the film. It’s Wiseau’s film; his creativity and pride put into one terrible package for the world to see and mock. It’s a little sad, really, the joy begotten from deriding the best efforts of a fellow human being. Wiseau, for all his narcissism, doesn’t appear to be a bad human being (he did direct a documentary about the homeless titled, fittingly, Homeless in America).
Is it okay to laugh at the subpar efforts of another human being?
Maybe it is. His film brings joy to hundreds, which is certainly worth something. And Wiseau does little to hide from his newfound cult status and embraces his status amongst his fans. Wiseau doesn’t appear discouraged by the critical response to his film, rolling ahead with a new television series (which looks abysmal).
Wiseau’s film isn’t on par with Bergman, and it probably causes Orson Welles to do a few revolutions in his grave. But it’s still a whole lot of fun to watch, giving it at least a little value.
