‘The Disaster Artist’ movie review

‘The Disaster Artist’ is a good movie based on the worst movie ever made.  It is one of those true stories that you have to see to believe.  James Franco stars as Tommy Wiseau, an enigmatic guy who stars and directs his own independent film titled ‘The Room.’  Fledgling actor Greg Sestero believes in Tommy’s vision and is played by Dave Franco, James’ real life brother.  Franco has been in a lot of movies -some good and some not-so-good.  He delivers a remarkable performance as the eccentric filmmaker.  The screenwriting team of Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber (The Fault in Our Stars) adapted Sestero’s behind-the-scenes making of ‘The Room’ memoir into a witty script.  ‘The Disaster Artist’ is an entertaining love letter to moviemaking and following your dream.

Tommy and Greg take an acting class together.  Melanie Griffith has a very nice cameo as their drama teacher.  Greg desperately wants to be an actor but he comes across as timid on stage.  When Tommy takes the stage, he literally climbs up the wall doing Stanley Kowalski’s big scene from ‘A Streetcar Named Desire.’  After class, Greg is in awe of Tommy’s fearless attitude on stage and wants to do a scene with him.  The two become fast friends with the same goal of becoming famous movie stars.  When Greg asks Tommy about where he is from, he gets defensive and says he’s from New Orleans.  It’s obvious that his thick accent is from an Eastern Bloc country but Greg doesn’t want to upset his acting buddy.  Another strange thing about Tommy is that he drives a Mercedes-Benz and lives in an expensive apartment.  It’s a mystery where all of his money comes from.

They visit the fatal crash site where James Dean died.  Tommy convinces Greg to leave San Francisco for Hollywood and pursue their acting dreams.  Tommy already has an expensive apartment in La La Land.  Again, it is a mystery how he can afford it.  Greg lands an agent (Sharon Stone) while Tommy gets rejected by casting directors that want him to play a villain.  With his long black hair and dark clothing, he resembles Dracula.  In a desperate attempt to get a producer’s (Judd Apatow) attention, he walks up to him while he is dining at a restaurant with embarrassing results.  This is when Tommy gets an epiphany and decides to pave his own road to stardom.  He writes a script, buys filmmaking equipment and rents studio space to make his movie, ‘The Room.’  He gives himself the starring role, Johnny and gives Greg the role of Mark, his best friend.

Tommy hires an entire film crew including script supervisor, Sandy (Seth Rogen) and cinematographer, Raphael (Paul Sheer).  He auditions actors and hires Ari Graynor as Juliette (the actress who played Lisa).  He also rounds out the cast with Zac Efron, Josh Hutcherson and Jacki Weaver.  These actors never fully realize what they are getting themselves into because they are just happy to be acting.  The script is all over the place with meaningless dialogue that leads to nowhere.  The story is about Johnny’s girlfriend betraying him and having an affair with his best friend Mark.  There are a lot of funny parts particularly when Tommy misses his cue again and again.  He becomes somewhat of a tyrannical director and grows jealous of Greg’s girlfriend, Amber (Alison Brie who is Dave Franco’s real life girlfriend).  The crew puts up with Tommy’s quirky behavior since he always has enough money to pay everyone and keep the production going.

‘The Disaster Artist’ does an excellent balancing act between mockery and adoration.  Although Tommy is an oddball, Franco never loses sight on portraying him with sincerity.  You cannot help but root for him to make it to the big time.  Although the film is ridiculed as the worst film ever made, it has become a cult classic at midnight showings.  The film’s budget was $6 million and to this day, it remains a source of intrigue how Tommy Wiseau financed it.  ‘The Disaster Artist’ is an entertaining look at friendship and the relentless pursuit of your dreams.

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