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I was first introduced to the movie, The Room, about 4 years ago. I was at a small gathering of friends in an Austin apartment and nearly everyone else had seen it or heard of it except me. They all described it more or less in the same way: it was the best/worst movie they had ever seen. When the movie first started, I was bored to tears but the longer it went on I started to feel laughter uncontrollably bubbling out as the absurdity of the whole thing really kicked in.
Enjoying bad movies requires a bit of a specific formula for me. The film has to cross that threshold of being so bad that it's actually funny and extremely quotable. (Side note: Rent Geostorm when it's released to Redbox. I recommend pairing it with your alcohol of choice) The Room is EXTREMELY quotable, which I'm sure assisted with it's evolution into a cult classic.
I read The Disaster Artist for a Goodreads book club I facilitate for my library. We read and discuss books that are current film adaptations. Tearing apart these adaptations is something of a hobby of mine, but there wasn't much to tear apart in this case.The Disaster Artist is a nonfiction account of the making of a movie, which led to a movie about the making of a movie. So, this pick was really a no-brainer for the group and ended up being my favorite book club read. It's written by Greg Sestero, who played Mark in The Room and is also Tommy's friend and former roommate, so he really had a front row seat to a disaster in the making.
I heartily recommend that you see The Room before reading this book or watching James Franco in The Disaster Artist film. I think you really need the context to understand just how crazy that film is, which is only compounded by what you learn from behind the scenes. If this was a work of fiction, critics would be saying what an amazing and surreal character Tommy Wiseau is, but he is a real person! I couldn't believe most of what I was reading. Everyone that has seen The Room knows that Wiseau is the poster boy for eccentricity, but the details Greg divulges really makes you rethink your definition of "crazy".
The Disaster Artist is more than just an account of Hollywood dreams gone wrong; it has a lot of heart. For me, one of the most enjoyable aspects of the book was the evolution of the friendship between Tommy and Greg. Greg admits that what we will be reading is from his point of view and through the filter of his experiences. His admiration and fondness for Tommy really come through in his writing as well as his frustrations during filming. The Disaster Artist will hit home for anyone who has chased a big dream and you can't help but admire the lengths Tommy Wiseau took to achieve it.
So, just to recap:
Step one: You need to watch The Room.
Step two: Read The Disaster Artist
Step three: Go see The Disaster Artist while it is still in theaters
Step four: Become a The Room fanatic and attend every midnight showing you can (optional)
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