The Disaster Artist

Starring: James Franco, Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Ari Graynor, Alison Brie, Jacki Weaver, Paul Scheer, Zac Efron, Josh Hutcherson, Megan Mullally, Jason Mantzoukas, Sharon Stone, Melanie Griffith, Hannibal Burress, Charlyne Yi, Bob Odenkirk, Randall Park, Keegan-Michael Key, Adam Scott, Danny McBridge, Kristen Bell, JJ Abrams, Lizzy Caplan, Zach Braff (uncredited), Bryan Cranston (uncredited), Christopher Mintz-Plasse (uncredited), Judd Apatow (uncredited), Kevin Smith, Ike Barinholtz, Dylan Minnette (uncredited)
Directed by: James Franco
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
2017

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Aspiring actor Greg Sestero (Dave Franco) befriends the mysterious Tommy Wiseau (James Franco) and the two set off to make their own movie.

Review:

Tim: I'd certainly heard of The Room before watching James Franco's 2017 film about the behind-the-scenes making of that infamous film. But, I'd never actually forced myself to watch it (something I've since remedied). Even without watching that film, this was a fascinating look at some unique and odd characters and the hard-to-believe journey they took to create one of the worst movies ever made. If this film wasn't based on a true story, you'd have a hard time believing any of it. I marveled much of this film about how these people could have come together and worked so hard to create something so terrible. And, even after watching this film, I still have so many questions. Many of which remain unanswered to this day (like how did Tommy Wiseau actually pay for the entire production himself. Where did the money come from?).

I know this film's chances at end-of-the-year recognition were derailed by some troublesome accusations against James Franco. I don't know how much of those were true, but I'm trying to separate the person fro the movie. Franco might have behaved in an evil fashion, but he did manage to create an incredibly entertaining and informative movie here. I choose to focus on the work of art, even if I can't forget the allegations of the person.

It was actually brilliant casting for James and Dave Franco to play Tommy and Greg. As brothers, they obvious have chemistry together. That translates into the relationship between Tommy and Greg, even though their friendship is anything but typical. It was fun watching these two bring very different characters to life. Franco is pretty astounding as Wiseau. His performance is spot on, but it never feels like an over-the-top caricature. His Wisea is weird beyond belief because Wiseau is in fact that way. It really is a fairly remarkable performance. Dave Franco is good as well, although his role was a bit easier. I loved Seth Rogen in his supporting role. It was fun seeing Alison Brie, Josh Hutcherson, Zac Efron and the rest of the cast (which is too large for a movie like this, to be honest. Franco didn't need to include nearly so many uncredited and cameo performances). Still, while the presence of the cast is somewhat fun- "Hey, that's Sharon Stone!", this movie is all about the two Francos.

The cast did a fairly good job of faithfully recreating many sequences of The Room. The end credits showed a number of the scenes side-by-side and it's uncanny. Franco's real genius in bringing this story to life is the utter insanity of Tommy Wiseau as he sets out to create his masterwork. It's so obviously going to be a trainwreck but it's impossible to look away. Franco manages to balance laughing at Wiseau with some genuine admiration for the guy. This is a comedy because everything involved is so completely ridiculous, but Franco stops short of pure ridicule.

With The Disaster Artist, James Franco directs and stars in a fascinating look at the creation of one of the worst movies ever made. It was entertaining, hilarious, and memorable. He had a great subject matter, but I was so impressed by his work behind the camera. Franco might be a lot of things (some of them bad), but he is a talented director as evidenced here. This movie doesn't have quite enough substance to launch itself into the best films of 2017, but it gets quite close and that is a very impressive achievement.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Room