The 2003 drama The Room might be a magnum example of cinematic ineptitude, but its cross-eyed flamboyance has made it one of the most beloved talked-about cult films of the millennia.
A labour of love for L.A.-based, um, “filmmaker” Tommy Wiseau, The Room sees Wiseau writing, directing, producing and casting himself as an average guy (one look at Wiseau’s Stallone meets Conan visage and “average” is the last thing that springs to mind) trapped in a bizarre love triangle.
“I shot The Room in six months,” Wiseau told Metro. “And it was originally supposed to be a play, but you know, movies last longer. When a play is done, that’s it. The cost to make it was tremendous. We changed the cast and crew four times during production. But it was not meant to be a joke.”
Whatever his ambitions and intentions, The Room most certainly is hilarious. Overbaked melodrama, flat line readings, ridiculous sex scenes, shoddy post production and, of course, the completely miscast presence of Wiseau himself ensured that the film — which actually opened theatrically in L.A. — was met with disbelief. And yet…
“Suddenly it became a midnight movie. I was getting all these letters, all this fan mail,” Wiseau said. “I went to a screening at The Beverly Wilshire and they were sitting on the floor, going nuts. It’s become a phenomenon.”
For those of you who have yet to experience the risible glories of The Room, The Royal Cinema on College Street will be unspooling the picture as it has been steadily for two years, this time from March 22 to 24 with Wiseau himself in attendance, ready to embrace the slings and arrows of outrageous enthusiasm that swirls to a fever pitch at every screening the now eight-year-old epic enjoys.
“I always say, you can laugh, you can cry, you can express yourself, just don’t hurt each other,” he said.
