“Oh hai Mark.”
Whilst I hate myself for starting this review in a manner that I imagine countless others will, I am doing so because your understanding of that reference is going to go some way towards how much you get from this film. The Disaster Artist is a film about the making of a film, one with cult status as the worst ever made. The Room was released in 2003 and was written, directed, produced and starring Tommy Wiseau. It is notoriously bad and is still shown regularly at cinemas around the world where people go to laugh and jeer at it. One of its stars, Greg Sestero wrote a memoir of the making of The Room in 2013 and The Disaster Artist is an adaptation of this book.
James Franco directs and stars as Wiseau with his brother Dave playing Sestero. And along for the ride are a huge swathe of comedian friends such as Seth Rogen (who produces the film also), Kristen Bell, Alison Brie and of course cameos from Wiseau and Sestero.
James Franco has created a film that seems to show a lot of warmth for Wiseau’s creation and one that is incredibly funny as well. As with Tim Burton’s Ed Wood it seems to show a film maker so passionate about something that they are completely unaware of their ineptitude at doing it. Tracking through acting classes where Wiseau and Sestero met, through their move to LA, the writing and making of the film and culminating in the premiere the film captures the sheer craziness that is Wiseau whilst never actually managing to illuminate why he is who he is (no one knows how old he is or where he got the money to make the film).
Recreating the “it’s so bad it’s good” moments it will have you cringing and laughing in equal measure and very often baffled at how this happened. And if you have never seen The Room, then the side by side scenes at the end of the film matched with the original footage will show just how good a job Franco has done with both his performance and the recreation of The Room.
So go and enjoy The Disaster Artist, but definitely do not take any spoons, save that for The Room.
Phil the Bear's Film Reviews 
I was never bored with this one, however I didn’t find it that funny. For the most part the character of Tommy Wiseau comes across as creepy, narcissistic and something of a bully (especially during scenes showing the making of the Room). If you compare this to such films as Ed Wood or The Producers, it doesn’t have the heart the characters in those films had. That said as a technical accomplishment this is very good and Seth Rogan, an actor normally too over the top for me was excellent here. However I will not be surprised to see Franco nominated for Best Actor for his performance.
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