Poll: The Room - Thoughts

[Igor-Rowan]

Among our lives, we're bound to find an something whose making is infinitely more entertainemnt than the prodcuct itself, that perfectly sums the 2003 cult classic The Room.

If you followed CinemaSins or Nostalgia Critic in your lifetime (CS in my case), you must have come across a movie direceted, produced and written by the same person that they reviewed that was so bizarre, so strange that there was no way it could be real.

Except this one is, and it tries to take itself seriously: a banker gets cheated by its fiancee with his best friend, there, I summed up the plot, so simple yet in the 2 hours of runtime you're left with more questions than answers. People and topics like Breast Cancer and Drugs get introduced, but are simply gone; the acting is so weird, especially the main character; this movie doesn't have much going on, yet still manages to waste time. It's a trainwreck plain and simple, but a beautiful one.

After getting interested enough I discovered a lot of things about it:
* There is a "tribute" to it in the form of a Newgrounds flash game - http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/547307
* The movie is based on a book the director was unable to get published, and that is based on a play he never got to make.
* Tommy Wiseau said he funded the movie by buying and re-selling jackets from South Korea, but others believe the entire movie to be a money laundry scheme.
And many more... I suggest reading The Disaster Artist if you want to know more, because trust me, there is more.

So how did you come into contact with it? And what's your opinion on everything behind it?

 

[sky14kemea]

It's definitely one of the more quotable bad films I've seen around. I found out about it via Nostalgia Critic.

I can't remember if I've seen the full movie or not... I feel like I have but I have no memory of ever doing so.

 

[tippy2k2]

I watched it because my friend found out I was a Film Minor in college and insisted I watch it. He borrowed me the DVD so I pretty much had to...

I watched about forty minutes of it (and I got through that much because I was cleaning my room at the time) and turned it off.

I never understood the "It's so bad it's good" mentality. The movie is shit and I don't understand why anyone would want to waste their time watching shit just so they can laugh at it. Maybe that's just the movie snob in me but if people are entertained watching that kind of bad, then who am I to tell them they can't?

To qualify for a "It's so bad it's good" title, it has to have SOMETHING going for it. One of my favorite movies could be argued as a "So bad it's good" movie (Starship Troopers if you were wondering) so maybe the "So bad it's good" kind of movies just strike the right chord for different people...

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

It's the Millennial Rocky Horror Picture Show. You go to midnight showing dressed in tuxedos with football and throw spoons at the screen. And ever kiss scene has a load "ARRUMP" with every kiss. And talking along with the infamous Oh Hi Mark scene.

Outside of that or the Nostalgia critic review no one has any business whatsoever watching this.

 

[Igor-Rowan]

I never understood the "It's so bad it's good" mentality. The movie is shit and I don't understand why anyone would want to waste their time watching shit just so they can laugh at it. Maybe that's just the movie snob in me but if people are entertained watching that kind of bad, then who am I to tell them they can't?

I think the mentality is there is laughably bad and just plain bad, a movie plain bad you'll just forget, a movie that's laughably bad in the "so bad it's good" category, I think those exist in the thinking of you have to see to believe.

Personally I think the entertainment is the main actor himself, his mere existance is worth the watch, and the utter non-sense that is the plot, like characters appearing out of nowhere like we're supposed to accept they were always there. Since this movie is not like any other bad movie it has a lot going for it, but I don't think watching it alone will do the trick.

 

[Michel Henzel]

It's Cringe: The movie.

Other than laughing at how utterly terrible it is I can't find any redeeming factors for the movie.

 

[Chanticoblues]

I haven't seen it, but I can't say I'm compelled to. I also don't really get the so bad it's good camp. It seems a little mean-spirited, and the movies that I have seen that fall into that camp are usually terribly boring.

I'd rather just watch movies I hear are good.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

I'm a film student. I learned about it in 2010.

Meh. Actually watching it is not as pleasurable as some would suggest. It sure created a lot of meymeys though.

 

[Silvanus]

"I did naht hit her. I did naaahhht! Oh hi Mark".


I went to a midnight screening of The Room, which was preceded by a Q&A with Tommy Wiseau himself. Time and money well spent. People threw spoons, all that jazz, and everyone who asked a question took the opportunity to take the piss.

 

[SweetShark]

I haven't seen it. I don't wanna waste my time.

I'm a film student. I learned about it in 2010.

I'm trying to understand the relation. Is this what happens in film schools? Watching bad movies, because?

I guess good examples of How to NOT a movie like this.

OP:
Never saw it normally, just as funny reviews. However I played the game. It was awesome.

 

[RaikuFA]

I didn't like it. I prefer the NC and IHE reviews.

Now Cool Cat, that's a quotable movie.

 

[Creator002]

I didn't like it. I prefer the NC and IHE reviews.

Now Cool Cat, that's a quotable movie.

Dere he is!

My cousin showed it to me, and I thoroughly enjoyed its ridiculousness. We even have a theory that Lisa's mum is partly unhinged from the movie universe and sometimes understands that it's a movie. Based it all on one line: "What are these characters doing here?"
Also, did you know Johnny is Mark's best friend?

 

[SKBPinkie]

I generally find the "so bad, it's good" to be decent at most times, and even in the cases where I really like it - there's one major caveat -

It needs to be short and sweet.

I simply cannot enjoy something as long as a 1.5-2 hour movie if it's bad. Anything over 10-15 minutes for me, and I'm out. Which is why I'm glad YouTube exists - I was able to watch the "best" parts of the Room without having to actually see the whole thing.

Let me put it this way - I absolutely loved the trailer for Machete. Grindhouse and the Machete movie, on the other hand? I thought both of those were awful and had outstayed their welcome.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

I'm a film student. I learned about it in 2010.

I'm trying to understand the relation. Is this what happens in film schools? Watching bad movies, because?

I'm not sure this applies to film school worldwide, but I have a film school friend who had to watch and analyse all kinds of movies, good and bad. Getting exposed to many different styles of filmmaking (makes sense). And I assume there is a difference between knowing what works (or doesn't) in a movie and being able to explain why it does(n't).

 

[RaikuFA]

I didn't like it. I prefer the NC and IHE reviews.

Now Cool Cat, that's a quotable movie.

Dere he is!

My cousin showed it to me, and I thoroughly enjoyed its ridiculousness. We even have a theory that Lisa's mum is partly unhinged from the movie universe and sometimes understands that it's a movie. Based it all on one line: "What are these characters doing here?"
Also, did you know Johnny is Mark's best friend?

Exquisite!

And no, I didn't know that Johnny is Marks best friend.

 

[Wary Wolf]

Oh Hai guys!

Just watched the Vinesauce play through of the game, where I realize I have seen this movie. It was pretty trash, sorry tresh, but I feel a bit more into it now I have a bit of backstory to it. I'll see if I can get our local movie club to go see it sometime.

 

[09philj]

I watched it because my friend found out I was a Film Minor in college and insisted I watch it. He borrowed me the DVD so I pretty much had to...

I watched about forty minutes of it (and I got through that much because I was cleaning my room at the time) and turned it off.

I never understood the "It's so bad it's good" mentality. The movie is shit and I don't understand why anyone would want to waste their time watching shit just so they can laugh at it. Maybe that's just the movie snob in me but if people are entertained watching that kind of bad, then who am I to tell them they can't?

To qualify for a "It's so bad it's good" title, it has to have SOMETHING going for it. One of my favorite movies could be argued as a "So bad it's good" movie (Starship Troopers if you were wondering) so maybe the "So bad it's good" kind of movies just strike the right chord for different people...

Me and my friends had a great time watching Battle Royale together. On the one hand, it is an interestingly made thriller with a cool central premise. On the other hand, it's also appears to have been written and directed by somebody whose sole understanding of the human race came from watching TV while on hard drugs. One minute we're gripped by tension, the next we're confronted by the bit where Beat Takeshi unveils his painting.

 

[bdeamon]

Once I heard Seth Rogan say in an interview that The Room is not just a bad movie. It keeps finding new and creative ways to be bad as you watch the movie. I think that is where the awkward magic of this movie comes from.

 

[balladbird]

Adult swim's april fools' day prank is how I first encountered this one, then the NC video caught my eye.

If it were a little shorter I'd probably like it more... kinda like Birdemic in that regard. The novelty of it wouldn't have been stretched as thin that way, and I'd have been able to enjoy its badness more.

Still, the world is a better place for this movie existing, definitely. I laughed quite a bit in it, though it's not as dear to me as a "so bad it's good" movie as Birdemic or even Cool Cat. (I try to avoid talking about my love of Cool Cat, though, for fear of accidentally misguiding someone into giving money to its creator, who is a raging bellend.)