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lazypadawanIf the American Film Institute were to rank the 100 worst movies ever made, there's a strong argument for putting Ed Wood Jr.'s magnum opus Plan 9 From Outer Space at the top. I've seen Plan 9 several times and it's hard to think of a movie that matches its genius, much less tops it. Even today's bad movies are bad in a way that's annoying or offensive, not funny and entertaining.
But then there came Tommy Wiseau's $6 million epic, The Room. The movie was made entirely outside of the studio system, just the way Wood did it in 1959. Starring absolutely no one you've ever heard of, it was meant as a drama but it produces nothing but laughs as the protagonist's fiancée proceeds to cheat on him with his best friend. This has everything a truly bad gem of a movie should have: cheapo sets, really bad acting, really bad direction (your average SW fan film looks like it was done by Cecil B. DeMille by comparison), quite possibly some of the worst dialogue I've heard ("you should have a girl"), nonsense subplots that go nowhere, and wretched production values. For example, all of the rooftop scenes are done in front of an obvious bluescreen. The movie was unleashed in 2003 and over the past six years has become a cult favorite. In Los Angeles, New York, and other cities, it has received the Rocky Horror treatment with midnight showings and audience participation. Each time the camera focuses on a spoon, people fling plastic spoons at the screen. During one overly long sex scene, the audience gets up and walks out in mock disgust. The really funny part is that Wiseau and his merry crew have embraced the film's cheese status, turning lemons into lemonade. They've even dropped by showings of the film. I guess we'll see licensed merch like "Oh, hi Mark" t-shirts.
I've made it my mission to see all of the film at some point...all I've seen so far are bits and pieces on YouTube. Prepare yourself for the awesome badness in the trailer and some short scenes (language warning):
And as a bonus, several clips mashed together where the rather ordinary-looking Lisa's beauty is discussed:
But then there came Tommy Wiseau's $6 million epic, The Room. The movie was made entirely outside of the studio system, just the way Wood did it in 1959. Starring absolutely no one you've ever heard of, it was meant as a drama but it produces nothing but laughs as the protagonist's fiancée proceeds to cheat on him with his best friend. This has everything a truly bad gem of a movie should have: cheapo sets, really bad acting, really bad direction (your average SW fan film looks like it was done by Cecil B. DeMille by comparison), quite possibly some of the worst dialogue I've heard ("you should have a girl"), nonsense subplots that go nowhere, and wretched production values. For example, all of the rooftop scenes are done in front of an obvious bluescreen. The movie was unleashed in 2003 and over the past six years has become a cult favorite. In Los Angeles, New York, and other cities, it has received the Rocky Horror treatment with midnight showings and audience participation. Each time the camera focuses on a spoon, people fling plastic spoons at the screen. During one overly long sex scene, the audience gets up and walks out in mock disgust. The really funny part is that Wiseau and his merry crew have embraced the film's cheese status, turning lemons into lemonade. They've even dropped by showings of the film. I guess we'll see licensed merch like "Oh, hi Mark" t-shirts.
I've made it my mission to see all of the film at some point...all I've seen so far are bits and pieces on YouTube. Prepare yourself for the awesome badness in the trailer and some short scenes (language warning):
And as a bonus, several clips mashed together where the rather ordinary-looking Lisa's beauty is discussed:
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Date: 2009-09-05 03:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-09-05 05:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-09-05 04:15 pm (UTC)