Tulane University The best worst movie ever made
December 03, 2014 11:00 AM Mary Cross [email protected]
Get your tickets early for The Prytania Theatre"s special presentation of The Room with appearances by Tommy Wiseau. (Photo by Paula Burch-Celentano)
It"s been called the Citizen Kane of awful films. The Room is both a cinematic disaster and an unforgettable audience experience.
Since its original 2003 run, the film"s faithful cult following has celebrated its countless acting, script and soundtrack flaws. On Friday (Dec. 5) and Saturday (Dec. 6), The Prytania Theatre will commemorate the film"s anniversary by hosting screenings with appearances by bizarre director-screenwriter-actor Tommy Wiseau.
“Whether you're screaming back at the screen or throwing spoons, it never gets old to have a good laugh at the best worst movie ever made!”—Paige
Tulane University | New Orleans | 504-865-5210 | [email protected] Tulane University Brunet, manager of The Prytania Theatre
After the screenings, scheduled for 10 p.m. and midnight each night, Wiseau will premiere his nonsensical new sitcom The Neighbors.
“Wiseau will be doing his intro as well as Q&A before the film. He will be selling and autographing merchandise before both screenings,” said Prytania Theatre manager Paige Brunet.
Set in a painfully obvious green screen-generated San Francisco, the melodramatic plot revolves around a love triangle between Johnny, clumsily played by Wiseau, his fiancée and his best friend.
“We have been doing screenings of The Room for about 5 years now. The film has gained a lot of popularity ⦠especially with James Franco"s recent interest in the film,” said Brunet.
Franco plans to direct an adaptation of actor Greg Sestero"s 2013 book The Disaster Artist, a tell-all of the chaotic making of The Room.
“It really is a movie experience unlike any other. It"s interactive,” said Brunet.
Challenging the conventions of polite theater behavior, The Room is a distant cousin of films that encourage raucous audience participation, like The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
In an avalanche of falling cutlery, the audience ritualistically sends plastic spoons soaring toward the screen whenever a conspicuously framed photo of a spoon appears in a shot.
Audiences also routinely shout their favorite lines. The pivotal moment when Wiseau howls, “You"re tearing me apart, Lisa!” in his otherworldly pseudo-European accent is a crowd favorite.
“It"s the most fun you can have watching a terrible movie!” said Brunet.
Tulane University | New Orleans | 504-865-5210 | [email protected]