Category Archives: Cult Films

The Room: When Bad Movie Means Great Cinema

I know, I too often gripe about bad films, and how they are relentlessly tearing apart the fabric of good, intelligent, filmmaking.

Having said that, “The Room,” a disaster of a film, might just be one of the most rewarding film watching experiences you’ll ever have. Why is it that I’m recommending such a bad film? Quite simply, it achieves the rare feat of being so bad that its actually good.
Before delving into details, it helps to have some background on the making of the film. It was the first (and to date, only) feature made by Tommy Wiseau, who also wrote and stars in the film. “The Room” had a $6 million dollar budget. Apparently, Wiseau raised most of that money selling leather jackets. It also looks like more money was put into the opening credits than in the entire story itself. In reality, much of the budget was spent on a ridiculous billboard campaign.
I can’t say this for a fact, but it seems almost evident that the film’s editor was asleep throughout production and the studio executives who let it be made were likely on crack. Among its many problems, “The Room” contains so many scenes that have absolutely no value to the film. There are characters and important situations that are brought up and then never mentioned again. The dialogue is cliche and incredibly straightforward. In fact, Wiseau can’t even figure out how to use cliches properly (for instance, the placing of “love is blind”). The acting is emotionless and artificial. The camera is usually shaky and there are way too many unnecessary cuts to stock images of the San Francisco skyline.
I should be listing all these criticisms in a very angry tone. However, I feel a delighted one makes much more sense. That’s because “The Room” is the midnight movie of our generation to remember. The 1950s might’ve had Ed Wood and “Plan 9 From Outer Space,” but we have Tommy Wiseau and “The Room.”
There is no doubt you’ll enjoy the film so much because you’ll be laughing at it. Sometimes, that’s what can make an extremely bad drama an extremely bad thing. Usually, a film is bad because it turns out to be the opposite of what it intended. For example, “Gigli” was supposed to be a dark comedy. Instead, it turned out to be a dark drama. “The Room” is meant to be a tragedy “with the passion of Tennessee Williams.” Instead, its a passionless laughfest.
Still, what truly makes the room a cult classic is the eccentricity behind the auteur himself, Tommy Wiseau. In one scene, he tries to emulate James Dean by proclaiming “You’re tearing me apart Lisa!” In a later scene he destroys his bedroom bit by bit, a scene that is so clearly inspired by the destruction of Susan Alexander Kane’s bedroom during the climax of “Citizen Kane.” Of course, Wiseau’s thick, French accent sounds nothing like Dean, and the destruction of the bedroom scene is nowhere near as heartbreaking as the way Orson Welles filmed it. In both instances, they are flat out hilarious.
Could this be why in a way “The Room” is more than just a flat out bad movie. Despite how horribly made it is, it’s so hard to hate because it feels inspired. You can sense the filmmaker was striving to show his unique vision but ultimately failed at it, much to the delight of audiences across America. All of this is more than can be said for a film like, say, “New Moon,” which is thrown together in too quick a time for the sole purpose of commercial success.
I don’t think this post can really do “The Room” justice. You’re just going to have to rent it yourself or better yet, get to a midnight screening.
Here are a few great sample clips:

Boondock Saints: Why I’m Not Part of the Cult

Nine years ago, a film called “The Boondock Saints” opened on just five screens. At the end of its theatrical run, it had grossed a mere $25,812. Nobody knew then, that a phenomenon was in the making.

Today, Troy Duffy’s tale of two Irish brothers wreaking havoc on Boston’s criminal underworld has become one of the defining cult films of the decade. To date, its grossed more than $40 million on DVD and can currently be seen in over 500 different t-shirts at your local Hot Topic. Now, it’s getting a sequel called “Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day.”
But is this too much? “Boondock Saints” is entertaining, for sure. It’ll make you laugh and mostly keep you interested for its entire running time. Plus, it features Willem Dafoe at his absolute creepy best. But does it really deserve this cult?
Well, most of the great cult films are the trashiest ones (think “Rocky Horror Picture Show” and anything John Waters does). However, this film’s level of escapist trashiness feels uninspired. It felt like Duffy was trying his absolute best to imitate Tarantino. At some points, it’s all too obvious (you probably won’t laugh as hard at the cat getting his head shot off once you see the Marvin scene from “Pulp Fiction”). Mainly, however Tarantino is the hardest director to emulate because his style comes from decades of watching thousands of movies no one has ever heard of.
But I digress. The real problem with “Boondock Saints” is the story itself. Couldn’t Duffy have made the religious references a little more subtle? “Donnie Darko,” one of the great cult classics of the decade, was a film that explored the possible existence of God. Yet, you wouldn’t have known that until after you thought about it for a while. Plus, I find it impossible to take sympathy for anyone who believes murder is justified just because they believe God told them to do it. Perhaps this film is just plain overrated.
Maybe I just haven’t seen the movie enough. Or maybe I’m just one of those people who simply don’t get it. That’s what a cult film is: some get it, and some don’t. When I look for a good cult classic, I look for a film that penetrates your mind so much and spawns so many questions. In that light, the likes of “Donnie Darko” and “Blue Velvet” work for me. Or, I look for a film that transcends reality and forces you to embrace your darkest, guiltiest pleasures. In that light, “Scarface” works for me.
While those three films are constantly commented on on IMDB message boards or turned into useless merchandise, there’s more too them. They sit in your head, they make you question the very reason you go to the movies in the first place. And I guess that means I still really can’t answer that question.
I wish Troy Duffy best luck with this sequel and other films in the future. If he hopes to make something better than “Boondock Saints” there’s one thing he should remember: a great film (or great cult classic, for that matter) should be something to chew on, and not just full of cool quotes to put on t-shirts.
Now “Boondock Saints” fans please tell me: what do you enjoy about this film so much? Am I missing something?