VERSUS THE SCARECROW EPISODE TWELVE: Worst. Movie. Ever. I decided to challenge myself and really open the doors of my film knowledge and take on “The Scarecrow Video Movie Guide”. It’s 808 pages of movies and movie reviews from some of the most knowledgeable movie people you don’t know. It’s a book put together by a staff that praises, and destroys, some of our favorites and not so favorites. You can read the rest of my series here.
Just a quick refresher: each episode, I’m going to tackle three films from three different categories. Two films will be films I’ve never seen before and one will be one I’ve seen before or own. For the new films, well, new to me, I’m going to review them like a typical FTS review using the TOAST Rating system. But, for the films I’ve seen, I’m going give a quick paragraph or two about why I like or don’t like the film. We’ll try to include the poster and trailer for each film. “….and here. We. Go!”
What really constitutes a bad movie? What some see as totally unbearable and unwatchable, others see as a cult classic that is so bad it’s good, and they flock in droves to see it. In this episode I’ll be looking across the spectrum at classically bad films like Plan 9 From Outer Space, universally panned films like Battlefield: Earth, and I reflect on a film that’s so bad, guilty pleasure is an understatement.
A Relfection on The Room (2001)
The Room is the Shakespeare of bad film. It’s one of the more recognized bad films and it’s developed such a following, that the director and one of the actors have begun to tour the film. They take it to theatres all over the world, hold Q&As and participate in the audience participation aspect. The Room is one of the worst, but, it’s become a big guilty pleasure of mine. I first heard about it at a local theatre in a city also known as the Crescent City. I went to check out a midnite screening and the first time I went it was already sold out. So I knew, next time it’s announced, I’m buying a ticket way in advance. I get my ticket and go the theatre and what I saw on the screen was a snapshot into the life of this guy Johnny (Actor, Writer, Director Tommy Wiseau) and his crumbling relationship with Lisa (Juliette Danielle) who is apparently tearing him apart. There is so much awful dialogue, from the way they say “Oh Hi, ______” to each other in EVERY conversation or to the way they nonchalantly bring up a characters’ breast cancer or the fact that one of their friends is having a run in with a drug dealer. On a rooftop. In the middle of San Francisco. And somehow, despite being a few floors down, they’re able to hear him and intervene.
Seeing the film in theatres added a whole new level of appreciation. Shouting dialogue in between sentences, throwing spoons at the screen, and people actually stood up and threw a football around while the characters in the film did the same. I’m pretty sure everyone was high. I’ll throw this onto my Netflix queue every so often when I’m in the mood for bad film. Every time it arrives, it’s like seeing an old friend that you miss dearly. I haven’t bought it on DVD yet because I’m still holding out for a BluRay release. Yup, I’m that type of person.
You can watch The Room by yourself, but watching it with friends is highly recommended.
You can read the rest of episode 12 where I reviewed Plan 9 From Outer Space and Battlefield: Earth. If you’re interested in more, you can find the rest of the Versus The Scarecrow series here.