The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside the Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made

by Greg Sestero and Tom Bissell

"In 2003, an independent film called The Room--starring and written, produced, directed by a mysteriously wealthy social misfit of indeterminate age and origin named Tommy Wiseau--made its disastrous debut in Los Angeles. Described by one reviewer as "like getting stabbed in the head," the six-million-dollar film earned a grand total of $1800 at the box office and closed after two weeks. Ten years later, The Room is an international cult phenomenon. Thousands of fans wait in line for hours to attend screenings complete with costumes, audience rituals, merchandising, and thousands of plastic spoons. In The Disaster Artist, actor Greg Sestero, Tommy's costar and longtime best friend, recounts the film's long, strange journey to infamy, unraveling mysteries for fans--who on earth is "Steven," and what's with that hospital on Guerrero Street?--as well as the question that plagues the uninitiated: how the hell did a movie this awful ever get made? But more than just a laugh-out-loud funny story about cinematic hubris, The Disaster Artist is also a great piece of narrative nonfiction, a portrait of a mysterious man who got past every road block in the Hollywood system to achieve success on his own terms. Written with a gimlet eye but an open heart, The Disaster Artist is the hilarious and inspiring story of a dream that just wouldn't die"--

• ISBN10: 1451661207
• ISBN13: 9781451661200
• Publish Date: 1 October 2013
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Simon & Schuster
• Format: eBook
• Language: English

Reviews

[Witty and Sarcastic Bookclub]

https://wittyandsarcasticbookclub.home.blog/2019/10/21/the-disaster-artist-my-life-inside-the-room-the-greatest-bad-movie-ever-made-by-greg-sestero-and-tom-bissell/

This is one of those many books that I decided I wanted to read…then never got around to. I finally did, but only after seeing the movie by the same name. I rarely read a book after seeing the movie (I prefer to do it the other way around), but the movie was so well done, I was dying to read the book and compare. My wonderful husband kindly let me read his copy while he was also reading it.

The book did not disappoint. It’s about Tommy Wiseau, the writer, director, producer, and star of the cult classic movie The Room. I haven’t seen The Room, and I probably never will. Based on the few clips I’ve seen, it’s embarrassingly terrible. That’s what makes The Disaster Artist so compelling. As much of a train wreck as the movie was, it’s become a phenomenon. And Tommy Wiseau is fascinating. Despite having some serious scumbag moments, I couldn’t help but like him. He’s an incredibly private person, and there are so many mysteries to unravel. Where is he really from? How on earth does he have so much money to throw away on a passion project? How old is he actually?

Another interesting thing is the unlikely relationship between Greg Sestero, the co-author, and Tommy. It’s engrossing. One difference between The Disaster Artist book, and the movie by the same name, is that Dave Franco portrays Greg as a naive, kind, boy-next-door character. In the book, Greg came across as manipulative, self-centered, and lazy. I wonder if he’s aware that he seems that way.

This book will stay with you long after you finish it. I ended up looking up acting clips of the real Tommy Wiseau, searching to see what the main characters are doing now, and basically dissecting the entire thing over and over in my mind.

The verdict: Read this book! Put it on top of your “to be read” pile! Once you’ve read it, see the movie with James and Dave Franco. Tell me in the comments what your thoughts are. I would love to discuss this book!

[pamela]

I devoured this book in two days. It is an absolute must-read for any fan of The Room. It made me look at the film in a lot more detail and notice little things I hadn't before. I would have liked a bit more to be written on the actors careers post-Room-production, as a lot of the narrative is about Greg's career. But perhaps the fact that the narrative ends with The Room's premier is telling in its own way. Definitely recommended!