The Room (film) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Room

Theatrical release poster

The Room is a 2003 independent romantic drama film written, directed, produced by, and starring Tommy Wiseau. It was Wiseau's directorial debut, and while the film is primarily centered on the melodramatic love triangle between an amiable banker (Wiseau), his fiance (Juliette Danielle), and his conflicted best friend (Greg Sestero), a significant portion of the film is dedicated to a series of unrelated subplots involving the friends and family of the main characters.

Entertainment Weekly has called The Room "the Citizen Kane of bad movies"[1] and a number of notable publications have labeled it as one of the worst films ever made.[2][3] Originally shown only in a limited number of California theaters, the film quickly developed a cult following as fans found humour in the film's bizarre storytelling and various technical and narrative flaws. Although Wiseau has retroactively characterized the film as a black comedy, audiences have generally viewed it as a poorly made drama, a viewpoint supported by some of the film's cast.[4][5] Within a decade of its premiere, the film was selling out showings around the United States and had inspired a video game, book, and traveling stage show.

Johnny is a successful banker who lives in a San Francisco townhouse with his fiance, Lisa. They share an intense relationship characterized by constant, passionate lovemaking. Despite this idyllic existence, Lisa has inexplicably become dissatisfied with her life, and one afternoon confides to her best friend Michelle and her mother Claudette that she finds Johnny boring. Although Michelle advises her to be grateful for what she has, and her mother counsels her that financial stability is more important than happiness, Lisa decides to seduce Johnny's best friend, Mark. Although he is initially reluctant, Mark gives in to Lisa's advances. Their affair continues through the remainder of the film, even though Mark appears reluctant at the outset of each sexual encounter and repeatedly tries to break off the relationship. Lisa, meanwhile, having come to the realization that she "wants it all", decides to stay with Johnny for financial support and the material goods he can provide her. As the wedding date approaches and Johnny's clout at his bank slips, Lisa alternates between glorifying and vilifying Johnny to her family and friends, both making false accusations of domestic abuse and defending Johnny against criticisms. Meanwhile, Johnny, having overheard Lisa confess her infidelity to her mother, attaches a tape recorder to their phone in an attempt to identify her lover.

Against the backdrop of Lisa and Mark's affair, numerous subplots involving secondary characters begin to develop: Denny, a neighboring college student whom Johnny financially supports and "loves like a son", has a mysterious run-in with a drug dealer named Chris-R, whom Johnny and Mark overpower and take to the police. Denny also lusts after Lisa, ultimately confessing to Johnny his attraction; once Johnny tells Denny that Lisa loves him as her friend, Denny resolves to propose to his own girlfriend. Johnny takes on a mysterious client at his bank whose identity he is sworn to protect. Claudette experiences real estate problems, bemoans failed relationships, and informs Lisa that she has breast cancer. Michelle and her boyfriend, Mike (Scott Holmes), break into[6] Johnny and Lisa's home to have sex. Peter (Kyle Vogt), a psychologist friend of Johnny's and Mark's, alternates between defending Lisa and assessing her as a sociopath, which results in Mark briefly trying to murder him. Each of these subplots receives little exposition, and none are ever resolved.

At a surprise birthday party for Johnny, Steven, a previously unseen friend of Lisa's and Johnny's, catches Lisa kissing Mark while the rest of the guests are outside and confronts her about the affair. Lisa expresses no remorse, while Mark angrily urges Steven not to tell anyone. Johnny announces to the guests that he and Lisa are expecting a child, only for Lisa to tell Steven and Michelle that she lied about it in order to "make it interesting". At the end of the evening, Lisa flaunts her affair in front of Johnny, who physically attacks Mark.

After the party, Johnny locks himself in the bathroom, prompting Lisa to make plans to leave him for Mark. Johnny finally comes out of the bathroom and retrieves the cassette recorder he attached to the phone, and listens to an intimate call between Lisa and Mark. Claiming that all of his friends have betrayed him, Johnny destroys his apartment and then kills himself with a pistol. Denny, Mark and Lisa discover Johnny's body sometime later. Mark and Denny blame Lisa for Johnny's death, with Mark declaring he does not love Lisa and never wants to see her again. Denny asks Lisa and Mark to leave, but they stay and comfort one another as the sound of the approaching sirens grow louder.[7]

In addition to being rife with continuity errors, the film has several plots, subplots and character details whose inconsistencies have been noted by critics and audiences. The Portland Mercury has pointed out that a number of "plot threads are introduced, then instantly abandoned".[8] One of the most notable examples of this is in an early scene, when halfway through a conversation about planning a birthday party for Johnny, Claudette off-handedly tells Lisa: "I got the results of the test back. I definitely have breast cancer."[9] The issue is casually dismissed and never revisited during the rest of the film.[8][9] In addition, the audience never learns the details surrounding Denny's drug-related debt to Chris-R or what led to their violent confrontation on the roof.[8][10]

Beyond being Johnny's friend, the character Mark receives no exposition; when he is first introduced he claims to be "busy" while sitting in a parked car in the middle of the day, with no explanation ever given as to his occupation or what he was doing.[6] Greg Sestero created a backstory for the character in which Mark was an undercover vice detective, which Sestero felt united several otherwise disparate aspects of Mark's character (such as his secretive behavior, clandestine marijuana use, mood swings, and his handling of the Chris-R incident);[6] however, Wiseau dismissed adding any reference to Mark's past to the script.[6] The makers of The Room video game would later introduce a similar idea as part of a subplot involving Mark's unexplained backstory.

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The Room (film) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia