So last week, even though it kind of felt like torture, I begged any readers living in one of the four cities where the strange new movie/internet trailer sensation After Last Season was screening starting last Friday to send in their impressions of the film if they just happened to be seeing it anyway. Here are their reactions to a movie that seems even more mysterious now than it did when it was just a trailer (and a video I found of a bunch of guys right after they saw the movie -- an After Last Season Parking Lot, if you will).
If you had told me a year ago that Charles Gibson would be reporting on the Amazing Cult Phenomenon That Is The Room, I would have said "Nahhh." But in yesterday's World News Webcast, he did just that! The Room is now THAT huge! Also, if you've been trying to ignore The Room, this report explains the movie and the cult around it pretty well. And do not miss the SECRET SURPRISE at the end, when one of Videogum's favorite actors talks about discovering The Room.
All you should know before watching the trailer for Tiptoes is that it's an ACTUAL MOVIE from 2003 and not some fake trailer from Tropic Thunder, and that it stars Kate Beckinsale, Matthew McConaughey...and Gary Oldman in "the role of a lifetime" walking around on his knees AS A DWARF. Introducing a bunch of pretty big-name actors' dirtiest little direct-to-DVD secret movie they never want anyone to know about: Tiptoes:
Since the March 20th NYC midnight screening of The Room sold out so fast, they've added another screening at the same theater, same time, same night. I guess I shouldn't have bought six tickets, but it's worth it if one day The Room and its many quotes and catchphrases become so ubiquitous that we can use them in casual conversation. Here is the trailer, if you still need any convincing:
This movie has been described as "The worst movie ever made," but the most accurate description is "The least boring movie ever made." If you missed out on tickets last week, get them now. I personally promise you will not stop talking about this movie, ever. (And if you need to catch up, here's our extensive (obsessive?) coverage of The Room.)
(If you don't know yet about The Amazing Cult Phenomenon That Is The Room, you are implored to catch up as soon as possible here and here.)
Now for everyone else: Oh, hi, The Room is coming to New York on Friday, March 20 at midnight and it's totally going to sell out any second, so if you live nearby, buy your ticket now and join other East Coast Room fanatics in the live The Room experience. (This isn't advertising, this is just real excitement.) To promote the screening, the organizers made a Facebook event page and put together a video of audience reactions to one of the monthly LA screenings, to which my only reaction is "Oh my god these people all like fifteen What am I doing with my life?":
Remember Fireproof, the Christian movie about one firefighter's quest to win back his wife's love after being dishonorable about internet porn that surprised art house snobs by becoming the top-grossing indie of 2008? The Christian Backdraft that even Kathie Lee made fun of Kirk Cameron about? Well, you can take it off your Ironic Movie Night Netflix list (everyone has one of those, right?), because here's a four minute video of all the "best" parts. I found that this viewing experience can be heightened by imagining a church full of hysterical laughter at the "funny" parts.
In the past week, I've shown The Room to three separate friends at three separate home screenings. I would normally be a little Roomed-out from that, but I will never get tired of the looks of wonder, discovery, awe, and ecstatic amusement on the cute little faces of my friends as they experience The Room for the very first time. In that way, owning a copy of The Room is exactly like being a kindergarten teacher, but with (slightly) fewer pee-pants incidents. After showing The Room to one friend, we came to the conclusion that a major studio needs to hire director Tommy Wiseau to write, produce, cast, star in, and direct a big-budget feature (Dark Knight sequel, maybe), and that the final product would go down in film history. This is not a joke: this is a really really really good idea (Brian Grazer's assistant, if you're checking his Google alerts, please pass this idea on.) But so far, despite Entertainment Weekly's recent discovery of The Room, nobody in Holllywood has come through with this Best Idea For A Movie Ever, so instead, Tommy's next project is a sitcom called Neighbors, and here is the unbelievable trailer.
I hate to be all "Did you see this week's Entertainment Weekly, with its four-page article about how all the comedy celebrities and Kristen Bell are obsessed with The Room, you know, that movie I wouldn'tshutupabout for the entire first week of Videogum's existence?" but I kind of have to on this one:
''I was at Paul Rudd's house a couple of years ago, and he said, 'You have to watch this,''' recalls Rudd's frequent collaborator and Role Models director David Wain. ''Within two minutes, I'm like, 'Okay, this is my favorite thing I've ever seen.' I've watched it over and over and over. We've had a lot of fun thinking which character we're going to play when we do our shot-for-shot remake.'
Now I understand that Entertainment Weekly can't just say "Here's an amazing thing," they have to say "Here's an amazing thing...that Kristen Bell likes," so I won't judge them for the severe lag time in covering this incredibly important cult phenomenon and in fact applaud their courage in being the first second mainstream magazine to do so, but if Kristen Bell's endorsement isn't enough, here are some clips from The Room that might show why this love-triangle melodrama by enigmatic mystery director/producer/star Tommy Wiseau is so very special.
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