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“No one inspired me, I inspired myself.”  This is the proud proclamation of one Tommy Wiseau, the writer, director and star, really the entire brains behind The Room.  Maybe you’ve heard about this cult film and the crazy things people do when they see it.  Maybe you’ve heard someone quote the movie casually saying, “Oh. Hi, Mark.”  Or perhaps you remember the billboard of The Room featuring only Tommy’s pensive and pained expression looking down upon the traffic on Highland Avenue just south of Hollywood.  It was in Los Angeles, that this phenomenon was born when midnight screenings of the movie erupted in chaos… much of it planned.

If you haven’t heard, The Room is on the surface a simple tale… a melodrama filled with love, loss and pain… and it’s absolute hilarious.  The best way to describe the tone is to imagine if someone remade Sophie’s Choice with the same script, but as a comedy.  The film was originally released years ago, but is still playing in theaters to sold out crowds every weekend who participate in tossing spoons and footballs and shouting at the screen in audience participation the likes of which have not been seen since The Rocky Horror Picture Show.  On first viewing, one might dismiss The Room as just a bad romance with laughable performances… but what is often overlooked is that bad films are usually not entertaining or even fun to watch.  On the entertaining scale, The Room may be the greatest movie ever made since… Citizen Kane.

Through his thick accent, Tommy explains the universal appeal, “It relates to relationships, drug issues, it relates to the real world, that’s why it connects with people.”  People are not just seeing the movie, they are going to see it more than 25 times… and as someone who has seen it a mere 10 times, it gets better with each viewing.  “It’s a process of discovery, so each time you see it, you discover something else.  It’s fun,” says Tommy.

The appeal of The Room comes with its dediction to being completely sincere.  It’s real and affecting and funny all at once. There’s a scene in which Tommy’s character loses it and utters a now legendary line, “You’re tearing me apart Lisa!”  Audiences howl or cry during this scene, but what was actually going through Tommy’s mind when he said this? “We all go through relationship issues… etcetera, etcetera.”  At this, Tommy tends to clam up.  There’s real pain there, which can only explain his mindblowing, over-the-top performance.

While the people may love the experience, some critics have been downright vicious.  “A lot of people maybe they don’t want to give credit to The Room maybe because maybe they have some other agenda,” Tommy says defending the merits of his film, “but if you are honest with yourself maybe you would give it some credit.”

Tommy is clearly sensitive to his critics, whose merciless bashing seem to have left real scars on this creative visionary. “If you are bashing The Room, be honest.  You may not like it, fine.”  But in spite of his critics, Tommy Wiseau has many fans in Hollywood.  He was recently featured in an entire episode of Adult Swim’s show Tim & Eric Awesome Show Great Job which he guest directed.

Tommy Wiseau is at Comic Con not only to promote the limited theatrical screenings of The Room and the latest DVD release.  And at Comic Con he is mobbed… Tommy is a mega star to those in the know.  The Room is one of those movies that acts as a litmus test, you either get it or you don’t.  And those that don’t, can suck it.

Words by Chris Gore, photos by Dustin Downing

One of the greatest two minutes in cinema history from The Room, the infamous, “Oh, hi Mark” scene.

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