|
Just burned through this book in a few days, which is totally unusual of me. I couldn't put it down. Holy poo poo, I haven't been this entertained and creeped out by anything for quite a while. The part towards the end about Tommy's question to the florist concerning her old countertop fixture doggie was the funniest thing I've read since forever, had me laughing my rear end off for a good couple of minutes. It was a welcome comic relief after all the preceding weirdness and ominousness. All throughout the book I couldn't decide whether I should admire Greg Sestero for tolerating the childish whims and abusiveness of this utter creep and standing by him as his presumably only true friend, or be angry at him for remaining such a passive punching bag a lot of the time and enabling Tommy's infantile tantrums and behavior. I'm still not sure – I would need to know a lot more about their current relationship to decide what I think about this whole warped friendship and the author's attitude. All in all, an absolutely fascinating book, but to me it turned out to be a lot different from what I expected after seeing the movie – more sad and tragic than comical overall, apart from a couple of genuinely hilarious episodes. I'm going to recommend this to everyone. E: At the point where the book mentions Mark's "Leave your stupid comments in your pocket!" outburst, it occurred to me that maybe this bizarre expression could be a hint towards finding out where exactly Tommy came from – maybe in some Eastern European language this is an existing turn of phrase...? It's not familiar to me, that's for sure. I can vouch for it definitely not being a Hungarian saying 
poronty fucked around with this message at 13:48 on Nov 10, 2013 |
#
?
Nov 10, 2013 13:39
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 4, 2024 06:56 |
|
|
I just finished this. I read the whole thing from start to finish in less than a day, which is something I almost never do. I think I've only done that with 2 or 3 books before in my life. And being a huge fan of The Room and having seen it multiple times and having experienced it in theaters before, this resonated with me a lot. Something I had no idea about, though: so, The Room is essentially Tommy's autobiography? That whole scene in Peter's office about how he came to meet Lisa, with him coming to San Francisco and living at the YMCA and having a $2,000 check that he couldn't cash because it was from an out of state bank...that all really happened to him?  That revelation is especially jarring when you think about how enraged and guarded he became when Greg ad libbed the part about the girl winding up in a hospital on Guerrero Street because that's the street that Tommy's San Fransisco apartment was on and he didn't want any details about his personal life getting out. Maybe when he said he was going to reshape himself before he fell out of contact with Greg for months, he became okay with including details of his personal life in his work? Tommy's whole backstory is fascinating. And we still never find out his actual birthdate. His ID said 1968, but Greg's family member that had government connections said that was incorrect. He could be at least a decade older than that! But he certainly doesn't act it, aside from calling Greg "young man" pretty often, but even if he's just as old as his ID said, he'd still have a considerable amount of years on Greg so that makes sense. Tommy seriously seems like an alien. Pretty much everything he says and does doesn't seem like it's of this planet. It's crazy how final cut of The Room actually ended up being a heavily filtered look into Tommy's mind. Had it not been edited as it was, it would have been completely loving bonkers, which anyone who's seen The Room before knows is a bold statement to make. Rageaholic fucked around with this message at 10:40 on Nov 12, 2013 |
|
#
?
Nov 12, 2013 10:38
|
|
|
Oh...my...god... If you want to see what may be the funniest thing Greg Sestero can ever do...well.... Remember the other year when after Doug Walker's Nostalgia Critic series got into a tussle with Tommy Wiseau over his review of The Room? REVENGE COMPLETE. Seriously, watch that all the way through until you hit the gigantic loving payoff.
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2013 05:52
|
|
|
Ensign_Ricky posted:REVENGE COMPLETE. Or, if you're like me and hate that guy (with those glasses), skip to about 28 minutes in.
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2013 16:40
|
|
|
precision posted:Or, if you're like me and hate that guy (with those glasses), skip to about 28 minutes in. Make that 30 minutes in, unless you want to be annoyed by that guy (with those glasses) needlessly for 2 minutes.
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2013 16:47
|
|
|
Just finished reading this book a couple of days ago. Holy poo poo, it's a lot more tragic than I imagined a book about The Room would be.
|
|
#
?
Jan 1, 2014 00:26
|
|
|
Is the movie available on Netflix or Amazon? I've never seen it but this thread sold me on it and the book.
|
|
#
?
Jan 1, 2014 16:36
|
|
|
andrew smash posted:Is the movie available on Netflix or Amazon? I've never seen it but this thread sold me on it and the book. You can get it in disc format from both Amazon and Netflix. It's not of streaming yet, but it's worth the $8 or $33 depending on the version you by.
|
|
#
?
Jan 1, 2014 17:10
|
|
|
After reading the book do yourself a favor and watch Rebel Without a Cause and imagine actors from the Room playing those roles. It really is like the room is that movie but ran through google translate two times, much like Tommy himself.
|
|
#
?
Jan 1, 2014 17:25
|
|
|
poronty posted:E: At the point where the book mentions Mark's "Leave your stupid comments in your pocket!" outburst, it occurred to me that maybe this bizarre expression could be a hint towards finding out where exactly Tommy came from – maybe in some Eastern European language this is an existing turn of phrase...? It's not familiar to me, that's for sure. I can vouch for it definitely not being a Hungarian saying
|
|
#
?
Jan 1, 2014 21:28
|
|
|
SurreptitiousMuffin posted:I thought he was Czech. That's what the name 'Thomas (Thomasz?) Wisseau' always struck me as, and his accent sounds a lot like a group of Czech guys I know, if you factor in Wisseau's (almost certain) brain damage accounting for the slur and the like. It's possible, but it's explained in the book that it's uncertain if Tommy Wiseau is his given name.
|
|
#
?
Jan 1, 2014 22:08
|
|
|
SurreptitiousMuffin posted:I thought he was Czech. That's what the name 'Thomas (Thomasz?) Wisseau' always struck me as, and his accent sounds a lot like a group of Czech guys I know, if you factor in Wisseau's (almost certain) brain damage accounting for the slur and the like. I heard Steve Heisler on the How Did This Get Made?! podcast say that he's originally Polish, and if the hypothetical history in the book is at all accurate, after spending a significant amount of time in France, that could certainly muddy his accent to create the crazy accent we've all come to know and love.
|
|
#
?
Jan 4, 2014 08:17
|
|
|
This book is loving hilarious. Every single thing Tommy does just makes me laugh and shake my head.
|
|
#
?
Jan 5, 2014 03:36
|
|
|
DannyTanner posted:This book is loving hilarious. Every single thing Tommy does just makes me laugh and shake my head. Except the things that are borderline terrifying of course, right?
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2014 07:36
|
|
|
I burned through the book in a couple days, and what I kept thinking was, "If every single word of this was made up, I still wouldn't regret the time I spent reading it." I love that the six seconds of "I did naht hit her" took 3 hours to film.
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2014 08:17
|
|
|
Ensign_Ricky posted:Except the things that are borderline terrifying of course, right? Yeah, I feel bad for all the people he treats like poo poo but he's so absurd that sometimes I wonder if I'm being put on.
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2014 19:01
|
|
|
I gave this to my sister, a big Room fan, for Christmas. She tore through it, but I'm going to have to borrow it. I only got to read the first chapter, and was so freaked out I knew I'd have to read the whole thing. Shine on Wisseau.
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2014 21:40
|
|
|
ZorajitZorajit posted:I gave this to my sister, a big Room fan, for Christmas. She tore through it, but I'm going to have to borrow it. I only got to read the first chapter, and was so freaked out I knew I'd have to read the whole thing. Shine on Wisseau. Has there been any sort of reaction from Wisseau on the book?
|
|
#
?
Jan 6, 2014 21:42
|
|
|
I really wish it hadn't ended right before the premier, I _really_ wanted to know how the unsuspecting audience reacted. Leaving that up to my imagination doesn't seem right for nonfiction. But yeah I died right around the part about the Giggle Tent.
|
|
#
?
Jan 8, 2014 22:04
|
|
|
Is there any info on if this is going to have an audiobook version at some point?
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2014 22:13
|
|
|
NOTinuyasha posted:I really wish it hadn't ended right before the premier, I _really_ wanted to know how the unsuspecting audience reacted. Leaving that up to my imagination doesn't seem right for nonfiction. I would assume that they probably reacted the same as Greg's family. Horror, shock, hilarity.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2014 05:15
|
|
|
I just started reading this book after I was reminded of it by this thread, and I just got to the part where Tommy shows Greg his apartment in L.A. The "somebody's chicken" in a sing-song voice part is one of the most chilling things I've ever read. Y'all weren't kidding about there being a through-line of Tommy possibly being in love with Greg.
|
|
#
?
Jan 12, 2014 00:08
|
|
|
Beeez posted:I just started reading this book after I was reminded of it by this thread, and I just got to the part where Tommy shows Greg his apartment in L.A. The "somebody's chicken" in a sing-song voice part is one of the most chilling things I've ever read. Y'all weren't kidding about there being a through-line of Tommy possibly being in love with Greg. I got the impression that there may have even been some things that happened that spelled it out more explicitly, but that because Greg genuinely liked/likes/pities/cares about Tommy he didn't want to reveal certain things. I also got the impression that Greg might know quite a bit more about Tommy's life than he was willing to expose to the world.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2014 11:56
|
|
|
Yeah, I can buy most of the story Greg says Tommy has told him of his past, but I bet there's a lot more degradation we're not privy to, especially with all the emphasis the book places on mysterious old men taking a shine to Tommy, one of which is confirmed to have tried to convince Tommy to "suck him off". On one hand I respect them for not elaborating on every lurid detail because even someone as crazy and histrionic as Tommy deserves some privacy, but this book does make me even more curious about certain aspects of Tommy Wiseau's life. As creepy and manipulative and histrionic as he's portrayed, the book also made me pity Tommy a lot more in a weird way. It really does seem like, at least at the time the book is discussing, Greg was the only person rescuing Tommy from complete loneliness.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2014 21:49
|
|
|
Yea yea possibly bisexual, has an incredibly creepy look to him... BUT DO YOU THINK IT'S TRUE THAT TOMMY WISEAU ORDERS A GLASS OF HOT WATER WHEN HE EATS AT RESTAURANTS!?!?! That is so creepy-rear end serial killer behavior.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2014 22:26
|
|
|
It's too bizarre to not be true.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2014 22:45
|
|
|
I ran a book/convenience store in a graduate center for a few years and it was not uncommon for people from SE Asia and eastern Europe to pay me for a cup and just fill it up with hot water to drink (something about helping digestion or calming the stomach, maybe?). A little weird, and Tommy is definitely a nut, but I guess there are places where people do that.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2014 23:27
|
|
|
Tumble posted:Yea yea possibly bisexual, has an incredibly creepy look to him... BUT DO YOU THINK IT'S TRUE THAT TOMMY WISEAU ORDERS A GLASS OF HOT WATER WHEN HE EATS AT RESTAURANTS!?!?! That is so creepy-rear end serial killer behavior. Didn't Greg say at some point in the book that Tommy didn't actually drink the water?
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2014 23:48
|
|
|
funkybottoms posted:I ran a book/convenience store in a graduate center for a few years and it was not uncommon for people from SE Asia and eastern Europe to pay me for a cup and just fill it up with hot water to drink (something about helping digestion or calming the stomach, maybe?). A little weird, and Tommy is definitely a nut, but I guess there are places where people do that. Now, see, if Tommy would just explain that to the waitress, then I'm sure it wouldn't be a problem. "It helps with my digestion." "Oh, okay." But that's a running thing through the book. Tommy doesn't like explaining why he does things, and gets angry when people question him.
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2014 00:08
|
|
|
precision posted:Didn't Greg say at some point in the book that Tommy didn't actually drink the water? Just in that first instance, he's mentioned doing it multiple times. But honestly, him ordering a glass of hot water all over the place and never actually drinking it would be even stranger.
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2014 01:05
|
|
|
Beeez posted:Just in that first instance, he's mentioned doing it multiple times. But honestly, him ordering a glass of hot water all over the place and never actually drinking it would be even stranger. "Well you see, when I do that, if they bring it, then I know that they treat the customers right, huh?"
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2014 10:12
|
|
|
Ensign_Ricky posted:"Well you see, when I do that, if they bring it, then I know that they treat the customers right, huh?" I'd buy that. Not too different from whatever that rock band is that demands a bowl of M&Ms backstage with the brown ones removed.
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2014 13:55
|
|
|
The Time Dissolver posted:I'd buy that. Not too different from whatever that rock band is that demands a bowl of M&Ms backstage with the brown ones removed. Except we know that he drinks the water, meaning he's just weird.
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2014 17:43
|
|
|
The Time Dissolver posted:I'd buy that. Not too different from whatever that rock band is that demands a bowl of M&Ms backstage with the brown ones removed. That was Van Halen back in the David Lee Roth days.
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2014 17:46
|
|
|
Tumble posted:Yea yea possibly bisexual, has an incredibly creepy look to him... BUT DO YOU THINK IT'S TRUE THAT TOMMY WISEAU ORDERS A GLASS OF HOT WATER WHEN HE EATS AT RESTAURANTS!?!?! That is so creepy-rear end serial killer behavior. Chinese friends of mine do this when we go out. I was told it was a cultural thing for them. Or are they serial killers, too? More research is required.
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2014 10:49
|
|
|
The Time Dissolver posted:I'd buy that. Not too different from whatever that rock band is that demands a bowl of M&Ms backstage with the brown ones removed. Evil Mastermind posted:That was Van Halen back in the David Lee Roth days. That actually served a practical purpose: it showed whether the promoter had read the other, more important, stipulations of their contract (promoters screwing over acts were much more common back then). If they walked and found no M&Ms or brown M&Ms, they immediately knew that there was a problem. Other acts saw this as a good, and efficient, idea and implemented variants of the "brown M&M clause" into their own contracts. Edit: Here's a link. Wow, surpising how close my post was to the wording of a portion of this article. How about that? Ghostpilot fucked around with this message at 11:09 on Jan 17, 2014 |
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2014 11:05
|
|
|
Ensign_Ricky posted:Except we know that he drinks the water, meaning he's just weird. I thought the book specifically says he orders it and never touches it throughout the entire night. Like the dinner at the beginning, the hot water is ordered, and Greg comments that Tommy never touched it the entire night they were there. Even with this book, I feel like we still know too little about him. I must know the origins of this money, but I suspect it's related to Street Fashions/real estate or being a beneficiary of a will.
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2014 12:19
|
|
|
Ok, I know people around here don't generally care for Doug Walker, but he did an interview with Greg that has some pretty interesting stuff in it. Worth checking out, I think.
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2014 21:54
|
|
|
Tonight I'm going to a combination Disaster Artist/The Room event at a local single screen theater. Greg's going to be there and doing a book reading/signing and there's going to be a documentary about the making of the book, then The Room is being shown after that at midnight and he'll be in attendance for that too and he'll probably have a Q&A like he did when he and Tommy were at this same theater a year ago for a showing of The Room. I'm pretty excited for it and I hope he has even more absurd stories to tell that didn't make it into the book 
|
|
#
?
Jan 17, 2014 22:00
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 4, 2024 06:56 |
|
|
They really need to make a film version of the book of the making of The Room. Not even kidding.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2014 00:41
|
|