An afternoon with Tommy and Greg

One of the best ways to pass a Sunday afternoon is by catching a film. It helps you relax and actually not think about Monday. One of the best places to watch a film in London is Prince Charles Cinema at the heart of Chinatown. With regular Disney films and musicals sing-alongs (yes! Disney!), great anniversary screenings and some amazing movie marathons (for example the one with The Lord of the Rings that I would love to go to), this is a must-visit place for every cinephile!

On the Sunday I’m talking about though we went for an entirely different reason; the screening of the worst film in history. I’m sure that by now everyone knows the film “The Room”, maybe because of the hype of The Disaster Artist, which was based on The Room, and Franco’s win in the Golden Globes, or maybe because you just like cult films. The Prince Charles Cinema screens The Room quite often and some times even Tommy Wiseau and Greg Sestero are in attendance! I believe watching the film is only a part of the reason I wanted to go; the other part is the short Q&A session just before the film!

Normally Tommy (and Greg) are asked about anything under the sun. How The Room came about, what his inspiration was and what his suggestions would be to aspiring producers or directors or actors (because Tommy did all that and many more in The Room) are among the questions frequently asked and Tommy replies in his unique way. And I say Tommy, because Greg is content in replying with only short sentences or even with just one word! And I say unique way, because last time he made a guy get to the floor and do some crunches! This time though everything was tamer. The only thing was again one guy wanting to do the infamous phrase “You are tearing me apart, Lisa!” with Tommy on the stage! In two words, brilliantly funny!

I don’t really want to say too much about the film, as I don’t want to spoil it for those unfortunate who haven’t seen it yet. My suggestion is to watch it with friends though; you will definitely have more fun in this case. Otherwise sometimes I want to just bang my head on the wall (or okay at the seat in front of me!), especially if I hear one more time Claudette saying to Lisa “honey, you cannot support yourself”. It has continuity errors and some very weird mistakes, for example when the door of Johnny and Lisa’s place is curiously  left open or you see the images of spoons (!) on a cupboard in their living room. However, and despite the fact that this is one bad film, you cannot help but laugh! Laugh at what you see happening on the screen and laugh with other people’s comments during the film! In my opinion, I think I had more fun listening to these little comments than actually watching it!

I would like to talk about different audience reactions, such as shouting “Go, go, go” when the Golden Gate Bridge is shot or counting aloud how many times the baseball is being tossed around or when external shots of San Francisco appear you shout “Meanwhile back in San Francisco”. However, the one that trumps all, the one that is the king of reactions is hurling spoons at the screen, whenever you hear someone yelling “spoons!” or you watch them on the screen! I could literally talk to you about the spoons all day long, but I will not do it!

So, the next time you want to watch something terribly bad, just go for The Room! You will not be disappointed! And if you are in the area, do visit Prince Charles Cinema and after that you can catch a coffee at nearby Coffee Island or something to eat at the numerous restaurants in Chinatown or at Dishoom. Even if you hate the film, you are going to have the best of time!

Prince Charles Cinema here For a comprehensive guide on all things The Room, please check this

Coffee Island here

Dishoom here