Everyone likes an underdog story. We root for the scrapper, the unbendable, the one who plants his roots like a tree by the River of Truth and says ‘no, you move’. We like the Cinderella Story. We like the U.S. beating Russia. We like miracles.

The Disaster Artist is the underdog tale for the movies. It takes us through the creation, filming and screening of what is considered the worst movie ever – The Room. We meet Greg – an actor in L.A. who makes a fateful friend with Tommy in an acting class. Right away, we know that Tommy is not an actor. They read monologues together and try to grab a piece of the dream that fuels a whole town. In the course of the movie, we see that there is something more to Tommy than what is apparent…almost sinister in its aspect. We watch the miracle splinter, we watch it bend, but we never see it break. As people who know what’s going to happen. We want to scream at Greg as he turns down a bit part in the show Malcom in the Middle – offered by Bryan Cranston, but Greg has to shave off the beard he grew, which would throw the movie off schedule. Rather than abandon the movie, and get a better chance at a career, he sticks to his guns. Miracles come in all shapes and sizes.

This movie is absolutely phenomenal. The acting is meticulously performed. James Franco’s performance is pitch perfect. Stick around for a “Wiseau-off” between Franco and the real Tommy Wiseau in an after credits scene. Not only are the perforances spot on, but the recreation of the movie The Room is eerie. Another post credit scene compares the The Disaster Artist’s performances of scenes in The Room. The care that it took to get every little movement, every little intonation down shows the dedication these actors had to the film.

The humor comes from the disconnect that Tommy has to, apparently, the entirety of reality. Seeming oblivious to the flaming chaos he creates, he forges ahead unflinching towards fame…or infamy if you look at it right. We see him try to act, and while he thinks he’s giving an Oscar winning performance, everyone else, and the audience, cringe with every syllable. We don’t know if he’s all-in crazy, or trying to prank the cast, and the audience in the process (rumors of money laundering aside). In a town that chews up the unwary, Tommy Wiseau punches his way down the esophagus and comes back up covered in juices proclaiming victory.

See this movie. See the after credits scenes, and if you ever doubt that your talents and skills will ever make an impact…remember – Only Nixon could go to China, and only Tommy Wiseau could make The Room.