Sam Mraovich’s 2002 movie Ben & Arthur was panned by critics and audiences alike, but more than a decade later, the filmmaker explains why he deems it a success.
Sam Mraovich's 2002 movie Ben & Arthur was deemed "the worst gay movie of all time," and it earned a prominent spot on Rotten Tomatoes' list of "25 Movies So Bad They're Unmissable."
"If Tommy Wiseau's The Room is the overwrought, melodramatic and self-pitying heterosexual camp classic of choice, then Sam Mraovich's Ben & Arthur is its gay equivalent," wrote Rotten Tomatoes' Michael Adams. "Every scene, every line, every hissy fit is simultaneously hilariously amateur and hysterically fever-pitched."
But there's no need to tell Mraovich, who wrote, directed, produced, co-edited, scored, and starred in Ben & Arthur, what's wrong with the movie: He's the first to volunteer that information.
"I left a tripod in the background," the now 38-year-old Mraovich told BuzzFeed News in a recent phone interview. "And the airplane wasn't even a real plane for passengers. I think it was a Fed Ex plane. And I got my locations mixed up, too, in the editing process, where the actors were supposed to be going to Vermont, and there were palm trees in the area."
Of course, Mraovich wasn't the only one to notice the mistakes. They're part of what's transformed Ben & Arthur from a tiny, low-budget indie to a notorious disaster.
"The film was destined to have some mistakes," Mraovich said. "I definitely think the mistakes have helped incredibly to publicize the film, by all means. So maybe I am glad that they happened because there sure is a lot of talk about it. And when people are talking about your creative project, that's always good, even if it's bad."
"Looking back," he added, "the mistakes helped publicize the thing, just like when Janet Jackson's boob flopped out."
