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Nothing is ever as it seems when it comes to James Franco.

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Is he challenging the pillars of historical thought, orjust putting goo on stuff?

To quote his Tommy Wiseau brushing off an inquiry inThe Disaster Artist, whos to say?

Everyone addresses Prince as Prince, which eventually starts to feel equivalent to the character being named David Bowie.

It is distracting, and the least of the films problems.

This motion picture is, to employ a critical parlance, a lot.

(Unless, of course, this utter creative failure is merely part of another high-concept stunt.)

At the heart of all of James Francos most perverse art could only be James Franco.

Of particular note is self-fashioned auteur Franco sharing directorial credit with Cheung.

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, Franco to Franco.