We all know the deal with him. He's considered the "renaissance man" of Hollywood. Actor, director, screenwriter, painter, performance artist, video artist, fiction writer, poet, stud muffin, man-with-RZCES (Rene Zellweger Closed Eyes Syndrome), and more! He's the epitome of "love him or hate him". You either love that he is "sooooo good at art stuff" or hate that he is "soooo undeserving of people deeming him as guy who is good at art stuff".
What exactly has Franco been doing? Well, while being a famous actor in the biz, he ended up reenrolling at UCLA for his degree in creative writing. Then asked NYU if he could grace them with his presence as an MFA film student, but i guess Columbia was all like, "Franco, y u no want study here?" so Franco being the selfless giver that he is was all like "okay Columbia give me a masters in creative writing". However, it seems as though Columbia wasn't good enough at honing Franco's writing craft cause he needed even more colleges to throw MFAs at him. He decided to see Brooklyn College on the side of Columbia (which was already being seen on the side of NYU) and occasionally hooked up with Warren Wilson College for some extra help in poetry.
See, here is where I am confused. I get why NYU and Columbia accepted Franco in the first place (because they're both bullshit universities that care more about money and reputation than anything else and what better way to get both those things than from Mr.RichandFamous himself) but if i was the hoity toity institutions they are i'd be offended that Franco was seeking outside help, and from state colleges no less! Franco is making a mockery of what it is to be an arts student. The liberal arts get a lot of flack already, and now franco is essentially saying that getting an MFA from Columbia is as easy to get as it is for him to get a handy under his desk from a hot classmate before class starts (then again i doubt it's that difficult for any guy to get a handy from a girl who's studying creative writing at an Ivy League university).
But no, these schools let him do his thang and didn't complain. Franco must have seen this as an okay to apply for his PhD at Yale, and shockingly enough-they welcomed him with open arms! Whats the PhD for? Why, creative writing of course! And get this, he wants another PhD in the same thing, but this time from the University of Houston. A PhD in the same fucking thing. Why does anyone need two PhDs? Especially if they are for THE SAME FUCKING THING.
I'm sure Franco learns a lot of new fancy words from all his classes, but has he ever learned the word 'excess'? Too much man, too much pointless multiple degrees that are ultimately all for the same thing.
And therein lies the real issue. There isn't a rule that says famous people can't go to college. In fact, David Duchovny was a PhD student at Yale too (but has yet to complete his work for the degree). However, there is a sort of unwritten rule about doing all these things at the same time. It's impossible. I can barely handle being a double major at one university, and that's just me speaking as plain old student, and not as soap opera star and movie actor. It's the simultaneity and selfish need to do all these things for the sake of a degree that makes Franco go from "talented, attractive young guy" to "ridiculously undeserving attractive young guy". Yes, there are many other public figures who have accomplished just as many things, but they never did it in such an "in your face manner" and so quickly. Usually, doing all these things and doing them well takes a lot of time, and a lot of effort. It's like this. While other multi-faceted artists work on one thing at a time, struggle to get the respective community they're working for's approval, Franco just jacks off all his bullshit-jizz onto everything at once and calls it a day.
If that isn't enough to convince you Franco's just being a douche consider this too. He's fucking famous, well-connected, and rich. When his NYU film class assigns a project his fellow students struggle with their limited resources to find actors, filming locations, etc. while Franco just says, "well i'm hosting SNL this week so why not just document that!" Yeah of course that's going to be awesome. You're able to get Amy Poehler on your homework project while some other kid without this advantage is stuck interviewing some guy who once saw Mick Jagger at a McDonalds.
Then again, maybe James Franco is not being a douche. I'm no expert or anything (although i did read the first two chapters of Psychology for Dummies in the eleventh grade) but i have a feeling there might be some deeper emotional issues with Franco. I mean think about it, the guy has this undeniable urge to stay busy. Why? Why this urge to always be doing something? Honestly, does James have any friends? You know like, real friends? I want to know. Do you think Franco might just be so lonely and feel so alienated to the point where he needs these entitlements in order to distract himself from admitting to such feelings? If this, or something like it, is the case then i predict Franco eventually going fuck-off crazy in the near future. He'll be the next Gary Busey, not the next Orson Welles. So oblivious to the fact that he can't possibly be as talented as he says he is,and so eager to prove all the haters wrong (which will never happen) I feel like some meltdown is bound to happen.
Or am i totally off? Am i doing just what every institution he works with does? Am i giving him too much credit just because he's famous?
