That Thing You Do

THAT THING YOU DO! (12)
D: Tom Hanks
20th Century Fox/Clinica Estetico (Gary Goetzman, Jonathan Demme & Edward Saxon)
US 1996
108 mins

Comedy/Musical

W: Tom Hanks
DP: Tak Fujimoto
Ed: Richard Chew
Mus: Howard Shore; Adam Schlesinger, Tom Hanks & Mike Miccirillo

Tom Hanks (Mr. White), Tom Everett Scott (Guy Patterson), Liv Tyler (Faye Dolan), Johnathon Schaech (Jimmy Mattingley), Steve Zahn (Lenny Haise), Ethan Embry (T.B. Player)

In the 1960's, a (fictional) band with modest roots hit the big time with a little help from their manager.
Sanitised bubble gum pop is the flavour for this nostalgia trip when it could have been a better film had it focused on a real life band (The Beatles, perhaps). It feels like a pet project for Tom Hanks, who also wrote and directed, clearly pining for a simpler, more innocent time in his life. A couple of the songs are quite catchy, but the film itself is rather forgettable.
5/10
 
That Thing You Do
That Thing You Do