That Thing You Do! (1996)

Truly Dreadful Film

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Anyone who was in a band since the 60's should LOVE this movie. Also the quote by session musician Del Paxton (Billy Cobb) "Ain't no way to keep a band together. Bands come and go. You got to keep on playin', no matter with who" really hits home for me !!! Great Movie with perfect casting !!!

The title song for "That Thing You Do!" is so infectious that, even if the movie had nothing else to do, it still boasts a teflon song. For as often as its played through the course of the movie (and in your head after the credits roll), it's one weapons-grade toe-tapper. But that's not all the movie has to offer; far from it. There's a can-do optimism permeating this thing from start to finish, not to mention a sense of playfulness. And you can't help but be swept right along with the band on their meteoric rise to the big time (not even their implosion is enough to sour things). Talk about hitting it out of the park for a first-time directing gig, this is about as well-engineered a feel-good movie gets. The cast is great, the pacing's snappy and it all adds up to one very entertaining movie.8/10

A Pennsylvania band scores a hit in 1964 and rides the star-making machinery as long as it can, with lots of help from its manager (Tom Hanks).There is nothing really new here. A cast of fresh-faced kids (and a young Liv Tyler), rising up in stardom, and stumbling along the way. We all know what happens if we let fame get to our heads and we leave our friends behind.What makes this film stand out is the catchy tune. Even though they play it a dozen times throughout the film, it never really gets old. Had the song been not as good, the film would drag and certainly would not having the staying power it does. (Not unlike "Eddie and the Cruisers", which is very much anchored by its "Dark Side" song.)

I had seen this movie a number of years ago but didn't remember much about it, so I saw it again today on DVD from my public library. I was a college Freshman in 1963/64, when the Beatles were first gaining popularity on this side of the pond, and this movie fairly accurately recreates that period, the way people dressed, and how teenagers reacted when seeing their pop idols live in concert.The story grabs hold of a theme I am very fond of pondering, both in real life and in fiction stories. That theme is the relative randomness of our lives, the things that happen, and then how we react to those random events. If we look at random events in our own lives, we can see how certain unexpected things shaped who we are today.In this movie a group of high school friends like to make music, one of them writes songs and is the featured singer. He has written "That Thing You Do" and they are about to perform it in a local small-potatoes contest. But the drummer, horsing around by showing the bass player how to jump over parking meters, falls and breaks his arm right before the contest.Now that is the "random event", and it leads them to ask another guy in town, who is a good drummer, to sit in for that one gig, so that they will still have a chance to win the competition. Then comes the rest of the influence of that "random event", the drummer own his own (this is important) decides to beat out a much faster tempo. It is this faster tempo that makes "That Thing You Do" a hit with the audience, attracts the attention of an agent, gets them a record, gets them a contract, puts them on tour, and has their hit rise towards the top of the charts.If their original drummer had not broken his arm, they would have just remained an ordinary band. Well as the story progresses they experience all the growing pains of sudden fame, and conflicting priorities among the members of the group. Tom Hanks directed, has a part as a record label agent, and he even wrote many of the songs. Tom Everett Scott who was in his mid-20s is very good as the replacement drummer, Guy Patterson. Liv Tyler, still a teenager was Faye Dolan who ended up traveling with the band. Her boyfriend was Johnathon Schaech as Jimmy who wrote the song and sang lead vocals. Steve Zahn was the crazy member Lenny, and Ethan Embry, also a teenager, was T. B. Player the unreliable bass player. Another teenager just starting her career was Charlize Theron as Tina in a fairly small part, as a flaky girlfriend who dumps Guy after an appointment with a handsome dentist. Plus young Giovanni Ribisi as Chad , the original drummer who breaks his arm.All in all a fairly pleasant movie.