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That Thing You Do! Customer Reviews (25 - 27 of 36 Reviews)

Just OK, nothing special
I expected an entertaining movie judging by these reviews,
but I was disappointed. This is a trite, ordinary movie with a catchy song.

Captain Geech and the Shrimp Shack Shooters?
Hanks' writing and directorial debut is a hit. Four Erie, PA boys dream of stardom as they form a band called the Wonders. Talented as he is concieted lead singer Jimmy (Jonathon Schaech)is supported by his loyal and ever-loving girlfriend Faye (Liv Tyler)as he writes a touching ballad-type song called "That Thing You Do". Fortunately, the bands' drummer Guy "Shades" Patterson (Tom Everett Scott)accidentally picks the beat up a notch at a local band competition, and the crowd goes wild. They soon have a hit on their hands, and are being played on the radio. Enter manager (Hanks), who takes them on a tour for the record label Playtone, and turns them into stars. But Jimmy's growing ego and the bass player's small problem of having to report for Army duty pose a problem for the Wonders, even after their huge success on a variety show (the host is played by Hanks' longtime friend Peter Scolari, who starred with him in the sitcom "Bosom Buddies"). The most amazing thing about this movie is that no matter how many times you hear them play "That Thing You Do", you never get sick of it. Great cast, great script, and Steve Zahn as the bands guitarist is fabulous. DVD extras including the making of the movie (where you learn that the actors had to actually learn to play their instruments), the theatrical trailer, and 2 music videos, one for "That Thing You Do", and the other for "Dance With Me Tomight".

A fun movie, like the old Tom Hanks films.
Apparently the very-talented Tom Hanks is even more talented that we previously knew. Hanks has shown for some time that he is the closest modern actor to the late, great Jimmy Stewart in the superb naturalness of his acting in every movie genre from comedies to drama. But with this film he shows himself also to be a talented writer and director as well. The movie chronicles the rise and dissolution of a 1960's rock band which writes and records a single top-ten hit. Personally I've always wondered why so many early rock groups were one-hit-wonders. If a band is good enough to make one hit record, why isn't it capable of making several -- or at least a few -- more? The answer presented in this movie is that the one-hit Wonders self detruct due to a combination of ego conflicts, the pressures of success, and just the vagaries of circumstance. This movie could have been a mildly entertaining quasi-documentary. Instead, as written and directed by Hanks and played by the talented young cast he assembled -- the most outstanding of whom is Tom Everett Scott and Liv Tyler (who recently played the beautiful elf Arwen in The Lord of the Rings) -- this is a fun film from beginning to end. Frankly, I'm not much of a rock fan, but I loved this film. If you haven't seen it yet, please give yourself a treat and get this DVD.

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