That Thing You Do! - A Movie Review

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That Thing You Do! was released in 1996 and is an American music comedy, starring, written and directed by Tom Hanks. It's the story of The Wonders and the rise and fall of another one-hit wonder. CAST Tom Hanks - Mr. White Tom Everett Scott - Guy Patterson Liv Tyler - Faye Dolan Johnathon Schaech - Jimmy Mattingly Steve Zahn - Lenny Haise Ethan Embry - Bass Player Charlize Theron - Tina Obba Babatunde - Lamarr Giovanni Ribisi - Chad Chris Ellis - Phil Horace Alex Rocco - Sol Siler Bill Cobbs - Del Paxton Peter Scolari - Troy Chesterfield Rita Wilson (Tom Hanks' wife) - Margueritte It's the summer of 1964 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Guy Patterson, a wanna-be jazz drummer, works at his father's appliance store, Patterson's. One day Jimmy and Lenny ask him to fill in for their drummer, Chad, who broke his arm. In a meeting of the band members they pick a name for the group...The Oneders (pronounced "wonders"). The group enters a talent show and is on stage ready to play. Instead of keeping time for a ballad, Guy picks up the pace on the drums; and the group is forced to sing an up-tempo version of "That Thing You Do!". At first the boys are upset with Guy; but the crowd goes wild; and the Oneders win the competition. A man approaches them with a paying gig at his Italian restaurant, Villapiano's, "I gotta have 'ya"; and the group accepts. The next step for the group is to cut a record. Guy's uncle produces church music; and the guys record their songs in the church and sell the 45 rpm records at each appearance. Phil Horace, a talent promoter, hears "That Thing You Do!" and wants to sign the group. He promises to get the record "serious airtime" or he'll tear up the contract. Lenny says, "I'm signing. We're all signing." and the boys are on their way to stardom. If you want to know what happens next, you'll have to watch the movie. I don't remember how many times I've seen this movie; but it's a lot. Everything about this movie is perfect -- the casting, the characters, the 60's vibe, the music, the clothes and the other Play-Tone acts...and for you Tom Hanks' fans, he shines as usual in this movie. There are several references to the Beatles in this movie which you may or may not catch...one of them being that they first chose a name that was a misspelling of the actual name -- Oneders, Wonders...Beatles, beetles. The music in this movie is great. "That Thing You Do!" will stick in your brain and not want to leave. In addition to releasing the movie to the public on DVD (also available now on Blu-ray), they released a CD of the movie soundtrack which is well worth the price. I was really hoping that they would make a sequel to this movie. Why not make a sequel of a good movie for a change? Regardless, you will enjoy this movie again and again; and if you're a Baby Boomer of the 60s, you'll enjoy it even more. This movie is rated PG. Photo Credit: Pixabay