No, THAT Thing! (That Thing You Do! (DVD))

Member Name: IainWear

Product:	That Thing You Do! (DVD)
Date:	22/10/05 (116 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It's a sweet heartwatming film

Disadvantages: That can be a bit twee and cliched at times

I remember, quite a few years ago, catching the premiere of "That Thing You Do" on one of Sky's Move channels, merely because it sounded pretty good, based on what the TV guide said about it. As is Sky's way, especially at that time in the late 1990s, they showed the same film in the same slot for about a week. Having been entranced on the first viewing, I sat down and watched it on about four of those seven nights. I hadn't seen it since, but it never totally faded from my mind.

Set in 1964, "That Thing You Do" is a film about a band and a hit song. The band in question is a group of friends from small town Pennsylvania who, quite by chance, have to recruit a new drummer for a school talent show. That new drummer, rescued from his hell working for his father in his electrical store, plays their song at too high a tempo, turning a fairly insipid ballad into a rock 'n' roll song, which then goes on to be a hit. The boys are propelled into the big time and the film follows them on their way.

The band had no greater ambition than winning the talent show, so to discover that people will pay them to play their music is a revelation for them. Every new thing that happens is a step towards a stardom they never anticipated achieving, from getting booked for major shows to getting a record deal. The four boys, along with the lead singer's girlfriend and their manager get caught up in the whirl.

One thing this film isn't is original. If you take a bunch of small town teenagers and lavish money and attention on them, you can usually guess what's going to happen. In "That Thing You Do", take all of your guesses, and that's pretty much the film. There are nods in the direction of the early careers on both the Beatles and the Beach Boys in the story and there's one sequence that could have come straight from the Monkees.

It's easy to see how Tom Hanks was able to write his first film with this effort, as most of the characters and situations are clichés. Hanks even wrote some of the songs that get a supporting role and, like many parts of the story, they sound like being heavily influenced by other artists.

That's not to say there aren't some nice touches here. That you get through a film without ever knowing the name of the bass player is an interesting development. Although the drummer breaking his arm is fairly obvious, the way he did it is pretty silly and the location for the band's first recording session is a nice touch as is Lenny playing "Go Fish" in a bar. While the story is pretty much a cliché, some of the actual script is fairly different. As the joker, Lenny the guitarist gets the best lines, but it's not a bad script for the most part, if you can overlook Faye's rather heavy handed speech towards the end.

The performances aren't missing a great deal, either. Although most of the main cast were unknowns and have largely stayed that way, this isn't a role that is going to stretch them a great deal. All they really had to do was to play an instrument and look over excited a lot of the time, which didn't prove too difficult for any of them, given that their roles were essentially how they would probably have acted in this situation themselves. Liv Tyler, possibly the biggest name in the film after Tom Hanks, has a similar role only without the instruments and, like them, isn't required to push herself. The major name in the film, Tom Hanks, has performed far more difficult roles than a band manager and doesn't need to push himself.

Of the actors, it is quite interesting to note both Charlize Theron and Giovanni Ribisi in minor supporting roles, long before they went onwards and upwards to become the award winners they now are. There's also a very minor role for Chris Isaak, who has now virtually vanished from the scene. It's kind of ironic that someone best known for being a musician should be playing a role that doesn't require him to either sing or play an instrument in a film about a song.

Whether you like the soundtrack of the film will depend largely on your feelings about 1960s rock 'n' roll. Of course, the main song featured is "That Thing You Do", although even that only gets played through a couple of times. Indeed, most of the songs you hear, with the exception of the title track and the band's "Dance With Me Tonight" are only performed in snatches. But without exception, they're 1960's influenced songs and they're used as part of the story, rather than anywhere else. Even the background music doesn't get too much, with the exception of the one overlong sequence which almost turns the band into The Monkees, which does drag a little.

This is the kind of film that will polarise opinions. You'll either love it and the music and think it's a wonderful feel good little film, even if it is a little clichéd, or you'll find it really twee and annoying. Having been a fan of the title song since the first time I heard it, I've always loved this film. I know it's all a cliché and I know it's really nothing more than cinematic fluff, but it's a sweet and well meaning little film and it neither means nor does anyone any harm.

If this film isn't going to annoy you, it will enchant you. As trashy as it is, I could watch it over and over again, which isn't perhaps an admission I should be making! But however you're likely to feel about the film, the price the DVD can be picked up for could enchant anyone. My copy was just £4.99 in WHSmith, but it can be found for £5.99 on Amazon, £3.75 at the Amazon Marketplace or from 99p on eBay.

You may love it because it's cheap entertainment. You may hate it because it's a bit "fluffy". I love it because it's a decent musical, even if it's not the greatest film going. And I'm off to watch it again and again, because that's just the kind of thing I do.

Summary: Tom Hanks directorial debut