That Thing You Do!

What a GREAT movie! I just watched this (better ten years late than never), based on a recommendation from Semicolon Sherry. It ranks at #92 on her 105 best movies of all time:

92. That Thing You Do! (1996) Tom Hanks directs and and has a small role in this film about a one-hit rock band called the Oneders (WON-ders) and their meteoric rise to fame. This one is so good because it's a rare occurrence these days, a film for teenagers and adults that's clean and fun.

In the special features, Tom Hanks says he hopes people will find the movie to be a "refreshing change of pace." As I explained to my 11-year-old, it sure is, because a director realized that a great movie suitable for both older kids and adults could be made, with lots of humor and super music, without adding all the yucky stuff that is so unnecesssary (sex, bad language, and violence).

Reasons I enjoyed the movie:
1. I love drums
2. I love that catchy tune
3. It made me laugh a lot
4. It's mostly upbeat and fun
5. Really well cast (I like Tom Hanks, but I also liked all the other actors/tresses)
6. We got to see ARWEN (Liv Tyler) in another movie! No elven ears, though. But I guess it was five years earlier; they must have grown pointy after she finished filming this one.
7. It was clean enough to watch with our 11-year-old son; he loved it, too. Always looking for movies like that.
8. It gives the opportunity with the closing blurbs to consider which is more rewarding: being happily married and having kids, or being rich or famous or self-important (it's pretty clear!)
9. It mentions Bainbridge Island, where a dear friend lives