That Thing You Do 1996

Susan Stark, Detroit News: ...a larky but observant comedy. Read more

Janet Maslin, New York Times: Mr. Hanks's debut feature, written and directed with delightful good cheer, is rock-and-roll nostalgia presented as pure fizz. Read more

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader: Though Hanks keeps the satirical and critical aspects of this look at show biz fairly light, there's a lot of conviction and savvy behind the steadiness of his gaze. Read more

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: Leaving audiences feeling good is very much, and very successfully, on its mind. Read more

Entertainment Weekly: Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: That Thing You Do! is a credible first effort. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Without hauling in a lot of deep meanings, it remembers with great warmth a time and a place. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: It's a pleasant little film with a big profile, thanks to Tom Hanks, who wrote and directed and gave himself a plum role as the band's hard-nosed manager. Read more

Geoff Andrew, Time Out: Sweet nothing, then, but what would you expect of a rock movie devoted to the drummer? Read more

Emanuel Levy, Variety: A sweet, likeable tale of the quick rise to fame and then demise of a small town band. Set in 1964, Hanks' film offers a sanitized, Gump-ish look at a mythical period when boys were boys and girls were girls, with no references to the sex-drug subculture Read more

Richard Harrington, Washington Post: Though Hanks doesn't serve up much context, he's solid with details, and the Wonders' performances ring truer than most. Read more

Desson Thomson, Washington Post: First-time writer/director Tom Hanks stays about a half-beat ahead of the cliches with rim shots of boyish enthusiasm and deft comedy. The movie's also buoyed by the title song, whose Beatles sound is infectious enough to merit a real hit. Read more