That Thing You Do!
| That Thing You Do! | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Tom Hanks |
| Produced by |
Jonathan Demme Gary Goetzman Edward Saxon |
| Written by | Tom Hanks |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Howard Shore |
| Cinematography | Tak Fujimoto |
| Edited by | Richard Chew |
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Production
company |
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| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
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Release date
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Running time
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108 minutes 148 minutes (Extended cut) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $26 million |
| Box office | $34 million |
That Thing You Do! is a 1996 American musical comedy-drama film written and directed by Tom Hanks, who also co-stars in it. Set in the summer of 1964, the film tells the story of the rise and fall of a one-hit wonder pop band. The film also resulted in a musical hit with the song "That Thing You Do".
In 1964, in Erie, Pennsylvania, aspiring jazz drummer Guy Patterson (Tom Everett Scott) is asked by Jimmy Mattingly (Johnathon Schaech) and Lenny Haise (Steve Zahn) to sit in with their band at an annual talent show, after their regular drummer breaks his arm trying to jump over a parking meter. The band, which also includes a bass player (Ethan Embry), adopts the name "The Oneders" (pronounced "wonders", but often mispronounced "oh-NEE-ders"). At the talent show, Guy launches into a faster tempo than intended for Jimmy's ballad, "That Thing You Do", and the band wins the competition. The Oneders' performance at the talent show earns them a paying gig at a local restaurant, where they begin to sell recordings of "That Thing You Do" and are noticed by talent promoter Phil Horace (Chris Ellis), whom they hire as their manager.
Horace achieves radio airplay for the song and books the band at a rock & roll showcase concert in Pittsburgh, after which they are offered a contract by Play-Tone Records A&R representative Mr. White (Hanks). White changes the band's name to "The Wonders" as they join a Midwestern Play-Tone tour, taking along Jimmy's girlfriend, Faye (Liv Tyler) as their official "costume mistress". During the tour, "That Thing You Do" garners national radio airplay and becomes a bona-fide hit. As the band's popularity soars, Jimmy grows frustrated that the group is not focused on creating more music, while the remainder of the band enjoys their time in the spotlight. All the while, Guy and Faye grow closer as friends. When the song enters the top ten on the Billboard charts, the band is taken off the tour and sent to Los Angeles.
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