That Thing You Do! (1996) Tom Hanks's feature directorial debut is a loving tribute to garage bands everywhere, about a group called the Oneders (not the O-Need-Ers, the One-Ders) who record a peppy, uptempo song ("That Thing You Do!"), have their name changed to the Wonders, and become overnight successes. The cast includes Jonathon Schaech, Steve Zahn, Tom Everett Scott, Ethan Embry, Liv Tyler, Charlize Theron and Hanks himself. The soundtrack consists of original mid-60s-era tunes that are instantly catchy. I bought the soundtrack on CD when the movie came out, and these songs are embedded in my brain! A fun, nostalgic film. One of those flicks I could watch anytime, no matter what mood I'm in, and feel good afterward.
Rio Bravo (1959) Director Howard Hawks was disgusted with High Noon (1952). He thought it was a slap in the face to the Western genre, with the townspeople shunning sheriff Gary Cooper in his time of need (a gang of notorious gunslingers are coming to town, and no one wants to help Coop). Hawks also didn't care for the ending, in which Cooper throws his badge in the dust. So he set out to make what would become an influential classic of the genre, one where bonding and friendship was the key (a recurring theme in Howard Hawks movies). The result was Rio Bravo, the relatively simple story of Sheriff John T. Chance (John Wayne) who arrests a man who has killed in cold blood (Claude Atkins), and finds his jail (and the town) surrounded by the killer's men. The only allies Chance has are a drunk former deputy (Dean Martin), a young gunslinger (Ricky Nelson) and a crabby old coot (Walter Brennan). The film is an excellent character study, and everyone has a chance to shine, including a pair of married, feuding hotilers and a leggy chorus girl (Angie Dickinson) who takes a shining to Chance. Dean Martin, in one of his first dramatic roles, is excellent as a once able gunslinger, now a hopeless drunkard, who gets the shakes whenever a drink isn't nearby. Rio Bravo was influential on many future filmmakers, particularly John Carpenter, who based his Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) around the same basic story: a police station is under siege by a group of snipers, while a small crew inside try to defend themselves. Carpenter again used the story in his remake of The Thing (1982).
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