That Thing You Do!

Happy June!  Since it is my birth month, I am being self-indulgent and writing about all of my favourite movies.  For some of the more well-known movies out there, I will be mostly reflecting on the why it is one of my favourites, as opposed to the usual format of a plot rundown and a wee little bit of reflection.  Not all of my favourite movies are classics – some fall into the guilty pleasure category – but whatever.  It’s my birthday month, deal with it.  OK, disclaimer out of the way, let us begin…

#333: That Thing You Do! (1996).  Tom Hanks made the leap from actor to writer-director with this, and he did one hell of a job.  So, let’s get to it, eh?

The Players:

Guy Patterson: Played by Tom Everett Scott.  Guy is a hipster (uber hipster, really, because he was one before they were cool) drummer who just wants to play with a band.  He loves jazz, and is obsessed with the fictional jazz artist Del Paxton.  He also refers to himself as “Sparticus”.  He’s a little odd, but endearing.

Mr. White: Played by Tom Hanks.  Not only did Hanks write and direct this baby, he gave himself a supporting role as well.  Mr. White is the manager for the band when they sign with Play-Tone records.  He’s slick and pretty much full of shit, but knows his stuff.

Jimmy Mattingly: Played by Jonathan Schaech.  Jimmy is the leader of the Wonders in every way.  He’s the lead singer, the main writer, and basically in charge.  Until Guy joins the band… he’s really smart, and all about being an artist, which in turn makes him kind of a dick.

Faye Dolan: Liv Tyler.  Faye is Jimmy’s girlfriend, but you totally know she’s going to wind up with Guy.  She’s sweet and adorable, and a typical early 1960s girlfriend. 

The Bass Player: Played by Ethan Embry.  He’s not too bright, but enthusiastic like a puppy and just as adorable.

Lenny Haise: Played by Steve Zahn.  Lenny plays guitar in the band, and occasionally has a lead vocal.  He’s silly and goofy.  I love him.

All of the supporting people: A.K.A. Tom Hanks’ friends.  There are people from Apollo 13, A League of their Own, and other various Tom Hanks flicks.  They are what have now come to be known as the Hanks regulars.  Not to be confused with the Ron Howard regulars.  There’s some venn action going on there…

The Rundown:

OK, there really isn’t a whole heck of a lot going on here.  The film follows the rise of a garage band from Erie, PA called The Wonders (as in “One Hit”).  The main focus is on Guy.  When the band’s drummer breaks his arm by jumping parking meters, the band turns to Guy.  He helps them come up with their band name (initially spelled “The Oneders”, leading to a lot of funny mispronunciation gags) and takes their ballad, “That Thing You Do” to a new tempo, helping them win the Mercyherst college talent show.  Woah.  Wait.  I just realized today that none of the guys in the band attend this college.  They are all slightly older than college aged.  Why are they competing in a college talent ‘60s thing?  Oh, right, don’t overthink this movie…

So, at the talent show, we meet Tina, played by none other than Charlize Theron, who is Guy’s girlfriend.  She couldn’t be less interested, until they win and land a gig at the pizza place down by the airport…

The guys have a little fan – it’s a “Hey, it’s that guy!” who looks like Steve Buscemi’s slightly less creepy little brother.  He asks about a record, and they get the brilliant idea to record their now signature song.

I should stop here and warn you that if you have not seen this movie, be prepared to hear every possible rendition of “That Thing You Do!” possible performed throughout the movie.  There are other songs, but you will hear this again. And again. And again.  AND YOU WILL LIKE IT!  More about the music later…

So, they make a record and sell it for a dollar at the pizza place.  Some old dude buys the record (hey!  It’s Deke Slayton from Apollo 13!).  Turns out this guy is a local band manager who works out of “a really nice camper!” (so says Lenny).  He gets them to sign a contract with them, and promises to get their song played on the radio within a week.  Just when you think they might be taken for a ride in that really nice camper…

I love this so much.  Look at how happy they are!

So, this results in getting a gig in Pittsburgh (HOLLA!!) which is where Mr. White enters the scene.  Mr. Really Nice Camper bows out gracefully, and sells his contract to Play-Tone Records.  The boys are going on the road!

They head off on a State Fair tour, and meet other stars from the Play-Tone Galaxy, including Diane Dane.  She has one song, is jaded, and might have something fishy going on with Jimmy.  Uh-Oh…

“That Thing You Do” takes off like a rocket, and the Wonders (re-named by Mr. White) take off for California.  They appear as Captain Geech and the Shrimp Shack Shooters in a hilariously bad beach monster movie (Hey!  Betty Spaghetti!)  and give a couple of radio interviews (CLINT HOWARD!  Your brother loaned you out?!) and meet the head of Play-Tone, who is a total dick.  Jimmy is very disenfranchised.

There is dissention in the ranks as poor Faye is all but forgotten about (she’s been traveling with them as their “costume mistress”).  She tries to defend Jimmy, saying that he’s a genius or some crap, and having a cold, heads off to bed.  Lenny hit it off with the receptionist at Play-Tone, so he heads out on a date with her, and The Bass Player meets some Marines, who take him under their wing.  Leaving poor Guy all by himself.

He heads off to a jazz club, where a waitress (aaaand, it’s RITA WILSON, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!  I wondered how long that was going to take) named Marguerite is all hitting on him, but he’s all about the music, man.

Turns out that Del Paxton frequents the club, so Marguerite introduces them.  Resulting in the best drunken fanboy word vomit ever (I tried to find a video, but no luck.  Here’s the transcript off of IMDb.com):

I'm Guy Patterson, I'm from Erie, Pennsylvania, I'm in a band called The Wonders and we just cut a record, we're out here on the coast and I play the drums and I have all your records well not all of them but a lot of them but ah at least I did until some of them got swiped when I was stationed in Germany and you were playing in Germany at the time that I was stationed there, but you know what I couldn't see you because you were playing in Hamburg and I was stationed in Munich but I listen to your records and I think you're great. 

[takes a breath] 

You are my biggest fan. 

You really need to see how he does it, it is wonderful, and I think we all have said something similar.  Lord knows if I ever met my boyfriend Rick Moranis, I’d do the same thing.  Moving along…

Del gives Guy some tips, reminding him that bands come and go, but always remember that it’s all about the music, man…

The next day, Guy gets a phone call from a very excited/angry Mr. White.  He’s pumped because The Wonders are going to be on “The Hollywood Showcase”! Yay!  But… their bass player is missing.  Oops!  Turns out he’s off living it up with the Marines at Disneyland.  He was going to be leaving at the end of the summer to join up, anyway, so they get a studio bass player to fill in named “Wolf Man”.  I do not make this shit up. 

The show is hosted by another buddy of Tom Hanks, one Peter Scolari from their “Bosom Buddies” days.  Nice of Tom to give you some much needed work, dude!

Faye has been treated to a day of pampering, and looks stunning for the show.  She sits in the audience, proud as can be of her boyfriend and his band.  When they play, the audience is going nuts, and during the music bridge, the production crew goes in for close-ups with the guys’ names, complete with “Careful girls, he’s engaged!” under Jimmy’s.  Jimmy is shocked, Faye is genuinely happy, and the band is totally about to break up.

They have it out in the dressing room, Faye dumps Jimmy’s sorry genius ass, and Lenny and his date head out for a big road trip to Vegas. 

The next day, they are supposed to be recording new stuff, but see Jimmy doesn’t understand how the whole record label thing works, so he quits.  Lenny is still in Vegas, having married his secretary on a whim, and Wolf Man heads out to collect his social security check.  Yeah, he’s kinda old, by the way.  This leaves Guy and Mr. White.

Mr. White assures Guy they aren’t in any sort of legal trouble, that the whole “One hit Wonder” thing is nothing new, and wishes him the best.  He lets him stay in the recording studio for the day if he wants, but they gotta be out of the hotel (Oh, The Ambassador!  Fuck you, California, for letting it be torn down!) tonight.

While he’s playing his drums, who walks in but Del Paxton!  They jam together, and it’s super cool and sweet.

Guy runs to the hotel, ready to get his stuff and find some new digs, ‘cause he’s staying in LA.  He runs into Faye in the coffee shop, and she tells him she’s going back to Erie, and that he should call her if he’s ever in town.  Of course, he can’t let her leave without giving her one hell of a kiss, and of course they wind up together.  The end.

Wow.  That was a lot.  OK, so why do I love this movie?  Let’s begin with the obvious: The music.

I love the soundtrack.  It’s so dead-on with the early 1960s sound, it is just so much fun to listen to.  The title song.  OK.  So, I remember when this movie came out, and somewhere in an interview Tom Hanks said that the title song had to be something he could hear over and over and not get sick of it.  Guess what?  He got it.  I have yet to be sick of this song.  It’s peppy, “snappy” as Mr. White says, and catchy as hell.  The rest of The Wonders songs are good, as is Diane Dane’s one song, and the other Play-Tone Galaxy of Stars songs are good.  It’s just happy music, and perfect for the movie.  Well done, music director.

I adore Tom Hanks in this.  It’s a character we’d never really seen before.  Sure, in A League of their Own, he played an ass, but this is suave and slick.  He is absolutely what you would expect of a 1960s record label band manager.  He’s not a total jerk, either.  He is a pretty cool guy, just a tough nut to crack.

Tom Everett Scott.  The movie kind of depends on whether or not Guy is likable.  By making him kind of a dork at times, he is very likable.  Yes, he does tend to act all beatnicky-hipster at times, but underneath it all, he’s just a big music lovin’ nerd.  It also helps that he is easy on the eyes…

This is not a perfect movie by any means.  Guy and Tina break up, it is implied that she left him for her dentist, but there’s no closure to that relationship.  And they were so obviously not meant for each other, it was too obvious.  Same with the chemistry between Guy and Faye.  It was slightly rushed. 

Jimmy is too much of a dick at times.  So, overall, you could say a lot of the character stuff is a little heavy-handed.  But it works.

Overall, this is a really fun movie.  There is an extended “Director’s Cut” version, but really it doesn’t add much.  It does go into Tina and Guy’s relationship a little more, and there’s a few missing pieces that are filled in, but nothing so major that the film feels more complete with the added scenes.  But hey, if you’re a film geek like me, you’ll check it out anyway!  But I recommend watching the theatrical version first.

I love this movie, and you will too.  Now, try to get that song out of your head.  I dare you…

And that’s a wrap!  Tomorrow: some family drama!

Another Round of Catch-up!

Y’all, this is hard.  I have fallen too far behind to do full-on entries at this point, so another game of catch up.  Here are some of my favourite movies:

#339: Finding Neverland (2004).

Who’s in it?  Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet, and a whole cast of awesome supporting characters. 

What’s it about?  J.M. Barrie, the man who wrote Peter Pan, and his relationship with Sylvia Llewelyn Davies and her family, who were the inspiration for Peter Pan. 

Why do I love it?  Most people swoon all over Johnny Depp, or coo over the kids, but me?  I love this for a myriad of reasons.  One, the story and the setting.  I love hearing about how great works were created, and turn of the century London is gorgeous.  Also, Kate Winslet.  I have a huge lady crush on Kate Winslet.  She is beautiful, talented, and dead-on in this role.  She plays Sylvia with a great amount of joy and strength, and playfulness and love.  The portrayal of Sylvia is crucial – if she wasn’t played just right, she would have come off as either pitiful or a homewrecker, and she is neither. 

This is definitely a teer-jerker movie, so have your tissues handy!

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#338: The Day After Tomorrow (2004).

Who’s in it? Lord, who isn’t in it?  You’ve got Dennis Quaid, Jake Gyllenhall, my Emmy Rossum (so much hotness in one sentence…) and a whole bunch of “Hey! It’s that guy!” and people we know, like Ian freaking Holm. 

What’s it about?  The end of the world, this time with frost!  Yep, the climate is changing, and the world is about meet its cold, cold demise.

Why do I love it?  I have no freaking clue.  I have these movies that I call “Sunday afternoon movies”.  They are the ones that I pop in when I just want to chill out on a lazy Sunday afternoon.  This is one of them.  As a rule, I think disaster movies are a hoot, and this one is especially fun.  They have to out run frost.  And wolves.  So much win.  The plot isn’t anything really new, the effects are pretty damn impressive, and the characters are likable enough that you’re ok with them surviving.  Go into it with low expectations, and you enjoy it.

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#337: Snakes on a Plane (2006).

Who’s in it?  Samuel L. Jackson.  A bunch of other people, too, but mostly just Samuel L. Jackson.

What’s it about?  Ummm… see, there are snakes.  They’re on this plane.  They wreak havoc.  The end.

Why do I love it?  Like most people, my interest was piqued by the title.  And the fact that Samuel L. Jackson was not only starring in it, but he himself was sold on the title.  It’s so absurd, you can’t not love it.  The movie tries to give us a viable explanation for why the snakes are on the plane, but really nobody cares.  It is a roller coaster ride, it doesn’t really take itself too seriously, and you’ve got the now infamous line “I am tired of these motherfuckin’ snakes on these motherfuckin’ plane!”  The best part about that line?  There was a fan video made with that line before the movie came out.  They went back and added that line to appease the fans.  Motherfuckin’ awesome.  If you don’t mind horror or snakes, watch it.  Just don’t expect too much!

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 #336: Calamity Jane (1953).

Who’s in it?  Doris Day, Howard Keel, and a bunch of other people.

What’s it about? Calamity Jane and her life in the wild west.  Set to music.  Mostly, it’s about Doris Day being awesome.

Why do I love it?  Doris Day.  Doris Day.  Oh, and Doris Day.  OK, no seriously.  The music is great, the production value is on the low side, but it still looks good, and it is an overall fun movie.  This was one of my favourite movies growing up, the first I ever saw Doris Day in, and is the film that I most associate her with.  It really is weird seeing her all dolled up in a dress sometimes… Don’t expect an accurate history lesson here, folks, just go with the fun!

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#335: Annie (1982).

Who’s in it? Aileen Quinn, Albert Finney, Ann Reinking, Bernadette Peters, Tim Curry and Carol Burnett.  Like, wow.

What’s it about?  Based on the Broadway musical which is based on Depression-era comic books about a little red haired orphan who gets adopted by a billionaire.  That’s really all you need to know.

Why do I love it?  Well, for starters, look at the freaking cast.  This movie is what started my life-long adoration of Carol Burnett, and every time I see Ann Reinking I see her as Grace.  This is also one of the movies I watched non-stop when I was a kid.  I had the little red dress Annie wears at the end.  It is why I wanted to be a redhead.  I insisted that people call me Annie at one point.  The music is great, the performances amazing, and on its own it is a great movie.  Just don’t compare it to the stage play, because then you’re in for a world of hurt, because truly the stage play is kind of superior, inserting more about the Depression and whatnot.  But still, watch and enjoy.

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#334: Eurotrip (2004). 

Who’s in it? A bunch of people I’d never heard of, or from since, and Michelle Trachtenberg.  Looking ridiculously hot.

What’s it about?  Scotty gets dumped (awesomely, I might add), he goes on a wild trip through Europe to hook up with his German pen-pal. 

Why do I love it?  It is hilarious and pretty harmless.  It’s another one of those “Sunday afternoon movies” that I can just pop in and relax the brain for a little while.  The humor is crude, but not to the point that it feels like it’s crude just for the sake of it.  Also, did I mention that Michelle Trachtenberg is really hot in this movie?  Little Dawn Summers, all grown up! 

Aaaaand, we’re caught up!  There will be another full post tonight, and I will hopefully be able to get a little ahead over the next day or two that I have off.  These long hours are killin’ my bloggin’, y’all.  That’s a wrap for now!

National Treasure

Happy June!  Since it is my birth month, I am being self-indulgent and writing about all of my favourite movies.  For some of the more well-known movies out there, I will be mostly reflecting on the why it is one of my favourites, as opposed to the usual format of a plot rundown and a wee little bit of reflection.  Not all of my favourite movies are classics – some fall into the guilty pleasure category – but whatever.  It’s my birthday month, deal with it.  OK, disclaimer out of the way, let us begin…

#340: National Treasure (2004).  If you know me, you knew this was coming… Yay, CRAPPY HISTORY!

The Players:

Benjamin Gates: Played by Nicholas Cage.  Ben is an historian/treasure hunter.  He’s a wee bit obsessive, and more than a wee bit nuts sometimes, so really it’s Nic Cage being Nic Cage.  And being awesome at it.  Ben is also a little pretentious and arrogant when it comes to his history knowledge.  Which makes him kinda sexy, too…

Riley Poole: Played by Justin Bartha.  Riley is Ben’s assistant/wise-cracking sidekick.  He is every nerdy girl’s dreamboat.  He’s not so much into the historical end of things, but the technical side.  He trusts Ben implicitly, and is snarky to boot.  Love.

 

Abigail Chase: Played by Diane Kruger.  So many pretty people in this movie… anyway, Abigail is a curator at the National Archives and gets sucked into the treasure hunt while she tries to protect the Declaration of Independence.  She is the romantic interest for Ben.

Patrick Gates: Played by Jon Voight.  He’s Ben’s father who is the family grump.  He is totally against hunting for the treasure, but gets sucked into it by association with his crazed son.  He’s often the voice of reason, but since reason has no place in this movie, he gets shut down a lot.

Ian Howe: Played by Sean Bean.  Ian starts out ok, (funding the treasure hunt and all), but he really wants his piece of the treasure pie, so when he suggests they “borrow” the Declaration of Independence because there’s a map on the back, and Ben won’t let him, he takes his toys and goes on his own treasure hunt.  Because you can’t have a treasure hunt without some asshole competing with you.

Sandusky: Played by Harvey Keitel.  Sandusky is the FBI agent who is assigned to getting the Declaration of Independence back after it’s been “borrowed”.  There seems to be more to him than initially thought, and he turns out to be a pretty groovy dude.

John Gates: Played by Christopher Plummer.  He’s Ben’s grandfather, and tells him the story of the treasure, leading him on his lifelong quest.  A small but important role, played by Captain Von Trapp himself.

OK, so the rundown?  There’s this treasure to end all treasures, Knights Templar, too big for just one man, blah, blah, blah.  Somehow, it wound up in the North American colonies, and the founders hid it and devised a series of clues.  The last clue (really, the first clue if you think about it) wound up in the hands of a stable boy named Thomas Gates.  This is the big family heritage, and apparently a lot of people lost a lot of money and good name searching for this treasure. 

Ben wants to find the treasure.  Not for monetary value, but to prove his family isn’t crazy.  Also, for the historical significance, which, again: sexy.  So, the clue is “The secret lies with Charlotte”, and after a lifetime of searching, Ben discovers that “Charlotte” is actually a ship.  They find the ship (buried in ice in the arctic) and on the ship is a pipe that leads them to the next big clue: there is a map on the back of the Declaration of Independence.

OK, see how many times I have typed out Declaration of Independence so far?  That is nothing compared to how often they say it in this movie.  There’s a drinking game.  You will die.

So, Ian decides he will steal the Declaration of Independence (drink!) because obviously no one will let them look at it because they’re all nuts.  Ben can’t allow that, so Ian winds up blowing up the ship.  My little historian heart wept a little.

So, Ben realizes that Ian will steal the document with or without him, so he decides to try and stop him.  When alerting everyone in Washington DC doesn’t help, he goes to the National Archives, figuring someone’s passion for historical documents will be an asset.

There he meets Abigail, who is gorgeous, loves history (she has Washington’s campaign buttons, save for one.  WANT!) and is a little snarky.  I not only have a huge girl-crush on her, but I kinda want to be her when I grow up…

So, there’s this gala for the National Archives, and Ben explains his elaborate plot to steal the document during the gala.  It’s pretty badass, and smart, and I love it.  But Ian’s there, too, and he’s more of a “smash and grab” thief.  Oh, Ian, these things are always won with brains.  You already lost, dude.  Also, after you blew up The Charlotte, I would not trust you within fifty feet of any historical artifact.  Asshole.

And we’re off to the races!  They follow the clues they find (with a little help from Ben’s dad), while being followed by Ian and his band of history-haters and the FBI.  They wind up momentarily working with Ian when all hell breaks loose in Philly, and wind up in NYC.

Ian has taken Patrick hostage, and they all go down under Trinity Church to hopefully, finally find this damn treasure.  But once they get to the bottom of this insane hole, all that’s there is an empty room with a lantern.  Ben and Patrick, being all smart, give Ian a fake clue sending him off to Boston, and Ian falls for it because he is stupid.

Of course, they eventually find the treasure (the pipe they found waaayyy back on the dearly departed Charlotte comes into play, which I actually love) and it is damn impressive.  Ben strikes a deal with the FBI and gives them Ian to toss in jail so he doesn’t have to go.  Ben and Abigail get together, Riley gets a fancy new car he doesn’t know how to drive, and we all anxiously await the sequel.  Unfortunately, we get one…

So, I majored in US History.  I should really hate this movie, because while some of the history is well-done, so much of it is inaccurate or just plain made up.  But… it’s so much fun!  And it shows how exciting and fun history can be!  Which is important.  And treasure hunt movies are always fun.  Unless it’s The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, which is just depressing.

Me in what they refer to as "The Signing Room" in Liberty Hall.  I was so.excited!

 When I was in college, I was an active member in the History Club on campus.  This movie somehow became our unofficial History Club movie.  When we went on a trip to Philadelphia, we referenced the hell out of it.  When we got back, we watched this at a meeting, and I turned to everyone and said “Oh my God, I am so sorry!”  They looked at me funny, and I went on to say “I am so Nic Cage in this movie!”  This was met with a bunch of head nods and a collective “yup!”   So, I know why I love his character.  He is just so into the history of everything, and gets excited and shares that, which comes off a little “know-it-all”.  So, I relate to him a lot.

This movie is actually what piqued my interest in American Revolution-era history, which resulted in me taking a course on The American Revolution in college, which resulted in awesomeness.  It is my favourite time period in American History (aside from film history), and this movie played a part in discovering that.

If you are a “serious historian”, A: why are you reading this blog? and B: avoid this movie at all costs.  If you just have a passion for the field, treasure hunts, and intellectual pretty people, check it out.  It’s a harmless and educational way to spend two hours.  Just make sure you look up some of the stuff before you buy into everything – like I said, some stuff is just not real.  But it makes for a great story, so who cares?

That’s a wrap!  Up next: get out the hankies.

Keeping the Faith

Happy June!  Since it is my birth month, I am being self-indulgent and writing about all of my favourite movies.  For some of the more well-known movies out there, I will be mostly reflecting on the why it is one of my favourites, as opposed to the usual format of a plot rundown and a wee little bit of reflection.  Not all of my favourite movies are classics – some fall into the guilty pleasure category – but whatever.  It’s my birthday month, deal with it.  OK, disclaimer out of the way, let us begin…

#341: Keeping the Faith (2000).  A Rabbi, a Priest, and a Blonde… This is another movie that my friend Val and I love, and randomly quote to each other all the time.  It’s not one that a lot of people have heard of, which is a damn shame.  So, here goes!

The Players:

Jake Schram: Played by Ben Stiller.  Jake is a Rabbi.  He’s also single, which at his age, is apparently some sort of major sin at his Synagogue.  He’s constantly being set up by the biddies in his community.  His best friend is a Priest.

Brian Finn: Played by Edward Norton.  Brian is a Priest whose faith is solid as a rock, until he falls in love with his childhood friend, Anna.  He loves his work, but when his crisis of faith hits, he questions his life choices.  His best friend is Jake, a Rabbi. 

Anna Riley: Played by Jenna Elfman.  She is Jake and Brian’s old friend from childhood, back in New York for work and to visit.  She causes a little bit of trouble when both men start to fall for her.  She’s a workaholic, and that kind of sexy cool we all wish we could be.

Ruth Schram: Played by Anne Bancroft.  She’s Jake’s mother, and is basically your typical “Jewish mom”.  She has issues of her own – seems her oldest son married outside of their faith, so she has pretty much disowned him.  She adores Jake, though, and keeps on pushing him to find a nice, Jewish girl.

 

Paulie: Played by Brian George.  He is the bartender that Father Brian narrates his story to.  He’s pretty funny, and offers some decent advice.

Milos Foreman

The elders: In both places of worship, there are elders.  For Father Brian, his mentor and I guess the “head Priest” (?) is Father Havel, played awesomely by Milos Foreman.  In Jake’s life, he has Rabbi Ben Lewis played by Eli Wallach and Larry Friedman, played by Ron Rifkin.  Some serious heavy-hitters here!

Ron Rifkin

Eli Wallach

OK, the rundown:

We open with a very drunk Edward Norton stumbling on the streets of New York and into Paulie’s bar.  After he tries to hit on a woman, and fails, he tells Paulie his story, revealing that he is a Priest. 

The story begins with seventh grade, when Brian and Jake meet Anna.  The three of them become inseperable best friends (“Two micks and a yid”, ha!).  Then, Anna moved away to California.  Sad. 

Father Brian takes us through Jake and his friendship and how they were each called to serve God.  They are young, idealistic, and energetic.  They start out a little rough, but wind up filling the churches with their funny, stand-up style sermons that have a really good message to them.  I should probably note that I am slightly biased towards this movie because it’s about faith and friendship, and what it means to have faith, and my dad is a minister.  So, I love the scenes in the Church and Synagogue that show the sense of community and how much these guys are not only good at their jobs, but love their jobs.

So, Anna Riley is coming to town!  They pick her up at the airport, and discover that she is not only just as they remembered her, but she is insanely hot.  Hell, I am crushing on Jenna Elfman in this movie.  Damn.

So, Jake is being set up by the women in his congregation.  The head Rabbi is retiring, and he wants the position, but there hasn’t been a single Rabbi in the Synagogue since its inception, so he has to go on these dates in the hopes that he can find someone to settle down with.  Jake!  Over here!  I have a thing for sexy Jewish men!  He goes on a date with the Jewess from HELL, which is hilarious.  But after, he lingers at a payphone, debating calling Anna… hm…

We see a little bit of Anna in action at work, and some flirty-flirty over the phone with Jake, who has just finished a session with some poor kid preparing for his Bar Mitzvah.  I love watching these guys interact with their congregation, it really adds some weight to what they do – it’s not a plot contrivance, it’s who they are.  So good.  Anyway…

There’s some trouble at the Synagogue, when Jake brings in a Gospel choir to try and stir some things up.  He gets a talking to about being too aggressive with his ideas.  And he gets introduced to Rachel Rose, a correspondent on ABC News.  She is gorgeous, intelligent, and classy. 

Scene of Jake, Anna and Jake’s mom Ruth bonding.  Ruth and Anna are a lot alike and get along really well.  Too bad she’s not Jewish…

Jake is preparing for his big date with Rachel Rose, but he’s nervous.  So, he asks Brian and Anna to join him posing as a couple.  The date isn’t going so well – Anna and Jake’s chemistry is showing.  After the date, Jake finds himself at Anna’s door, and the chemistry causes an explosion! 

Jake and Anna decide to keep this new-found “thing” to themselves, starting off as just sex, but eventually evolving into more.  Things get really heated when Ruth figures out what’s going on, and Anna reveals her feelings for Jake at a company party.  Eventually, things blow up in a huge fight between the two, and Anna calls Brian over for consoling.  This whole time, Brian has been slowly falling for Anna himself, and thinks that she is upset because she’s in love with him.  When he discovers that this whole time Anna and Jake have been together, he is heartbroken.  Not just because Anna is not in love with him, but because he was lied to by his best friend.  So, he goes on a tear, gets hammered and… crashes the Bar Mitzvah.  Ooops.

This is where we began, with Brian drunk and sad in the bar.  He receives some words of wisdom from Paulie, and then heads back to the Rectory for some real faith talk with his superior, Father Havel.  Father Havel tells him that he himself falls in love from time to time, and that Priests (gasp!) aren’t perfect, though they strive to be.  He does some soul-searching, and goes to see Jake, who is doing a little soul-searching himself.  The elders aren’t too thrilled that he is in love with a non-Jew. 

They patch things up, and go to the opening of a project they’ve been working on throughout the film, a community center that brings together the people of both congregations.  Earlier in the film, there is this hilarious scene with a karaoke salesman:

Anyway, it turns out that Jake has been given the position as Head Rabbi afterall.  Yay!  And Anna shows up at the opening of the karaoke bar.  Yay!  Throughout the movie, she talks about various classes she’s been taking, and apparently one of those classes is a Jewish conversion class.  Awwwww…  The three of them are back to being best friends, and Jake and Anna get to be together, there’s karaoke and awesomeness.  Oh, and Jake’s mom comes to her senses after a trip to the hospital in which she forgives Jake’s brother for marrying a non-Jew, and is totally cool with Jake and Anna.

OK, so why do I love this movie?  It’s well-acted, a good story, a nice twist on love triangles, and it is about friendship, love, and faith.  Those are three things that are of extreme importance to me.  My only beef is that there is way more focus on Jake than Brian, and I would like there to be a little bit more balance between the two. 

This is also the first (and only) movie I have seen that makes Ben Stiller damn sexy.  Just sayin’. 

The supporting cast is damn impressive, as well.  I mean, Anne Bancroft, Milos Foreman, Ron Rifkin, etc?  Holy crap.  The use of the New York setting is well-done.  The friendship between the three main characters is believable and delightful, and I wish there was some more of that, either in the beginning or the end, or somewhere in between, but it would be a much longer movie, and there’s already a lot going on, so I kind of understand why it was cut back a bit.

I really recommend you check this movie out, it is really funny, touching, and well-done. 

That’s a wrap!  Up next: Historical Nerdiness!