Tom Hanks says that he hates some of his own films in a new interview. Hanks’s career to date has spanned over four decades. In that time, he has acted in everything from hard-hitting Oscar dramas like Captain Phillips and Bridge of Spies to goofy films like Joe Versus the Volcano and Big. Hanks is widely considered one of the most lovable actors working today.
Despite his acclaim, Hanks its his loathing for some of his own films in an interview with The New Yorker. Hanks outlined five major “points of the Rubicon that are crossed by anyone who makes movies.” These are, Hanks said: saying yes to the film, seeing the movie that you made, the critical reaction to the film, the commercial performance of the film, and time. To the last point, Hanks pitted American classic It’s a Wonderful Life against his film, That Thing You Do!, which he wrote and directed. Both films were not commercial successes at the time of their release, but years later stood the test of time to become classics. Check out the full quote from Hanks below:
O.K., let’s it this: We all have seen movies that we hate. I have been in some movies that I hate. You have seen some of my movies and you hate them. Here are the five points of the Rubicon that are crossed by anybody who makes movies.
The first Rubicon you cross is saying yes to the film. Your fate is sealed. You are going to be in that movie.
The second Rubicon is when you actually see the movie that you made. It either works and is the movie you wanted to make, or it does not work and it’s not the movie you wanted to make.
That has nothing to do with Rubicon No. 3, the critical reaction to it—which is a version of the vox populi. Someone is going to say, “I hated it.” Other people can say, “I think it’s brilliant.” Somewhere in between the two is what the movie actually is.
The fourth Rubicon is the commercial performance of the film. Because, if it does not make money, your career will be toast sooner than you want it to be. That’s just the fact. That’s the business.
The fifth Rubicon is time. Where that movie lands twenty years after the fact. What happens when people look at it, perhaps by accident.
Which Tom Hanks Films Have Stood the Test of Time?
Hanks’s analysis provides a fascinating insight into the differences between a creator’s perception of a film and the critics’ perception. While he gives few examples for his model beyond It’s a Wonderful Life and That Thing You Do! for point five, hearing his perspective makes one wonder what Hanks’s opinion is on some of his worst-rated films like Cloud Atlas or Turner in Hooch.
A number of Hanks movies have been able to cross the fifth and final Rubicon to stand the test of time. Sleepless in Seattle, for example, is still revered as one of the most classic 90s rom-coms today. Even though Hanks thought Forrest Gump would flop, it too is still widely viewed and loved by many. Hanks's film Splash is also loved despite its goofiness, and will even get a modern-day remake.
Other Hanks films have been less successful in standing the test of time. The body-switch comedy Big is still a classic Hanks role, but leaves some modern-day audiences questioning whether its main romance plot is creepy given the plot of a little boy being thrown into Hanks’s very adult body. Some of his 2010s work such as Larry Crowne and The Circle, though somewhat too early to judgment based on Hanks’s model, has already fallen into obscurity. Luckily for Hanks, he still has a number of highly celebrated and rewatchable films to his name, whether he loves or hates them.
Source: The New Yorker
