Hall of Fame: Tom Hanks

All right, so, uh, let- let's get to it.

Uh, people who already downloaded and/or listened to the episode know it's, uh, it's time for Tom Hanks.

We're gonna be discussing the man's career.

I was talking about it at the end o- of our previous episode, which by the way, go back and listen.

Uh, we did a really fun episode on The 'Burbs, uh, Joe Dante's undersung classic.

And when it came to deciding Tom Hanks for the Hall of Fame, I don't think that this is necessarily going to be, like, the sexiest of film conversations as far as, like, is Tom Hanks a Hall of Famer? 'Cause, yes.

Yes.

Yeah, like, y- yes, he's an undeniable Hall of Famer.

But in putting this together, I was actually really impressed, [laughs] like, with, with how incredible his career actually is.

I broke his career down into three distinct phases, so I'll go through it and then I'll, I'll pitch to the rest of you guys, 'cause I wanna get your thoughts.

Kicking things off, he is the comedy rising star from 1980 to 1990.

Uh, Tom broke out on TV.

Shout out to Bosom Buddies.

Bosom Buddies.

There we go.

Got it in one.

This phase of his career quickly became, like, a reliable comedy star at cinemas across the country when Splash was released in '84.

I was gonna make a pun, but, uh, Brian's month is next month.

I'll let him do that.

Oh.

[laughs]

Uh, your range is gonna vary, but I think it's pretty safe to say that there's a lot of inconsistencies over the next few years.

Uh, like, films like, uh, Bachelor Party and The Money Pit have avid defenders, where stuff like Volunteers, The Man with One Red Shoe, and Dragnet feature Hanks' signature charming and approachable comedic style, but they leave a lot to be desired.

Um, this period i- in particular is really interesting to me, because his future seemed really bright, but no one could've seen the rest of his career on the horizon.

Like, there's, there's just absolutely no way.