I'm not a country western music fan at all, but I am a huge fan of director Peter Bogdanovich. My affection for Bogdanovich extends beyond his work as a filmmaker, going back to his is days as a writer in the 1960s when he took the time to interview Hollywood directors such as John Ford, Howard Hawks, or Allan Dwan; filmmakers who were nearing the end of their prolific careers and considered talented journeymen filmmakers suited to producing mere entertainment. Bogdanovich helped bring legitimacy to these filmmakers as artists and as having a unique point of view. What I love about Bogdanovich as a filmmaker is that he brings a classic Hollywood sensibility to his films. His approach to filmmaking is clearly influenced by his love of classic film and by his conversations with all of these talented early pioneers of cinema. To "The Thing Called Love" in particular, it tells the story of a group of country music musicians, River Phoenix, Samantha Mathis, Dermot Mulroney, and Sandra Bullock, hoping to get their big break in Nashville. A bit of a love triangle occurs between lead characters, Mathis, Phoenix, and Mulroney, in a way that echo's many films of Howard Hawks, which Bogdanovich is quick to pick-up on. More than the story or the performances (which are good all around), I think I like most how Bogdanovich frames his shots. He shoots his film in a way that looks like old Hollywood. I don't know if the film would look all that different to the casual viewer, but he frames his shots in a way that you could see Hedy Lamar or Cary Grant being shot, which is terrific fun for cinephiles. Overall, as a tale of young folks trying to make it big and learning life lessons that eventually inform their songs and make them better musicians, it's a entertaining enough of a film, even if it falters at times, but watching the film as a heir to old Hollywood, "The Thing Called Love" is a is a real treat.

If the critics are to be believed, Peter Bogdanovich is one of those unfortunate directors who ran out of steam all too soon after a positively brilliant start. True the early "The Last Picture Show" is a glorious recreation of young people coming of age in an American hick town nowhere in the '50's that he has never quite equalled since, although "Paper Moon" runs it pretty close. Perhaps his big mistake was to try to catch up with "The Last Picture Show" folk in the best forgotten "Texasville". Great films are better left on their own without sequels. But, this apart, it would be wrong to brand everything Bogdanovich has made in more recent years as inconsequential and therefore of little value. Take "The Thing Called Love" for instance, a film that like "The Last Picture Show" concerns itself with a group of young people that are certainly more aspirational than those in the earlier film. A desire to express their feelings through their music has brought them to Nashville, Tennessee, the home of Country and Western. They meet up in the Bluebell Cafe auditioning for a Saturday evening music spot organised by K.T.Oslin, famous for having first spotted several of the great names from the past. The two most interesting characters are Miranda (Samantha Mathis),who has come all the way from New York on a Greyhound bus and James played by the talented River Phoenix in what was sadly to be his last film role. I am fairly certain why I enjoyed this rather slight film to the extent that I watched it on two consecutive evenings, even though I had "La Regle du Jeu" and others queueing up to be seen. It just felt nice to be in the company of a group of comparatively uncomplicated youngsters getting by, doing something really meaningful for them. There is very little in the way of action apart from Miranda and James's drive to Graceland and their killing time before it opens by getting married. I guess Bogdanovich made the film because he loved its characters, otherwise he could not have conveyed them with such affection. He hasn't made a great film this time, but it is certainly nice to get out of the art-house on occasions to savour such a sweet little number.

Pick up the DVD: listening to the director's commentary adds an overlay of seriousness that is-- on further reflection--a kind of simplification. It's all about where we were, how long the shot was, who added what, and how much it cost. "That's really Trisha Yearwood...those are her own clothes..." While the movie has its own sweet compelling (if minor) power (a sort of American Idol thang, as if you see it from the pov of the wanna be), there's something immensely tragic about having to face the fact that THIS is what the director of The Last Picture Show comes to... Then there's the tragedy of the loss of River Phoenix, this being the last film he completed; measured against the joy of seeing the young Sandra Bullock. Some of the advice Bogdanovich gives about cutting is really useful, and there's something tender about his obvious love for the actors...even if manifests itself in lines like "I thought...this kid is not just brilliant, he's also commercial." Alas...it turns out that the director was / is more commercial than brilliant.

I so totally LOVE this movie!! The first one I ever saw starring River Phoenix. Since then, I've done everything I can to watch his other films. Well, I've only seen two more: A night in the life of Jimmy Reardon, and parts of My own private Idaho... Anyway; enjoy this movie! It goes straight to the heart! And it'll stay there, I promise! The film was adorable, and all actors and actresses did an amazing job. I've seen some documentaries on Star! about it... And every time somebody talks about Rio,I totally melt. Because I love him. He seemed to be a caring and loving person, yet a bit wild (in a good way). And I'll give him and all the other actors and actresses big applause.