Blu-ray review: 'People Like Us'

By George Lang | Published: September 28, 2012

“People Like Us” incorporates nostalgia for the old music industry as an emotional resonance, and it gets most of it right, though it is hard to imagine, as Sam recounts, that an L.A. producer who rubbed shoulders with Joni Mitchell and Linda Ronstadt eventually discovered Kajagoogoo — there are plenty of British music producers to credit or blame. The film mostly hinges on how long Sam will procrastinate before telling Frankie about their shared lineage, but “People Like Us” possesses undeniable charms and an ending that will jerk the tears out of every duct. Kurtzman used his own experience connecting with a sibling as the foundation for the story, and there is a refreshing quality to a mass-market drama without romance at its center. In the end, Kurtzman made a sweet-natured melodrama that, by all rights, should have “Directed by Cameron Crowe” in its title sequence, but with the real Crowe taking his time getting back to what he does best, there is a place for “People Like Us.”

— George Lang

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