Summary

Adapted from the 2006 Tony Winner for Best Musical, this bittersweet saga dramatizes the rise and fall of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons - one of the key pop groups of the early '60s, responsible for such iconic hits as "Sherry," "Walk Like a Man" and "Big Girls Don't Cry." The story opens in New Jersey, where young Francesco Castelluccio (John Lloyd Young) and his buddies face a narrow window of future career options. Their possible paths include show business on one hand and organized crime on the other, embodied by the slightly menacing yet avuncular kingpin, Angelo "Gyp" DeCarlo (Christopher Walken), who runs the neighborhood and keeps an eye on them. The boys begin to nurture dreams of becoming musical stars, goals that seem far out of reach until they invite Francesco to perform with them in their band, then rename him Frankie Valli; his unique falsetto vocals captivate the girls in the audience, which provides a sign of things to come. The young hopefuls sign a contract at the Brill Building and begin doing backup vocals for record producer Bob Crewe (Mike Doyle), but experience frustration when Crewe drags his feet on recording them as a solo act. Later, the performers name themselves The Four Seasons after feeling inspired by an unusual source. They add songwriter-musician Bob Gaudio (Erich Bergen) and the equation is complete; Crewe hears Gaudio's composition "Sherry," decides to double-track Valli's voice, and helps create a national sensation. Later, however, certain difficulties begin to take their toll on the band - including financial problems, inner rivalries and tensions between the bandmates, and Valli's long periods on the road away from his wife and daughters. Clint Eastwood directs, from a screenplay by the co-authors of the original musical, Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi