Peter Chelsom's follow-up to Hear My Song also deals with a show business quest. In his debut film, Chelsom charted the journey of a nightclub owner to come up with a famous but reclusive singer. Here, the search is a bit more difficult, as Tommy Fawkes (Oliver Platt) tries to resurrect his career as a comic and learn something about his family's roots in show business. Chelsom is clearly enthralled with the traditions of performance, as he allows a glimpse into the seaside resort of Blackpool, whose stages of the pre-television era launched hundreds of careers, none more distinguished than that of Tommy's father, George (Jerry Lewis). It may be a stretch to think of a character played by Jerry Lewis as a native Briton, but Lewis is so persuasive as a man steeped in the traditions of vaudeville that the gap is easily bridged. Lee Evans, as the rubber-limbed third of the Parker Boys act, almost walks away with the movie, no mean feat when the cast includes Lewis, Oliver Reed, and Leslie Caron, as the key figure in the Fawkes family past. Chelsom has a sideways method of telling his story that invites repeated viewings to pick up more nuances to his delightful story and characters.