Joe versus the Volcano (1990)

I've had my eye on Joe versus the Volcano for quite some time. I've put it in various polls out of curiosity of it's public perception, but despite my own interest, it never ended up winning. So today I said "Enough!" and put it on for myself as my first movie stepping out from under my dark cloud of horror films, and into the sunshine again. I wanted a fun and funny movie, and I figured this would be just what I needed. Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan were also both in You've Got Mail together, which I really liked. After realizing they were paired up again in this, a quick search revealed they're also in Sleepless in Seattle, so expect that somewhere down the line too. But this is actually their first pairing, so it must have been special. Hit the jump to see if that's what I found.


Joe Banks (Tom Hanks) works a hellish, mind-numbing job which is driving him crazy. He hates it, and who wouldn't? He sits under blinking, buzzing florescent lights, with no windows, horrible coffee, and a boss that just yells at him and pushes the blame around to anyone but himself. To top it all off, Joe seems to be endlessly sick. Today will be a different day, though, because when he visits his doctor for the results of his latest batch of tests, he finds out he has a fatal, incurable condition known as a brain cloud. He has only 4-5 months to live. But while most people would take this as bad news, Joe finally quits his job, asks out the office girl he's always liked out for dinner, and is finally living life again. His dreary world finally (and literally) has some colour in it again!

Joe can't stand the lights at his work, let alone everything else

If things couldn't seem to get much better, a mysterious and very rich man, shows up at his door and offers him a new job; go to a remote island, live like a king, and jump into the volcano. The natives will be happy, the business man will get his mineral deal from the natives, and Joe will go out like a hero! Hey, he's going to die anyways, so why not?

If the story sounds a little bit crazy, that's because this movie is a whole lot of crazy. Watching this movie is like watching a cartoon, but in live action. The colours, the characters, the backgrounds, the settings... everything is crazy and goofy in almost every way. It's almost like a fairy tale, but it seemed far more like a cartoon to me. Not that that's a bad thing!

I absolutely couldn't stand the beginning of the movie while Joe was still at his job and even when he was going to the doctor's. I thought I had made a dreadful mistake with this film! But when Joe loses it, and finally tells his boss everything that has been on his mind, I felt so good for him! From that moment on, Joe's entire life, and even the movie, just kept improving and gradually getting better, little bit by little bit.

Joe finally sees what a real life filled with living is really like

Tom Hanks does a wonderful job here, and it's nice to finally see a young Tom filled with life and a dash of wackiness, which I've found often missing in many of the films I've seen him in lately. Meg Ryan actually plays 3 roles in this, DeDe the cute office girl Joe asks out to dinner, and the two half-sisters, Angelica and Patricia, that aide him on his journey to the volcanic island. He only ever meets them one at a time, but he keeps saying that he feels like he's seen her before. I thought that was funny. I also really liked a bunch of the side characters including the limo driver, played by Ossie Davis, who takes Joe on his shopping spree. And while the scene was short, I liked the guy who sells Joe his amazing luggage, who was played by Barry McGovern.

Similar to the line about Joe thinking he's seen Meg Ryan before, there are lots of little jokes and curiosities throughout the movie. Like how the logo for his old job, the pathway to the factory, the crack in the wall at his apartment, and the path up the side of the volcano are all the exact same zig-zag shape. Or how throughout the whole film, and long before Joe learns about the volcano, there are tropical and even volcanic scenes all around him. His lamp at work, and a large wall mural outside the restaurant he takes DeDe out for dinner are good examples. They always seem to be a source of happiness for Joe, hinting at things to come. Also, his progression with each new version of Meg Ryan gets just a little further every time, from holding hands, to a kiss on the cheek, to falling in love.

Joe and Patricia meet the island chief

While the premise, and the whole movie about how they get to the island is filled with absurdities, I also like to look back at it as a sort of whimsical, fantastical voyage. Unfortunately, I was left hanging a little bit at the end, but because of the nature of the movie, and especially because of the closing line, its fairy tale nature takes over and I was somehow satisfied. This was a pleasant little movie with a bunch of odd characters, but some good dialog and fun scenes. If you want to check out Joe versus the Volcano, don't go in expecting something like Cast Away, or even a serious romance. This is just a simple fun movie with a nice message about life and living it to the fullest. Give it a shot, you may very well enjoy it.