A childhood favorite revisited

"I went to see 'Joe and the Volcano.' It was very funny. It had tom Hanks and meg Ryan. My mom and dad took me my sister went too. I like the part when Joe was on a raft and he started danceing. Soon he reached the Island. They had fun until the time Joe had to jump in the volcano. But when Joe and his girl friend jumped into the volcano they got Busted out agin. Joe's lugege poped out of the water and Joe out of it. Joe and his girl friend floated away." (Written by me on September 28, 1990. Please excuse spelling and grammatical errors -- I was 7.)

For the record, the movie is actually called "Joe Versus the Volcano." I saw it as a child and it has been a favorite of my family's ever since. Some films don't really stand the test of time and maturity. For example, a movie like "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" might not hold the same charm for me now as it did 20 years ago. But I recently watched "Joe Versus the Volcano" again and it was as good, nay better, than it was back when I was 7. As an adult, I can relate to the story on a whole new level -- not to mention I understood more of the jokes. Anyone who is tired of the daily grind will love the opening sequence where Tom Hanks arrives at his utterly depressing office and pours himself a cup of bad coffee under the flickering fluorescent lights. After being diagnosed with a mysterious terminal illness called a "brain cloud," Joe is asked to travel to Waponi Woo and jump into a volcano as a human sacrifice to an island god. Joe must decide between spending his remaining days punching his card at the office or having the adventure of a lifetime -- a no brainer it seems. Between then and his run-in with the volcano on Waponi Woo, Joe encounters a variety of interesting characters and sees and does things he never could have imagined. It's an example of the classic irony, he never learned how to really live until he was facing death. If you're around my age and haven't seen "Joe Versus the Volcano" in a couple decades, I highly recommend that you check it out again. If you liked it back then, you'll love it now. And if you didn't like it (which is highly possible because it's an entirely under-appreciated film), maybe you'll learn to love it. And hey, it's Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, and the most awesome set of luggage ever witnessed by mankind -- what's not to love?