Joe Versus the Volcano

Dir. John Patrick Shanley. 1990, 102 mins. U.S. 35mm. With Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Lloyd Bridges, Dan Hedaya, Robert Stack, Ossie Davis, Abe Vigoda. After winning the Oscar for writing Moonstruck, Shanley got the greenlight for his ambitious, surreal comedy about a hypochondriac workaday schlub (Hanks) who finds out he has a fatal “brain cloud” and, with mere months to live, dumps his soul-sucking office job to embark on a final adventure to a tropical island. There, he will toss himself into a volcano for a slam-bang farewell. Nothing quite works out as it’s supposed to, of course, and Shanley fashions a romantic comedy out of this eccentric material that’s as warmly funny and visually inventive as it is delightfully performed by Hanks and Ryan, the latter appearing in three different roles. Unfairly maligned for its box-office underperformance, Joe Versus the Volcano has amassed passionate fans ever since its release and represents the kind of outlandish, intelligent whimsy that’s today in short cinematic supply. 

Tickets: $15 / $11 senior and students / $9 youth (ages 3–17) / discounted for MoMI members ($7–$11). There is a $1.50 transaction fee per ticket for all online purchases. The cost of admission may be applied toward a same-day purchase of a membership. 

Order tickets. Please pick up tickets at the Museum’s admissions desk upon arrival. All seating is general admission.