Joe Versus the Volcano is a 1990 American romantic comedy film written and directed by John Patrick Shanley and starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.

Executive produced by Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, and Frank Marshall of Amblin Entertainment, Joe Versus the Volcano follows the titular Joe Banks (Hanks), who, after being told he is dying of a rare disease, accepts a financial offer to travel to a South Pacific island and throw himself into a volcano on behalf of the superstitious natives.

[3][4][5][6] Joe Banks is a downtrodden everyman from Staten Island, working a clerical job in a dreary factory for an unpleasant, demanding boss, Frank Waturi.

Finally, Dr. Ellison diagnoses an incurable disease called a "brain cloud", which has no symptoms, but will kill him within five or six months.

They believe that the fire god of the volcano on their island must be appeased by a voluntary human sacrifice once every century, but none of them are willing to volunteer this time around.

Joe spends a day and a night out on the town in New York City, where he solicits advice on everything from style to living life to the fullest from his chauffeur, Marshall.

Patricia has reluctantly agreed to take Joe to Waponi Woo; Graynamore has promised to give her the yacht in return.

In addition, two other notable actors in smaller roles are Nathan Lane as Baw, the Waponi advance man; and Carol Kane, credited as Lisa LeBlanc, a hairdresser.

[10] The pattern also appears as a crack in a wall of Joe's apartment; in the lightning bolt that strikes and sinks the Tweedledee; and in the procession of the Waponis to the top of the volcano.

[10] Film critic Glenn Erickson wrote: "The zigzag crack represents both the fear we humans need to overcome, and the circuitous, detour-ridden paths our lives become when we don't aim straight for the truth.

"[8] Joe Versus the Volcano was executive produced by Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, and Frank Marshall, and their production company Amblin Entertainment.

[8] Scenes set on the ocean, including the sequence in which the Tweedledee is caught in a typhoon, were shot using a large indoor water tank in a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) studio.

The website's critical consensus reads: "Joe Versus the Volcano erupts with plenty of screwball energy and thoughtful observations about living to the fullest, but its existential ambition may prove too goofy for some audiences.

[13] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "C+" on scale of A to F.[14] Vincent Canby wrote in his review: "Not since Howard the Duck has there been a big-budget comedy with feet as flat as those of Joe Versus the Volcano.

"[15] Upon its release, Time's Andrea Sachs called it a "wan bit of whimsy ... [that] makes no more sense than its synopsis, though Meg Ryan beguiles in three different roles.

"[16] Fifteen years later, Time critic Richard Schickel listed it as one of his "Guilty Pleasures"; while acknowledging "there are people who think this film... may be the worst big budget film of modern times," Schickel disagreed: "...you set aside the routine comic expectations its marketing encouraged, you may find yourself entranced by a movie that is utterly sui generis.

"[17] Roger Ebert gave Joe Versus the Volcano a score of 3.5 out of 4 stars, calling it "new and fresh and not shy of taking chances... [the film] achieves a kind of magnificent goofiness.

Elvis Presley's version of "Blue Moon" plays as Joe spends his final night before departing on his journey.

Waponi tribal music includes the melodies "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" and "Hava Nagila".

[22] It was released on Blu-ray in the UK for the 1st time by Warner Archive on the 10th June 2024 In 2012, San Diego's Lambs Players Theatre presented the world premiere of a musical based on the film.