Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) is a comedy written and directed by John Patrick Shanley about Joe Banks (Tom Hanks), an unhappy man who is told he only has a few months to live and agrees to be payed a lot of money to jump into a volcano so he can die doing something brave, and thus “live like a king; die like a man.”
Life Lesson:
To live your life well, do what you’re afraid to do.
Movie Scene:
Joe: What’s the matter?
Angelica (Meg Ryan): Did you ever think about killing yourself?
Joe: What? Why would you do that?
Angelica: Why shouldn’t I?
Joe: Because some things take care of themselves. They’re not your job. Maybe not even your business… I like your poem.
Angelica: I’m a grown woman and I live on my father’s money. That restaurant that had my painting up, that’s my father’s restaurant.
Joe: Listen to me. If you have a choice between killing yourself and doing something you’re scared of doing, why not take the leap and do the thing you’re scared of doing?
Angelica: You mean stop taking money and leave L.A.?
Joe: You see? You know what you’re scared of doing. Why don’t you do it? See what happens?
Related articles
- “The Departure” (2017)—Create Hope (Substack.com)
- Change Your Perspective, And Change Your Life? (Substack.com)
- Going Through An Existential Crisis? (Substack.com)
moviewise 