One of the all-time favorite movies on our family's short list is Joe Versus the Volcano (1990, by John Patrick Shanley). The film defies encapsulation; it's a comedy and a philosophy lecture and a critique of our society and a salute to luggage and a bunch of other things all at once. There are many great lines, but among the most memorable is a remark made by Patricia (one of Meg Ryan's multiple rôles):

"My father says that almost the whole world is asleep. Everybody you know. Everybody you see. Everybody you talk to. He says that only a few people are awake and they live in a state of constant total amazement."

This echoes a metaphor used in a book on Buddhism that I once read and cannot currently locate. (Help, anybody?) Even more striking is a line delivered by the title character Joe (played by Tom Hanks) as he is dying in mid-ocean on a small raft and in awe watches a moonrise:

"Dear God, whose name I do not know – thank you for my life. I forgot how BIG ... thank you. Thank you for my life."

<small<>(see also DialogueDensity (21 May 2002), InfiniteSky (15 Oct 2004), ...)</small>

TopicEntertainment - TopicFaith - 2005-03-16

(correlates: RepoMan, WeltschmertzRx, DeliberateOpinion, ...)