Overview
After his rich father refuses to pay his debt, compulsive gambler Lawrence Bourne III joins the Peace Corps to evade angry creditors. In Thailand, he is assigned to build a bridge for the local villagers with the help of American-As-Apple-Pie WSU Grad Tom Tuttle and the beautiful and down-to earth Beth Wexler. What they don't realize is that the bridge is coveted by the U.S. Army, a local Communist force, and a powerful drug lord. Together with the help of At Toon, the only English speaking native, they must fight off the three opposing forces and find out what is right for the villagers, as well as themselves.
I know that many of the early-to-mid 80’s movies don’t hold up and that I am grading on a bit of a curve here. But wow, this movie is a steaming pile of dung. I don’t know how you mess up a comedy where you have Tom Hanks and John Candy, but here is exhibit A. Hanks doesn’t do a bad job (although he does slip in and out of a New England accent, sometimes even in the same scene) but we’ve seen this role played much better by Bill Murray. It really does feel like a very poor imitation of the likes of Stripes and Spies Like Us. I don’t even want to waste any more time thinking about it.
IHATEBadMovies.com reviews Volunteers
Movie title: Volunteers
Movie description: After his rich father refuses to pay his debt, compulsive gambler Lawrence Bourne III joins the Peace Corps to evade angry creditors. In Thailand, he is assigned to build a bridge for the local villagers with the help of American-As-Apple-Pie WSU Grad Tom Tuttle and the beautiful and down-to earth Beth Wexler. What they don't realize is that the bridge is coveted by the U.S. Army, a local Communist force, and a powerful drug lord. Together with the help of At Toon, the only English speaking native, they must fight off the three opposing forces and find out what is right for the villagers, as well as themselves.
Date published: 2022-12-03
Director(s): Nicholas Meyer
Actor(s): Tom Hanks, John Candy, Rita Wilson, Tim Thomerson, Gedde Watanabe, George Plimpton, Ernest Harada, Allan Arbus, Xander Berkeley, Ji-Tu Cumbuka, Jacqueline Evans, Pamela Gual, Chick Hearn, Virginia Kiser, Clyde Kusatsu, Jude Mussetter, Carlos Romano, Duncan Ross, Shakti Chen, Professor Toru Tanaka, Guillermo Río, Lonnie Wun, Harry Yorku
Genre: Comedy
My Review
I know that many of the early-to-mid 80’s movies don’t hold up and that I am grading on a bit of a curve here. But wow, this movie is a steaming pile of dung. I don’t know how you mess up a comedy where you have Tom Hanks and John Candy, but here is exhibit A. Hanks doesn’t do a bad job (although he does slip in and out of a New England accent, sometimes even in the same scene) but we’ve seen this role played much better by Bill Murray. It really does feel like a very poor imitation of the likes of Stripes and Spies Like Us. I don’t even want to waste any more time thinking about it.
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My Review - 3/10
3/10