When I was a kid I loved this movie because the star of the movie, Tom Hanks, lives the life I believed anybody could only dream of – a job that forces you to play with free toys and provides a seemingly endless bank account. Tom Hanks plays a 13-year old Josh Baskin, who upon making a wish to a carnival machine grants him with the body of a 35-year old man, that very next morning. 
He proceeds to skip through adult-life catching every ‘big break’ a true 35-year old would be ecstatic to receive. The movie itself is very conventional. Josh Baskin is a wealthy white male, played by a well-known actor, who finds unique love far above his true maturity level. My memory of this film is much different, although I do enjoy Hanks charismatic character, it was just as pleasant as I remember in a different way.I focused more on how he conducted himself at work, how the mind of a 12-year-old out-smarted full-grown business men just by being honest and speaking his mind.
For example, about half-way through the movie Josh (Tom Hanks) thwarts a jealous co-worker’s factual presentation about a specific toy and completely changes the decision of an entire board room by simply being a 12 -ear old at heart. I also saw how towards the end all his “working life,” he eventually does turn him into a boring work-addicted adult that loses touch of who he really is. I think it is sad to think some people that are full of life, like the young boy who works too much and forgets his friend.
He also loses his innocence when a confusing love affair starts to get more and more adult. I do not think reviewers see this film the same way I did and still do, although those are different in themselves too. A “light-hearted comedy” and a “quirky Tom Hanks.” Although they are not wrong; they did not include my thoughts about how, as a kid, you cannot understand how a job can swallow someone up, and 13-year old Josh Baskin learned really quick. Some of It showed me that this was marketed for mainstream audiences and was produced for economical purposes. This movie helped me look back in history and maybe even see the future to see how these similar plots of movies come and go, and some plots never die. This body morphing idea seems to be fairly common in my era of life and even all the way back to original movies. Overall, I still love this movie, just said something a little different to me this time.
As a kid, I would watch this movie over and over again on my VCR. I loved the scene where they were playing the giant piano with their feet. I also remember that Josh was at a fancy cocktail party and ate the baby corn like a real corn-on-the-cob. I appreciate your post because I have not seen this movie in almost fifteen years, and I had no idea it had such a deep message about the risks of focusing on a job so much that you lose your inner child. I remember this movie being a goofy film, but I don’t remember much of the serious aspects.