Meet Joe Black - yes please (Meet Joe Black (DVD))

Member Name: Andwynn

Product:	Meet Joe Black (DVD)
Date:	05/07/00 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: great film

Disadvantages: a bit long

The story on the trailer goes along the lines of "In exchange for his
life, the wealthy Anthony Hopkins makes a deal with death - he shows
death around his life. But he wasn't expecting the reaction of his
daghter, Susan". Sounds fairly bland, doesn't it? Well, it's not.

Brad Pitt plays Joe Black, the incarnation of death. He is inhabiting
a body of a man who died that day. By coincidence, it is the body of
someone that Susan met that day, and took quite a shine to (well, you
would, wouldn't you? It's Brad Pitt, after all!).

So Death comes to dinner. It reminded me a little of the Monty Python
sketch from "The Meaning of Life", with the salmon mousse (apologies
to anyone that hasn't a clue what I'm on about). The performance by
Pitt is wonderful - very, very funny. Unfortunately, it is almost
impossible to describe without spoiling the film. The character he
plays appears almost autistic at times - which isn't unreasonable,
after all, considering this is his first holiday on earth. It's like
watching the loveable bits of RainMan and then making him blonde and
extremely attractive.

Some of the characters are unexceptional. Susan is a little tedious.
The elder sister is the standard overly fussy, finicky "elder sister"
role that there always is in this kind of film. If you watch Frasier,
think Bebe. Her husband is another standard character, the American
husband - likes football, and you fully expect him to spend his days
propping up a bar. And Drew, Susan's love interest until Joe Black
appears, is smarmy and annoying. You're not meant to like him, that's
not what he's there for.

The film is made by Hopkins, the 65-year-old, wealthy businessman,
Bill, and Pitt. I'm not a major Brad Pitt fan. But in this film,
especially in his first appear
ance, he is extremely ... well, cute.
If I was a Pittette, this would definitely be on my list of films to
keep and watch over and over.

I didn't expect to laugh at this film. I expected it to be a dodgy,
mushy romantic film. It's that as well. But overall, it's a very
entertaining, surprisingly good film.

Summary: