Death never looked so good (Meet Joe Black (DVD))

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Product:	Meet Joe Black (DVD)
Date:	09/09/00 (22 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good, clean entertainment

Disadvantages: Just SO predictable

It has been postulated that Hollywood has developed a strange daze regarding the passing of the Millenium; certainly the budgets and attention given to such inward-gazing pictures such as Deep Impact, City of Angels, and now Meet Joe Black would seem to bear this out. But despite the argument that the Euro’s do it better (Wings of Desire and Until the End of the World come immediately to mind), Tinseltown’s dabbling with contemplation has grown up just fine with Martin Brest’s Meet Joe Black.
It’s no secret that Brest fashioned this film as a reexamination of the classic Death Takes a Holiday, but in pairing the well-spoken and physical Anthony Hopkins with the perceived poster-boy Brad Pitt, he has sidestepped the finger-pointing of a “remake.” And despite Universal’s shameless “Brad Pitt/Claire Forlani Lovestory” marketing approach, Meet Joe Black surpasses the original film in scope and depth, while taking just as many chances along the way.
The film is centered around the impending death of multi-millionaire William Parrish (Anthony Hopkins), who is seen struggling with a voice in his sleep in the opening scene. Parrish, a successful media entrepreneur with unquestionable character (an anti-Rupert Murdoch, of sorts) is flanked by his two daughters Allison (Marcia Gay Hayden) and the younger Susan (Claire Forlani). Although trite and superficial, Allison spends the entire movie plotting a bombastic 65th birthday party for her father, which is a positive thing, despite William’s lack of interest. Susan, an internal medicine resident blessed with an abundance of beauty and brains, is the object of her father’s affections, who without meddling, disapproves in principle of her desire to wed his right hand man Drew (Jake Weber). Hopkins goes into detail about living life with passion and verve, while pointing out that their relationship lacks both.
As fate would
have it, Susan meets her Mr. Right that same morning, in the guise of the earthbound Brad Pitt. His beguiling, carefree attitude is a direct contrast to that of her fiancée, who indulges Susan in the same way he carries on with business and being rich. But just as Susan is given an alternative path in pursuing a different life as her father suggested, Death pays a call on Bill Parrish, giving him a heart attack while alone in his office, before deciding to forge a deal. The voice he hears makes plans to arrive at dinner that evening, and will stay with Parrish until he feels he is ready. To complete the bald irony of this fairytale, Death assumes the persona of "Joe Black" (Brad Pitt), much to the confusion of Susan, who wonders where the affable hunk she met that morning had gone. Only Bill Parrish and Joe Black know that he is dead.
Meet Joe Black then wanders down an utterly predictable path, but adds a few twists that make the trip easy. It’s obvious that Black and Bill Parrish will explore the mortal’s life and achievements, and in doing so, teach the inquisitive Mr. Death much about humanity, such as it is. But Black has chosen an individual of outstanding character and humility, a classic gentleman whose only fault is the favoritism he extends his youngest daughter. In the very capable hands of Hopkins, the senior Parrish character holds the film together, as director Martin Brest and chief screenwriter Bo Goldman aspire to add cliched subplots and a Hollywood ending to a fascinating premise.
Despite the completely predictable outcome of the film, the foundation of the film remains unassailable. Brest literally drags his audience through several scenes, allowing the characters to explore their interaction without worrying about how things are done in Hollywood. It matters little that Black’s character is lacking in personality; the love scenes between Pitt and Forlani are electric purely from the sheer
physical beauty and innocence portrayed by the two actors. There is little need for clever Nora Ephron dialog here as Brest gives the lost art of silence its due.
In its best moments, Meet Joe Black is as mesmerizing as any big studio effort this year. In spite of its lengthy running time (3 hours) the efforts of the actors and the expert ability of Brest to paint his scenes prevent the audience from stealing looks at the time. Predictable? Sure. Implausible? You bet. But the warmth given off from this picture, and the sheer humanity of its message will pay off big if you open up and allow its methods to animate and seduce.

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