 "A MASTERPIECE" | 2009-09-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A17NOQUPAVB7WF |
I must confess that I consider this movie a masterpiece. As a real film buff, there are certain movies that I can watch over and over again, and garner something different from each viewing. This is one of those films. A 20 year old will see a completely different film than someone of middle age or a senior. That is part of the movie's charm. It cannot truly be appreciated on the first viewing. It is a deep and moving experience and must be savored, like a fine wine. The performances are truly amazing - the always remarkable Anthony Hopkins, Brad Pitt in, I think one of his finest roles, and a luminous Claire Forlani (without her accent), under, what I understand to be Martin Brest's somewhat perfectionist direction, is well worth however many takes it took to obtain this near perfect result.
Well worth a look - or twenty! |
| |
 "DVD of Meet Joe Black" | 2009-08-20 |
| - Reviewed By User: A12QDFDC9HLG5G |
| The quality and package are satified as it is the smae as the condition stated in the website. However, the charge for the product seling to oversea may be quite high. |
| |
| "Addictive, for all the right reasons." | 2009-06-15 |
| - Reviewed By sjthesame |
Meet Joe Black
I keep coming back to this DVD. It is uncomingly wise and illuminating as the characters interchange with each other. Joe Black, played very well by Brad Pitt, is Death, in human form. He wants to feel the experiences and learn about both the human person he has impersonates and the person (Hopkins) he come to deliver to the afterlife. Anthony Hopkins and Pitt, as well as Claire Fiorani, the beautiful daughter of Hopkins, perform exceedingly well in their roles. The ending brings the movie full circle, bringing to Claire what she thought had captured during their first meeting in the coffee shop. True love with a remarkably handsome man she met briefly, but indelibly at a coffee shop. This film brings out the best and the worst of the characters as the movie moves through all the challenges they meet. I've watched it many times and never tire of the remarkable performances and a script that suits them. Thank you for considering my opinion. S.Johnson
Meet Joe Black |
| |
| "Intelligent love story, a parable for the ages" | 2009-05-26 |
| - Reviewed By User: A303SHYVYWZCVR |
| Amazingly I didn't see this film until nearly 10 years after its release. It is a grand scale masterpiece. If you missed it, don't bother renting it...buy the DVD to rewatch and treasure with people you love. Superbly cast and wonderfully acted, with breathtaking cinematography and a beautiful musical score, Meet Joe Black is truly unforgetable. Take time out to really enjoy it without distraction. It envelopes you like a great book. Anthony Hopkins is simply fabulous. The scenes of him describing his wife and imparting love and wisdom to his daughters are deeply moving. Brad Pitt delivers an amazing, both tender and haunting performance as Death seeking a taste of love and life. Clare Forlarni is absolutey exquisite throughout. This is a smart love story that guys will enjoy as much as the ladies. |
| |
| "Death Takes a Holiday" | 2009-04-27 |
| - Reviewed By User: AVS8E0AHUZ27X |
| I bought this 2-disc "Ultimate Edition" of "Meet Joe Black" because Disc 2 contains the film upon which the Brad Pitt vehicle is based--1934's "Death Takes a Holiday," which stars Fredric March and Evelyn Venable. The old flick isn't for everyone, but I love it. It's not available by itself on DVD, so this is the only way to own a copy. And "Meet Joe Black" is a decent film in its own right. |
| |
| "Interesting - Occasionally brilliant - Could have used some judicious editing" | 2009-04-20 |
| - Reviewed By boatdoc@hotmail.com |
Death decides that he (she? it?) wants to experience life as a human being. He also wants a good tour guide. Death starts tracking Williams Parrish, an uber-wealthy, but apparently also uber good and moral and ethical businessman. When Bill Parrish's heart starts moving towards the final heart attack, Death inhabits Brad Pitt's body and gives Mr. Parrish the deal that as long as Death is entertained by Mr. Parrish, Death won't take Mr. Parrish to the great beyond.
Parrish is played by Anthony Hopkins, just a few years removed from "Silence of the Lambs" and "The Remains of the Day". This performance is critical to the movie, because you have to believe that with Kings and Queens and Captains of Science and Industry to choose from, Death would finally choose a guided tour from Bill Parrish than from, say, Gandhi or Donald Trump or Abraham Lincoln.
Parrish has two daughters. Marcia Gay Harden is Allison, the eldest daughter who is married to Jeffrey Tambor as Quince, an executive at Bill's company. Allison is type A and is putting the finishing touches on Bill's sixty-fifth birthday party - the kind of party with hundreds of guests that include the President. Quince is believable both as the kind of man who'd be married to Allison, as well as the kind of man who'd be on Bill's board of directors by merit rather than nepotism.
The second daughter is Susan, an Internal Medicine resident played by Claire Forlani. Susan is probably going to marry Drew, who is the Shark at Bill's company, and although Bill likes Drew at his company, he thinks that Susan should wait for lightning to strike rather than marry Drew because it seems a good match.
Susan met the man owning the Brad Pitt body at a coffee shop soon after getting the "lightning strike" advice from her father, and in a lengthy, drawn out scene, you get the idea that both Susan and the Brad Pitt Coffee Shop guy think lightning may be striking.
When Susan meets Death later on she is taken aback, not because she knows she is speaking to Death, but because the man with the Brad Pitt looks seems different from the man at the coffee shop.
After Death tells Bill the "rules" of their arrangement Bill realizes he can't just walk around and say "hello... I'd like you to meet my new friend, Death..." and improvises the name "Joe Black".
Many stories depend on the transformation of their characters, and sometimes one transformation is enough for a good story. In some ways "Meet Joe Black" is a little too ambitious because it tries to show Death's introduction to the human experience, complete with kissing and peanut butter, Bill's transformation toward the end of his life, Susan's acceptance of the need for "lightning", Allison's realization that she's not her father's favorite and Bill's Board of Directors learning that some business deals shouldn't happen.
Most of the films that run three hours earn that right. Theater turnovers and audience attention spans have made a two hour standard something that is rarely exceeded. Meet Joe Black clocks in at 2:58. The film has many awkward pauses - often in the character's dialogue - that don't advance the plot. A well timed and infrequent pause can heighten the dramatic tension. Too many and poorly timed pauses can make a 2:20 movie 2:58.
Still - the Mrs. and I enjoyed it. |
| |
![Meet Joe Black [HD DVD]](product_images/4932000/4932372-meet-joe-black-hd-dvd.jpg)
Expedited Available
![The Bourne Identity [HD DVD]](product_images/4932000/4932365_thumb.jpg)
![Check Prices on The Bourne Identity [HD DVD]](images/v2/check_prices.png)
![The Big Lebowski [HD DVD]](product_images/4925000/4925197_thumb.jpg)
![Dante's Peak [HD DVD]](product_images/4932000/4932369_thumb.jpg)
![300 (Combo HD DVD and Standard DVD) [HD DVD]](product_images/4932000/4932362_thumb.jpg)
![Pride & Prejudice [HD DVD]](product_images/4937000/4937891-pride-prejudice-hd-dvd_t.jpg)
![The Frighteners: Director's Cut [HD DVD]](product_images/4925000/4925199_thumb.jpg)
