Meet Joe Black
| Meet Joe Black | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Martin Brest Alan Smithee |
| Written by | Bo Goldman |
| Produced by | Martin Brest |
| Starring | Brad Pitt Anthony Hopkins Claire Forlani Jake Weber Marcia Gay Harden Jeffrey Tambor |
| Cinematography | Emmanuel Lubezki |
| Edited by | Joe Hutshing Michael Tronick |
| Music by | Thomas Newman |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date | November 13, 1998 |
Running time | Original cut 181 min. Alan Smithee cut 129 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $90 million |
| Box office | $142,940,100 |
Meet Joe Black is a 1998 remake of the 1934 film, Death Takes a Holiday, originally having been remade in 1971 under the same name as the original. Meet Joe Black stars Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins, and Claire Forlani. It was directed by Martin Brest.
Plot
Meet Joe Black is the story of Death taking a break from his usual duties and inhabiting the body of a recently deceased young man in order to learn of human experience.
The film covers three main story lines: a naive Angel of Death's (Brad Pitt) first experiences with simple pleasures such as peanut butter, Death's chosen guide's attempts to manage his business based on the principles on which he founded it, while coming to terms with his own mortality, and a romance between "Joe Black" and his guide's daughter, Susan (Claire Forlani).
The movie opens with an introduction to the guide, Bill Parrish (Anthony Hopkins), who doubts that he will live for many more years. Indeed, he is approached in his home and work by what he thinks are hallucinations, wherein Death himself has come with the intention of escorting him to the afterlife.
Bill, touched by his dream-like brush with mortality, expresses his desire for his daughter, Susan, to live a life with passion. She is considering marriage, but her father is not favorably impressed by her relationship. When she asks for the short version of his impassioned speech, he simply says, "Stay open. Who knows? Lightning could strike!"
Shortly after hearing this advice, Susan meets a vibrant young man, who quotes a similar philosophy about lightning, and with whom she is instantly enamored. Immediately after this encounter, turning the corner from Susan, the young man is struck in a dramatic car accident. Death returns to Bill's home in the form of the young man, explaining that his impassioned speech has piqued his (Death's) interest after an eternity of boredom. Thanks to Bill's "competence, experience and wisdom," Death has chosen him and tells Bill that in return for an extended lifetime, Bill shall be his guide on Earth. In return Bill will "get time; minutes, days, weeks. Let's not get encumbered by detail... what matters is that I stay interested."
Death places himself at Bill's right hand, taking the persona of 'Joe Black' and establishing his place in Bill's home and work, instructing Bill to reveal his identity to nobody. This last task is complicated when the Board of Directors of Bill's media empire are urging for a union with a larger company, under the instigation of Susan's fiancée, Drew (Jake Weber). After a tense Board meeting wherein Bill advises the Board against the merger, Joe ventures into the city to explore. He visits the hospital where Susan works as a doctor to see her and in doing so, observes the human aspect of mortality, which was apparently unknown to him. A dying patient, who recognized Joe as Death, tells him she is in pain and begs him to take her. He grants her reprieve from the pain and promises to take her afterward.
He returns to visit Bill, who describes his late wife and adds that he believed himself incapable of living without her after her death. He says to Joe that he had probably heard this "a trillion times before," to which Joe responds, "...and more." Their conversation is interrupted by Drew who is bothered by the reversal of Bill's decision regarding the merger. Bill becomes angry at the prospect of the company that he built becoming less than he planned, believing that a man should leave something of integrity in his passing, whereupon Joe cautions "Easy, Bill; You'll give yourself a heart attack and ruin my vacation."
Realizing that Joe could end his delay at any time, Bill arranges for dinner with his family two nights in a row, raising concerns. Bill attempts a broken and awkward speech focusing on the idea of family, after which he invites them all back for dinner again the next night. Touched by his feelings, they all agree, with one exception; that being Drew, who is angered by the presence of Joe Black, who appears to have taken the ear of Bill Parrish and disrupted Drew's plans. He is even more rankled by the increasing closeness between Susan and Joe. After a number of snide comments aimed at Joe over dinner, Drew confronts Susan about her feelings for Joe, which ends in Drew's uncertainty.
After a flirtatious conversation with Joe, who has overheard the argument with Drew, Susan is warned by Bill not to become attached to this mysterious stranger. During the next day, Drew has gathered the board of the company, advising them that Parrish has been unconditionally influenced by "Mr. Joe Black" and telling them that the offer from the rival company has been sweetened and will be accepted with or without Parrish as Chairman.
After a scene wherein Parrish is reminded of the virtue of family when he distresses his other daughter, Allison (Marcia Gay Harden), who is trying to organize Bill's sixty-fifth birthday party, he answers the door to Drew, who starkly threatens that the Board will see him removed over the acceptance of the merger. Drew then leaves, angrily announcing to Susan that this is "the end of my chapter with the Parrishes. And the end began with this guy," indicating Joe, who has also followed. After a tense and crude standoff, Drew leaves Susan and Joe alone. The pair become romantically close; after kissing her, Joe realizes that he has reached a pivotal moment in his relationship with this mortal woman. They are interrupted by Bill, who shows concern for his daughter.
The following morning, Parrish is confronted by Drew and the Board of Directors, who reiterate their intentions regarding the merger. After Bill's emphatic refusal to accept both the merger and the Board's request for the identity of Joe, they vote to make Bill "Chairman Emeritus," powerless and dethroned. After the meeting, it is revealed that Drew was in collaboration with the rival company from the start, with the intention of seizing power and then selling off Parrish Communications for a huge profit.
Bill and Joe return home, where Bill, disheartened, goes for a nap. Joe comes across Susan; after an awkward moment, they make love. In the heat of the moment, Joe experiences these tender feelings with fresh eyes. Afterwards, he tells her of his intention to stay with her. He meets with Bill, who defies this union and reminds Joe of who he really is and his purpose in the universe. Joe disregards Bill's violent words.
Shortly after another encounter with Bill's daughter, Joe realizes that she is not enamored exactly of him, but rather of the man whose body he has assumed. Joe returns to Bill, where he "reveals" he is actually an IRS agent investigating Drew's dealings; a play on the saying "death and taxes." Bill is restored as chairman and the merger is canceled.
In his speech at the lavish gala celebration, Bill Parrish fondly expresses his appreciation to his daughters for their work preparing it as well as his love for both of them. Joe later escorts Bill out of sight over a nearby bridge, presumably to his own death. Joe then sends back to life the young man whose body he borrowed, allowing Susan that chance to finally pursue a relationship with him. Susan tells him she wishes he could have met her father, indicating that she understands that Black was Death, and that her father is dead. The story ends as both of them are watching the fireworks celebrating her father's birthday.
Cast
- Brad Pitt as Joe Black / Young Man in Coffee Shop
- Anthony Hopkins as William "Bill" Parrish
- Claire Forlani as Susan Parrish
- Jake Weber as Drew
- Marcia Gay Harden as Allison Parrish
- Jeffrey Tambor as Quince
Reception
Although the film's story and character's were praised highly, many critics felt it's three hour running time was excessive, and thus reaction became mixed, with half of the critical spectrum branding it boring, while the other half felt that it's slow pace made the story more poignant.[citation needed] The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films nominated it for a Saturn Award in three categories - Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Music - the film was also nominated in the Worst Remake or Sequel category at the Razzie Awards. Gary Richied of the Westchester Gazette gave the movie a 4 star rating, citing the Academy Award deserving performances by Pitt and Hopkins. It also received positive reviews from Siskel and Ebert, who gave it "Two Thumbs Up", with Ebert adding "there's so much that's fine in this movie."[1]
While the film had a disappointing domestic box office return of $44,619,100, it fared much better overseas. Taking in an additional $98,321,000, the movie grossed a worldwide total of $142,940,100.
A two-hour version was made to show on television and airline flights, by cutting most of the plotline involving Hopkins' character's business. Brest disowned it, and the director's credit was changed to Alan Smithee.
References
External links
