The Grim Reaper On Sabbatical

Rating: 8/10 (28 May 2008)

The old Paramount classic Death Takes A Holiday gets a stylish turn of the 21st century remake, Meet Joe Black with Brad Pitt as the grim reaper himself taking a sabbatical to experience what he deprives everyone of, ultimately. The story has been updated from Italy during World War I to America in the new age of information.
The guy who benefits for a short while is multimillionaire media tycoon Anthony Hopkins who is approaching his 65th birthday. He's a widower with two daughters, Marcia Gay Harden who is married to Jeffrey Tambor and Clare Forlani who's in love with love. In fact at the beginning of the film Clare who is a doctor has a chance meeting with Brad Pitt just before he's rundown in a busy New York street and the pale horseman takes over his body.
It's a good thing Hopkins got this reprieve because there's some real nasty double-dealing taking place in his firm. His young right hand man, Jake Weber, is looking to affect a merger with another conglomerate that would ruin all that Hopkins has built in his life. But Weber of course hasn't the slightest idea who Hopkins's new ally is. Let alone the resources he can bring to bear.
Meet Joe Black is a fine film which has a lot to say about the meaning of life and how important it is to use that time on earth in mortal form to become the best you can be. Pitt and Hopkins have very good chemistry and Webber is one of the slimier villains ever put on film.
And see how it all works out for everyone in the end. In fact that's the real message of Meet Joe Black, it all does work out in the end.