A gift of a film, in more ways than one.

Rating: 9/10 (29 May 1999)

One of the nicest things a movie can do for us is make us feel better about being alive, and this movie does a fine job of that. The quiet triumph of good over not-so-good, the affirmation of our faith in helping each other to meet life's challenges, and a genuinely sweet appreciation of the richness relationships bring to our lives, all combine to put Meet Joe Black in that special group of films we usually associate with the Christmas season. Special thanks to Sir Anthony Hopkins for yet another marvelous performance, and to the absolutely luminescent Claire Forlani for what is not so much a performance as a reason to fall in love.