An almost perfect film...and a must see.

Rating: 10/10 (10 February 2005)

I am not one for romantic movies, but Meet Joe Black is a romantic film that brings tears to my eyes every time I see it. Not only does this film tenderly touch on the wonderment and grandeur of first love, but it tackles other such weighty issues as nobility in the face of treachery, grace under pressure, the importance of honor in keeping ones word when to go back on ones word would be far easier and of course the courage of coming to grips with ones own mortality. Ultimately, Meet Joe Black it is a film about what is best in humanity; what it means to be human.
I will not go into the plot of the film, but I do want to address the main review of this film listed above. I think the reviewer is missing the point of the film when he criticizes the writing and the casting of Brad Pitt in the main role.
First of all, the writing was excellent. Second, it was important for the character of Joe Black to be young for the story to work on all levels. Joe Black needed a mentor. Anthony Hopkins could not have mentored someone his own age. Moreover, Joe needed to fall in love for the first time, and it would have been less believable, and perhaps less palatable, for a man of Al Pacino's age to convey the angst of first love with any semblance of innocence. Claire Falani's character needed her suitor (Joe) to be young so that the romance could be seen as fresh and new, and so that the character of Bill Parrish could see Joe Black as a young man falling in love with his daughter. Brad Pitt's performance was elegant and perfect. His youth, contrasted with Hopkins elegance, makes the relationship between the two characters all the more peculiar and interesting to the other characters in the film, who are on the outside looking in.
The ending requires the viewer to fill in a few gaps somewhat, but if you can do that you will be hard pressed to find a more visually stunning and beautifully told story.