Meet Joe Black

PG-13

Released Nov 2, 1998

3h 0m

Fantasy

Romance

Drama

TRAILER

for Meet Joe Black: Trailer 1

List

46%

Tomatometer

52 Reviews

81%

Audience Score

100,000+ Ratings

Bill Parrish (Anthony Hopkins), businessman and devoted family man, is about to celebrate his 65th birthday. However, before he reaches that landmark, he is visited by Death (Brad Pitt), who has taken human form as Joe Black, a young man who recently died. Joe and Bill make a deal: Bill will be given a few extra days of his life, and Joe will spend the same time getting to know what it's like to be human. It seems like a perfect arrangement, until Joe falls in love -- with Bill's daughter.

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Critics Consensus

Meet Joe Black is pretty to look at and benefits from an agreeable cast, but that isn't enough to offset this dawdling drama's punishing three-hour runtime.

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Joe Clay

Times (UK)

[A] glossy but overlong update of Mitchell Leisen’s 1934 comedy Death Takes a Holiday.

Mar 28, 2023

Full Review

Lisa Alspector

Chicago Reader

A savory, extralong feature whose obvious plotlines unfold with an almost painful slowness that somehow makes them deeper.

Oct 26, 2020

Full Review

Ann Hornaday

Baltimore Sun

To call the three-hour-long "Meet Joe Black" leaden would do an injustice to lead.

Rated: 1/4

Oct 26, 2020

Full Review

David Oppedisano

Radio Times

This is Hollywood at the crossroads of glossy and classy, with Hopkins at the peak of his powers and Pitt at his most transcendent.

Rated: 4/5

Jun 7, 2024

Full Review

Brian Costello

Common Sense Media

A gimmicky premise is made even worse by iffy acting, hilariously bad dialogue, and a slow pace.

Jan 17, 2024

Full Review

Ade Adeniji

AdeAdeniji.com

Meet Joe Black was a box office flub back in the late 1990s. But the three hour fantasy-romance movie isn’t all bad and like other cult classics like The Room, is so confidently ridiculous at times, you won't soon forget it.

Rated: 3/5

Dec 20, 2022

Full Review

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Diane U

This movie had a profound impact on me! Anthony and Brad both gave excellent performances and if you truly participated in the storyline and connected, you could not help be moved by the intensity of the message. Brad was so believable in this role and he carried you with him. I can’t imagine where your mind had to be to portray “death” and yet he was so very believable. Those who gave negative reviews of his acting clearly never connected to the storyline and only watched from a distance.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/23/24

Full Review

Artknown U

Story and storytelling is a pure honesty. Every little emotion is broadcasted and delivered directly to the viewer. Claire Forlani is simply amazing, her dialogues with Brad Pitt are perfect example of ASMR, almost whispered in a very simple yet sensual textured manner. Perfect cast for a perfect rendition of a very old fairy tale ... and I'm not about Death Takes a Holiday

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/20/24

Full Review

Callie M

Just saw this for the first time in 2023 and have rewatched it with friends and family. It’s excellent and takes you back to the 90s.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/11/24

Full Review

auriel lovell g

Love the story. Amazing. The Acting is great too. I fell in love with Claire Forlani in this movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/12/24

Full Review

Susan Elaine S

Despite all the negatives... Anthony, Brad and Claire and so many good points in the show, make this a movie I love. Yes, the flaws are there but the positives keep it sooo good.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/12/24

Full Review

Richard S

Brilliant story, and fantastic acting.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/18/24

Full Review

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Martin Brest

Director

Brad Pitt

Joe Black

Anthony Hopkins

William Parrish

Claire Forlani

Susan Parrish

Jake Weber

Drew

Marcia Gay Harden

Allison

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Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - I Like You So Much

3:00

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Lightning Could Strike

2:58

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Mystery Man

2:30

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Joe Says Goodbye

2:51

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - That Was Wonderful

3:00

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Peanut Butter Man

2:23

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Bill Introduces Joe

1:53

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Am I Going to Die?

2:34

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Bill's Birthday Speech

1:35

Meet Joe Black: Official Clip - Undressing Joe Black

2:35

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Meet Joe Black: Trailer 1

2:26

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Synopsis

Bill Parrish (Anthony Hopkins), businessman and devoted family man, is about to celebrate his 65th birthday. However, before he reaches that landmark, he is visited by Death (Brad Pitt), who has taken human form as Joe Black, a young man who recently died. Joe and Bill make a deal: Bill will be given a few extra days of his life, and Joe will spend the same time getting to know what it's like to be human. It seems like a perfect arrangement, until Joe falls in love -- with Bill's daughter.

Director: Martin Brest
Producer: Martin Brest
Screenwriter: Ron Osborn, Jeff Reno, Bo Goldman
Distributor: Universal Pictures, MCA/Universal Pictures [us]
Production Co: Universal Pictures, City Lights Pictures
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Nov 2, 1998, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 18, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $44.6M
Runtime: 3h 0m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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