Meet Joe Black — a Film That Asks the Question What If Death Fell for the Living
Anthony Hopkins, Brad Pitt, a brilliant soundtrack and a highly unique premise
I’m going to say straight off the bat that this is basically a three-hour-long love story of sorts, but it is an extraordinarily “unique” love story — and I’m a big fan of it.
It was released back in 1998 and is one of those films that sits in the middle ground of critical responses. What is interesting is that some love it while others rate it blah. The question is which is it?
The story is loosely based on the 1934 classic novel: Death Takes a Holiday. What is interesting about its translation to the big screen is that Martin Brest — who directed the film — made clear in interviews that it took him years to bring the story to life, mainly because he struggled to find a way to make the premise work on screen. Over a decade or so the script went through eight different writers before Brest finally settled on one.
