Meet Joe Black (1998)

[Adam_ME]

Originally Posted by BillyJack

l

you dont like it, yet you have Bev Hills Cop in your collection

I said it was overrated. I didn't say it sucked. Beverly Hills Slop III on the other hand....

[StrayButler91]

I got the Meet Joe Black Aussie Blu-ray, and the transfer (I imagine it's the same as the UK one) really isn't that good... The disc has all the SD extras (save Death Takes A Holiday), but the video quality is lacklustre. It's clear they used the old DVD master which clearly wasn't sourced from the original negative, as it's not very sharp.

I hope Universal produces a fresh, clean, impressive transfer for the film's Stateside Blu-ray. I'd definitely import and replace my Aussie Blu-ray if they do a worthwhile job. And I don't know why they wouldn't, as they've been doing a lot of impressive restoring lately, and they've been bragging about it on YouTube.

[VanDammage80]

It was recently playing on Netflix in HD and it looked good. Always really liked this movie...very underrated. I'll be picking it up for sure.

[Brad1963]

Martin Brest's ego murdered this film. He felt it should have been epic and scope by making it almost 3 hours. A film like this needed to have a shorter edit and should have been smaller and more intimate.

[obriensg1]

I'm not sure that's true. I first saw Meet Joe Black on cable back in about 2005. I was channel surfing with my father and it was starting. I'd heard about it and we watched it. Now I'm a poor sleeper so I try to go to bed early, especially then when I was still in high school. The movie sucked us both in.

I like that it doesn't rush. Yeah, it's 3 hours. I didn't feel that in my first viewing. This was before we had a DVR. When the movie was over we looked at the clock stunned that it was midnight and we had 7 hours till getting up for school and work respectively lol.

It's about the dialogue. I wish that the Joe character were a bit smarter about some things, and perhaps a bit more ominous, but it's my favorite Hopkins performance. He is perfect. Smart, compassionate, and wise. I love absorbing all the little moments of character and conversations. Great flick. Not perfect, but still in my tops. Also, a beautiful score by Thomas Newman.

"That Next Place" (Meet Joe Black)

Thomas Newman - That Next Place - YouTube

[Atreyu]

Just pre ordered this, hope Universal doesn't mess it up.

[randibean]

this one of my favorite movie,, soon will go to my collection..

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by Robert Siegel

What a coincidence. Four days ago, after waiting so long I just got my copy from the U.K. Beautiful transfer. I wonder if they will have any extras? The UK has none. This is one of my favorite romantic movies. My all-time favorite has yet to be released, Somewhere in Time.

I have a feeling that, at this preorder price point for a Universal title that's new to blu-ray, the suite of extras will be slender indeed. I'm glad to see, though, that the transfer is solid.

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by HD Goofnut

Another date to add to the HD DVD list.

Yes, one more Universal HD-DVD-only title to strike off the list. The Deer Hunter is another.

Now I want Universal to give us Talk to Me and, most of all, The Pianist. I'm still surprised at how long it has taken the studio to transition the HD-DVD titles to blu.

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by ctyank

Yay! Very happy to see this coming out soon... Glad to hear the UK version had a strong transfer. hope ours does too... I've worried a little that the length of the film (180 mins!) might become an issue. I wonder about the extras. I have the ultimate edition DVD. The extras are lame except for the inclusion of Death Takes a Holiday. Doubt well see that on the blu.

Well, I'm hoping that at Death Takes a Holiday is included with this blu — just like Universal included (albeit in SD) the original, Howard Hawkes version of Scarface on the Brian De Palma version it released on blu last year.

Again, I have a feeling that, at this price point, there won't be any extras aside from what was on that ultimate edition DVD you mentioned. But, then again, who knows?

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by Michael Bay Fan

I've never seen the movie, but i remember it and wasn't it a box office failure after putting alot of money into it? Not saying a movie has to make money to be good, but i remember alot of talk of it after it came out.

You should perhaps rent it (after it comes out on blu, of course ) to see if it's you're cup of tea. Despite the fact that it's a fantasy, there aren't really any special effects, flashy set pieces or any other blockbuster-like trappings. The entire story is told from in a more realistic approach and is rather nuanced and low-key. Brad Pitt is also in a more down-to-earth, serious mode here, unlike in many of his other performances, especially from around that time in his career. All that may bore some people but I've always appreciated the fact that this film, with its fantasy central premise — along with its other elements that allow it to also fit into other genres — carries itself in that way.

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by obriensg1

I'm not sure that's true. I first saw Meet Joe Black on cable back in about 2005. I was channel surfing with my father and it was starting. I'd heard about it and we watched it. Now I'm a poor sleeper so I try to go to bed early, especially then when I was still in high school. The movie sucked us both in.

I like that it doesn't rush. Yeah, it's 3 hours. I didn't feel that in my first viewing. This was before we had a DVR. When the movie was over we looked at the clock stunned that it was midnight and we had 7 hours till getting up for school and work respectively lol.

It's about the dialogue. I wish that the Joe character were a bit smarter about some things, and perhaps a bit more ominous, but it's my favorite Hopkins performance. He is perfect. Smart, compassionate, and wise. I love absorbing all the little moments of character and conversations. Great flick. Not perfect, but still in my tops. Also, a beautiful score by Thomas Newman.

"That Next Place" (Meet Joe Black)
Thomas Newman - That Next Place - YouTube

Yes, I also like that the film was not afraid to take its time to tell its story. My feeling is that a film shouldn't be required to fit into the 90 to 120 minute "standard" running time. Take as much time as necessary to comfortably tell the story, even if it is substantially longer — or, for that matter, shorter — than usual.

[EPOCH]

Claire Forlani as hot as she get's plus a original story day one for me!

[HD Goofnut]

Originally Posted by BluPix

Yes, one more Universal HD-DVD-only title to strike off the list. The Deer Hunter is another.

Now I want Universal to give us Talk to Me and, most of all, The Pianist. I'm still surprised at how long it has taken the studio to transition the HD-DVD titles to blu.

I'm not. This is Universal we're talking about. The part that makes you scratch your head is why many of their HD DVDs have no DNR while the respective BDs do.

[antpic14]

FINALLY. I've been waiting a long time for this one. Never understood why it's so underrated and why Claire Forlani never got lead actress roles after this
Anyways, hopefully it gets proper blu ray treatment!

[Adam_ME]

Originally Posted by antpic14

FINALLY. I've been waiting a long time for this one. Never understood why it's so underrated and why Claire Forlani never got lead actress roles after this

Probably because Meet Joe Black tanked. And she did actually get some lead roles, but unfortunately they were in crapfests like Antitrust and Boys & Girls. Couple that with supporting roles in bombs like Mystery Men(a movie I liked BTW), and it's no wonder her career stagnated.

[antpic14]

Originally Posted by Adam_ME

Probably because Meet Joe Black tanked. And she did actually get some lead roles, but unfortunately they were in crapfests like Antitrust and Boys & Girls. Couple that with supporting roles in bombs like Mystery Men(a movie I liked BTW), and it's no wonder her career stagnated.

That's true. Another one i remember her in was that Jackie Chan movie, The Medallion - another bomb. I can't help but think Meet Joe Black would have had a better turn out had it been released present day. General audiences seem to be more open to fantasy based films nowadays.

[slimdude]

Originally Posted by antpic14

That's true. I can't help but think Meet Joe Black would have had a better turn out had it been released present day. General audiences seem to be more open to fantasy based films nowadays.

Not if it's 3 hours! Considering Meet Joe Black subject matter, the movie didn't warranted a 3 hour running time. Even two hours would've been too long for that type of a film.

[mr. b]

I have not watched Meet Joe Black from start to finish in quite some time, but I did catch most of it on cable not too long ago, and I've always enjoyed it, even with it's 3 hour long timeframe. I like the character development, and Hopkins, Pitt, and Forlani were all great in this one. I think Pitt did a great job of portraying Death in human form, and Hopkins is well . . . brilliant. There were moments in the movie were I couldn't help but be mesmerized by Forlani's eyes. I just don't know if I'd enjoy this one as much if it was cut down to 2 hours. I'm sure some of the main elements of the movie and basic storyline would still be there, but I just don't think all the characters fleshed out during the course of the 3 hour movie would play out well if it was cut down. I'm an action and sci-fi movie junkie, and for me, keeping me intrigued in a movie for 3 hours with nothing blowing up, catching fire, or being ripped to shreds in steady intervals is hard to do. I'm looking forward to getting this on blu, and if it doesn't include all the extras from the UE DVD, I'll just add the dvd's to the blu-ray to make it a complete set.

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by mr. b

I have not watched Meet Joe Black from start to finish in quite some time, but I did catch most of it on cable not too long ago, and I've always enjoyed it, even with it's 3 hour long timeframe. I like the character development, and Hopkins, Pitt, and Forlani were all great in this one. I think Pitt did a great job of portraying Death in human form, and Hopkins is well . . . brilliant. There were moments in the movie were I couldn't help but be mesmerized by Forlani's eyes. I just don't know if I'd enjoy this one as much if it was cut down to 2 hours. I'm sure some of the main elements of the movie and basic storyline would still be there, but I just don't think all the characters fleshed out during the course of the 3 hour movie would play out well if it was cut down. I'm an action and sci-fi movie junkie, and for me, keeping me intrigued in a movie for 3 hours with nothing blowing up, catching fire, or being ripped to shreds in steady intervals is hard to do. I'm looking forward to getting this on blu, and if it doesn't include all the extras from the UE DVD, I'll just add the dvd's to the blu-ray to make it a complete set.

^ This.

While its running time is about three hours, I also was never bored in the slightest. As I said earlier, I love how it takes its time to thoroughly develop its characters. It's a fantasy but one primarily driven by characters — not set pieces, stunts, pyrotechnics, camera trickery, rapid-fire editing, special effects wizardry or anything else of the like. Just solid storytelling, acting, directing and craft. It's a film that's very much underrated.