When Death decides to take on the form of a human to live a few days, he grabs the nearest body he's taken and heads for his next appointment, a millionaire. After announcing the millionaire's impending doom, he promises to give him a few days to sort out his affairs, during which time Death will be his guest. However, things are complicated by the millionaire's daughter, who has already met the guy whose body Death has assumed, shortly before he died. As they become romantically attached, the millionaire becomes increasingly anxious. After all, who'd want Death as a son-in-law?

Brad Pitt, playing Death, appears to be mostly in his Interview with the Vampire mode here, very much the impassive observer. With Anthony Hopkins as the millionaire, we at least get a bit of class. Claire Forliani, the female lead, has a past career that consists of playing "Trish the Dish" in Mallrats and not much else, but manages never the less to play the object of Death's desires with style.

A bit over-extended at over three hours, Meet Joe Black gives a generous dollop of romance and whimsy (how else is one to describe a scene where Death gets enraptured by the simple joys of peanut butter?). However, the tale is told at a painfully slow pace, with an awful lot of drawn-out close ups of Brad Pitt's mug. For those of you who like that sort of thing, you'll like this sort of thing. Otherwise, you might find a better use for your time. [This film is also a remake of Death Takes a Holiday - Ed]