Tangled Movie Review

There seems to have been something of a decline in “girl movies” over the past couple of years. I haven’t seen as many movies with female protagonists. It makes me wonder if some writers are afraid of incurring the wrath of feminists if they use a young woman as a dainty, ladylike hero. Tiana in Princess and the Frog (2009) was a workaholic, resolute on making her dreams come true herself. She was a delightful and refreshing character, and I hope she helped set a standard for female protagonists and other “girl movies.” I think it is thanks to Tiana (and a few other independent-minded Disney Princesses) that we were given a complex, compelling, intelligent, and self-sufficient protagonist in Disney’s Tangled (2010).

The infant Rapunzel, born to a king and queen, received healing powers from a magical flower at birth. Baby Rapunzel is kidnapped by Mother Gothel (Donna Murphy). Gothel knows that the flower’s magic now resides in Rapunzel’s golden hair. To use this magic and remain young, Gothel locks Rapunzel in an isolated tower and raises the baby as her own. Years later, Rapunzel (Mandy Moore) is now a teenager, and her hair has grown 70-feet long. She has been held in the tower all her life, and is naturally curious about the world outside. One day, Flynn Rider (Zachary Levi) scales the tower while escaping the Royal Guard after stealing some of the crown jewels from the castle. Rapunzel strikes a deal with the charming thief to act as her guide and take her to see where the floating lights come from that she has seen every year on her birthday. Flynn tries to steer them away from the Royal Guard and other thugs he’s crossed while Rapunzel agonizes over disobeying Gothel by leaving the tower. When Gothel discovers Rapunzel is gone, she unfurls a deceitful plot to lure her back with a guilt trip rife with lies and plans to lock Rapunzel up for good.

Tangled is mostly character driven, and it has some great, fun characters. Rapunzel is bright, talented, cute, and independent. She has been lied to and manipulated all of her life by Gothel into being afraid of the world and distrusting of people. When she plucks up the courage to leave the tower, she is tormented by inner conflict; she is overcome with the joy of adventuring beyond the tower and experiencing new things, while also being overwhelmed by guilt and shame from disobeying Gothel whom she believes is her mother. In fact, the only real reason Rapunzel thinks she needs Flynn is because of the “dangers” Gothel warns her about; ruffians, thugs, poison ivy, quicksand, cannibals, snakes, and the plague. As she grows to realize the world isn’t as she was taught it is, Rapunzel’s self confidence and independence blossoms, making her all the more interesting.

Gothel was a really good, nasty villain. Most villains are undoubtedly bad, but Gothel is downright evil. I kept expecting her to whip out some magic spells or a hidden power of some kind, but she didn’t. All she had was lies, deceit, and manipulation; but these were used so well that she was still a formidable force to be reckoned with.

Tangled is also humor driven. This movie is absolutely hysterical! Every character, even the villains, get funny lines. The humor is very diverse; puns, jokes, exaggerated expressions, and plenty of slapstick is delivered at regular intervals. In one scene a horse from the Royal Guard has a short sword in his mouth by the hilt and is attempting to attack Flynn who is defending himself with a frying pan; Flynn quips, “This is the strangest thing I have ever done in my entire life!”

The art direction in this film was gorgeous. A lot of the scenery and architecture had Germanic-Gothic influences; everything from the Royal castle, to the town’s buildings, to the style of clothing the characters wore. Not only did it give the movie an old romantic fairy tale quality, but it also heralds back to the German setting where The Brothers Grimm originally found the classic story of Rapunzel.

Tangled is a CGI animated feature, and while the characters did have some very cartoon-ish qualities in their movements, they also seemed to have very natural movements that fit within the setting. All the characters had very large eyes that reminded me of Anime characters. One of the more interesting scenes is near the end when Rapunzel has returned to the tower, and she is piecing together subtle little clues around the tower coupled with the information she has learned outside. The way they visually depict Rapunzel’s thought processes without dialogue and without a flashback slideshow was really interesting. Not only did this develop the plot, but it still depicted Rapunzel as an intelligent young woman; not a naive ditz who must rely on others to solve her problems.

Tangled was a great movie that had progressive attitudes about female protagonists, fantastic animation, fun characters, a good story, and was highly entertaining. I’d recommend this to anyone; young girls will like the princess fairy tale, young boys will enjoy the action scenes, teens and adults will enjoy the story, and everyone will enjoy humor and the musical numbers that are hallmark of Disney classics. I’m sure that Walt Disney would have been proud of this production. I want to get a copy of this for my personal collection; it is certainly one worth owning.

Snatch Movie Review

Snatch (2000) showed up in the mail from NetFlix the other day. I don’t remember ever hearing about it. I have no idea how it got onto my queue; it wasn’t even on my movie list. It was directed by Guy Ritchie, who directed the recent Sherlock Holmes movies (2009, 2011) with Robert Downey Jr., which I liked. Snatch had Brad Pitt in it, so I decided to give it a shot.

Set in the London underworld, unscrupulous boxing promoters, violent bookmakers, a Russian gangster, incompetent amateur robbers, and a supposedly Jewish jeweler fight to track down a priceless stolen diamond. Turkish (Jason Statham), an unlicensed boxing promoter, and his accomplice Tommy (Stephen Graham) get drawn into the world of match fixing by the notorious Brick Top (Alan Ford). Things become complicated when the boxer they had lined up gets hospitalized by Mickey O'Neil (Brad Pitt), a “piker” (slang for an Irish Gypsy) who comes into the equation after Turkish tries to buy a trailer off the Irish Gypsies. They then try to convince Mickey not only to fight for them, but to lose for them too. Whilst all this is going on, a huge diamond heist takes place, and a gang of motley characters enter the story, including 'Cousin Avi' (Dennis Farina), 'Boris The Blade' (Rade Serbedzija), 'Franky Four Fingers' (Benicio Del Toro), and 'Bullet Tooth Tony' (Vinnie Jones). Things continuously get worse and it all boils down to the money, the guns, and the stupid dog.

 Snatch is a crime movie. There really isn’t a protagonist in this film; it’s all about a large number of deceitful characters with Dick Tracy-like names fighting, crossing, double crossing, and triple crossing one another as they all compete for the big diamond stolen at the opening of the film. The story line gets so complicated that it’s difficult to follow and keep up with who is allied in any given scene. There’s quite a bit of humor in this movie, usually caused by the characters themselves getting mixed up over who they are trying to rip off.  If the characters can’t even keep up with the story, how is the audience supposed to? Each scene is pretty well done, and usually funny, but the way the scenes are strung together seems a bit awkward. I suppose the chaos, confusion, and resulting humor was the focus of this film, rather than the story. If that is the case, the movie achieves this quite well.

Brad Pitt has been great in most everything I’ve seen him in, and he really steals the show in Snatch. He plays an Irish Gypsy who talks fast and mumbled with an almost unintelligible thick accent that is an odd blend of Irish and British. That’s pertinent to his character, since Gypsies are fast talking con-men; the less you understand about the bargain, the easier it is for them to twist it to their advantage. It’s a running gag throughout the film that when Mickey says something, the other characters haven’t got a clue what he just said. You can’t really appreciate Pitt’s hysterical lines and accent without actually seeing the movie itself. Here's a clip to help illustrate:

  

Snatch is rated R for strong violence, language, and some nudity. The nudity is fairly covert, taking the form of “adult” playing cards in one scene. The violence wasn’t very graphic; most of it takes place off screen leaving us primarily with blood splatter images. I have not seen a movie drop the F-bomb this frequently since I saw Apocalypse Now (1979). This didn’t bother me much since I hear it at least as often at work, but it will likely offend some viewers who are not inundated with profanity on a regular basis.

Snatch was not really bad for a movie, just convoluted and a bit tricky to follow. I’m really not sure where the movie was trying to go; even the closing scene seemed like it was going to lead into another scene, but it ended instead. The humor seemed to be the drive in the movie, and it was pretty hilarious. I can’t really recommend the movie though. After the movie I was left thinking, “Well, what was the point of that?” It’s worth a few chuckles, but that’s all.

Hairspray Movie Review

I’ve heard that Hollywood musicals are making a comeback, but the only recent Hollywood musicals that I can think of are Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008) and Across the Universe (2007). The other musicals that have hit theaters are movie versions of Broadway musicals; not true Hollywood musicals. Hairspray (2007), directed by Adam Shankman, is based off of a Broadway musical, which itself was based off of a non-musical movie by John Waters. This third telling of the story is teeming with energy and fun.

In 1962 Maryland, Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) is brimming with joy as she wakes up for school, singing “Good morning, Baltimore!” Tracy is an overweight teenager who knows all the latest dance moves. She and her friend Penny Pingleton (Amanda Bynes) live for the moment when school lets out to race home and watch “The Corny Collins” show, the local teenage TV dance show, with their favorite dancer Link Larkin (Zac Efron). Tracy’s mother, Edna (John Travolta), doesn’t approve of the show. But when tryouts for the show are announced, Tracy’s father, Wilbur (Christopher Walken), tells her to go for it and reach for the stars. Initially turned down by the TV station’s racist manager, Velma Von Tussle (Michelle Pfeiffer) and her daughter Amber Von Tussle (Brittany Snow), Tracy’s dance moves later catch the eye of both Link Larkin and Corny Collins (James Marsden). When Tracy makes it onto the show, she begins a crusade to end the show’s “Negro Day,” hosted by Motormouth Maybelle (Queen Latifah), and fully integrate the show with black and white dancers. The Von Tussels fight tooth and manicured nail to keep the show a “whites only” program. Equal rights, gaining self-respect, social change, and overcoming racism and bigotry are all tackled with catchy musical numbers and energetic dancing.

This is Nikky Blonsky’s very first movie. In fact, she went from working at a Cold Stone Creamery ice cream store to starring in a major motion picture with big name actors. She does a fantastic job for her first role. Hairspray is a deliriously fun, happy, and energetic movie, primarily because Nikky Blonsky was at the heart of the film. She’s positively adorable, and exudes happiness and joy throughout the film. You can’t help but get swept up in her optimism and smile along with her. No wonder Link fell head over heels for her.

The all star cast was fantastic, but John Travolta was particularly interesting. Holding true to tradition, Edna Turnblad is played by a man. It was unexpected to see the masculine Travolta playing a woman, particularly a heavy set one. He even manages sound like a woman when he speaks. Edna is an insecure woman who is hasn’t left the house in years because she is self-conscious about her weight, but she has a big heart and is every bit as endearing as Tracy. I don’t see many John Travolta films, but this seems to be a very counter typecast role for him, and he does a great job. I have to praise the costume designers, too. Travolta’s hourglass-like fat suit was pretty convincing.

The art direction was fantastic. The set designs were amazing; they really pulled off the feel of the early 1960’s. This was before The Beatles, Vietnam, and the hippie movement, so most things looked clean and sensational; a lot like they were in the 1950’s. Clothing, color schemes, hair styles, cars, even large outdoor sets really made it feel like we are stepping back in time. Everything was stylized with lots of glitz and glamour, just like many graphic designs were in the early 60’s. Television was influential in that decade and was often visible in the background or was the focal point transitioning between scenes in this movie.

Lastly, the music in this movie was enjoyable. The opening number really draws you in and then doesn’t let go. All of the songs are engaging, the upbeat songs, slow songs, exciting songs, and romantic songs; all of them are memorable and fun. In many musicals there are story and character development interrupted by everyone bursting into song and dance. This is highly unrealistic, by any stretch of the imagination. But in the context of Hairspray, it seems much more natural since music and dance are major components to the plot and characters. I’ve seen some musicals where the songs are so similar to each other in terms of tempo, beat, and rhythm that it seems like you’re listening to the same song for two hours. Not so with Hairspray. The songs remain diverse and fun. The music doesn’t really let you go until after the grand finale. Even then, you’re still so engaged that you want to listen to the songs during the closing credits.

I love Hairspray! It’s so much fun to watch! It has good characters, great actors, fun songs, great art direction, clever humor, and a good story about overcoming discrimination in terms of race and appearance. Hairspray is a good selection for a family movie night; I think it’s worth owning. I have a copy of Hairspray on Blu-Ray on my movie shelf. I pull it out to watch after a rough day and I feel much better afterwards. You can’t help but feel happy watching it.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice Movie Review

In the wondrous world of marketing, a title becomes grounds for several different media types. For example, the book Eragon by Christopher Paolini hit shelves in 2003, and then a movie hit theaters in 2006; then in the wake of the movie an Eragon video game was released on several game systems. Do not play video games based on a movie based on a book; they are all lousy! I have never before seen a chain of “based on” titles that originated with 18^th century classical music. The Sorcerer's Apprentice, directed by Jon Turteltaub, is a movie based on Disney’s Fantasia (1940) segment, which was based on a late 1890s symphonic poem by Paul Dukas and the 1797 Johann Wolfgang von Goethe ballad.

The story starts off in 740 AD when one of Merlin’s apprentices, Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina), betrays Merlin and joins evil sorceress Morgana le Fay (Alice Krige). Morgana mortally wounds Merlin before being stopped by another apprentice, Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage), who imprisons Morgana in the Grimhold, a magic prison similar to a nesting doll. Before dying, Merlin gives Balthazar a dragon ring that will identify the Prime Merlinean, Merlin's successor who will be the only one able to defeat Morgana. Throughout history Balthazar imprisons other Morganians, including Horvath, into successive layers on the Grimhold while searching for Merlin’s successor. Balthazar finally finds him in 2010, a young physics student named Dave Stutler (Jay Baruchel). Dave had accidentally released Horvath from the Grimhold a few years prior, and he now hunts down Dave to locate the Grimhold and release Morgana. Should Morgana be released, she intends to revive all the dead Morganians and destroy the world. Balthazar must find the Grimhold before Horvath does, and train Dave in the ways of science and magic so that Dave can become a true sorcerer and save the world.

This movie is so dreadfully formulaic that attempting to expound upon the characters or storyline would be redundant. It’s almost as though Disney has this one story and set of characters that they keep using for different movies. You can accurately predict what each scene will accomplish and even what the following scene will be.  Seriously, you have seen this movie and these characters before. I’m deliriously in love with the idea of fantasy elements in a modern world setting, and this movie does have that going for it. Horvath was a pretty nasty villain, but with the movie being rated PG. You know he’s not really going to follow through with his dastardly threats; people rarely die in PG movies. One of the better parts of the movie was when Dave tries to bring to life some brooms and mops to clean his physics lab, which has similar results to Mickey Mouse’s dilemma in Fantasia. This whole movie concept may have started with the idea of making a live action adaptation of that Mickey Mouse classic.

So why watch The Sorcerer’s Apprentice? Because it is really fun! The story and characters were terrible, but the visual effects were highly creative and entertaining. There was a constantly changing variety of magic being used; some were subtle like unfolding a gigantic spell book from a tiny pocket size square, to transforming a Chinatown Dragon Dance puppet into a real dragon. It was very exciting. I also liked how magic was developed as being similar to science. To get something to light up in flames, you had to focus on making the molecules speed up, creating heat, which sets something on fire. My favorite scene was the chase scene through New York City; there were creative, unexpected magical stunts were thrown at each other at rapid-fire speeds. The movie kept you guessing as to what abstract visuals they were going to pull on each other next. That kept the movie fresh and fun to watch.

This movie was not a profound example of meaningful cinema. The story and characters in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice were really weak, but the creative implementation of magic kept it interesting and fun. It was predictable, but the visuals kept you guessing. This is a great movie for a family movie night; kids will love it and adults will enjoy it too, if they aren’t too put off by the formulaic storytelling. It’s a renter, but I may get a copy just because I like fantasy in a modern setting so much.


Is there a movie you’ve seen that was good only because the special effects were impressive? What was it? Comment below and tell me all about it!

Dark Water Movie Review

I don’t like categorizing films according to genre. It’s an oversimplified way of describing a film and it tends to besmirch any movie that doesn’t have a solid absolute category into which it fits. Horror movies seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from the viewers by playing on their fears. Psychological horror movies rely on character's fears, guilt, beliefs, and emotional instability to build tension. Dark Water (2005), directed by Walter Salles, definitely pulls this off. Dark Water is an American remake of Japanese film by Hideo Nakata, who also inspired the Ring (1998) movie, which also has an American remake.

Dahlia Williams (Jennifer Connelly) and her daughter Cecelia (Ariel Gade) move into a rundown apartment on New York's Roosevelt Island. She is currently in midst of divorce proceedings with her husband Kyle (Dougray Scott). The apartment, though near an excellent school for her daughter, is all she can afford. From the time she arrives, there are mysterious occurrences and there is a constant drip of dark water from the ceiling in her daughter's bedroom. There are also the noises coming from the apartment directly above hers, though it appears to be vacant. The manager Mr. Murray (John C. Reilly) seems blissfully oblivious to the strange things going on in his building, and the superintendant Mr. Veeck (Pete Postlethwaite) seems to want to ignore or evade the problem. Is the apartment haunted, or is Dahlia’s emotional distress getting to her?

Horror movies often have a female protagonist who ends up being the last one alive to confront the antagonist. This “Final Girl” is a horror movie trope can be seen in many horror movies; Friday the 13^th (1980), A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), Alien (1979) , and The Ring (2002) to name a few. Interestingly, Dark Water doesn’t have this character. Dahlia is just a simple woman who still struggles to overcome some childhood trauma wrought by an alcoholic mother. Dahlia tries to make ends meet, and support her daughter, and live within her means. She is a very natural character that anyone could relate to who, by some fluke, is confronted with the supernatural. Given Dahlia’s weaknesses and fear of abandonment, we are left to wonder if she will allow her daughter to be endangered. I couldn’t help but care about Jennifer Connelly’s character.

A dark, gloomy visual style is permeated throughout the film; most everything seems grimy, dank, and dreary. It reflects Dahlia’s depression and hopelessness very well. The ominous leak in the ceiling looks like some kind of evil infestation rather than common water damage. The black water seeps throughout the apartment building, is gross and seems to have a life of its own. In fact, it’s really not clear for most of the movie whether or not the dark water is imbued with the supernatural or just a manifestation of Dahlia’s depression. Her psychological state is so well illustrated and incorporated as a meaningful plot development, that as Dahlia begins to question her own sanity, we, the viewers, begin to question our own sanity. The conclusion is certainly over-the-top, and doesn’t quite show us how everything ultimately fit together; but it complements the theme of uncertainty and mystery in the movie.

If you’re the squeamish type, it’s good to know that while there are some scary images, this isn’t a “blood and guts” sort of horror movie; it is suitably PG-13 material. Dark Water was disturbing, creepy, kind of gross, and impinges on ones sanity; which is exactly what the movie was trying to do! That’s the ambiance for which good horror movies strive. Therefore, I have to say that Dark Water was very well directed, beautifully written, splendidly acted, and skillfully filmed. I think Horror Movies are an acquired taste, one which I have not yet acquired. Having said that, Dark Water probably isn’t something I’d go out of my way to see again. But it’s a really well executed movie that achieves what it sets out to do. If you like horror movies or psychological thrillers, I’m certain you’d enjoy Dark Water.

An American Werewolf In London Movie Review

The 1980’s was a great decade for movies. That was when we got titles like Back to the Future, Ghostbusters, The Karate Kid, a couple of Star Wars sequels, and all three Indiana Jones movies* to name a few. If you’re listing some top 80’s cult classic movies you can’t leave out John Landis’s An American Werewolf in London (1981).

Two American young men, David Kessler (David Naughton) and Jack Goodman (Griffin Dunne), are on a backpacking trip in England. While making their way through the North Yorkshire Moors it gets dark, and they decide to rest at a pub in a small village. When Jack asks about the 5-pointed star on the wall, the pub-goers suddenly act very strange and quiet. David and Jack decide to leave, but not before receiving bits of advice like “Beware the moon, lads” and “Keep to the road.” Conversing as they walk, they do wander off the road and into the moors, where they are attacked by supernaturally large animal. Jack is killed, David is mauled and the animal is killed by some of the pub-goers come to rescue the young men. David is rushed to a hospital in London where he recovers 3 weeks later. David is tormented by strange dreams during recovery. A reanimated corpse of Jack shows up to tell David that David is now a werewolf and that Jack is stuck in limbo as an undead corpse so long as the bloodline of the werewolf that killed him survives. Jack urges David to kill himself for the sake of Jack and those David will inevitably kill. David goes home with his nurse, Alex Price (Jenny Agutter), for a tryst. After Alex has gone for her late night shift, Jack's warnings come to pass and David transforms into a werewolf to wreak havoc on London.

As I mentioned in my Ghostbusters review, horror and comedy usually don’t really fit well together. In American Werewolf they don’t, but rather than being awkward and bad, it makes the movie quirky. The juxtaposition of humor and horror isn’t as good as it was in Ghostbusters, but it is fun. When Jack appears to David with open, rotting wounds, one of the first things he says to David is, “Hey, can I have some toast?” Later when David wakes up in the London Zoo after being a werewolf, he takes balloons from a kid to hide behind while he finds some clothes. The boy approaches his mother and pointedly states, “A naked American man stole my balloons.”

Any werewolf aficionado will tell you that the werewolf transformation in this movie is second to none. This was before CGI morphing and animation. So when David’s hand and then the rest of his body is stretched and contorted into a lycanthropic killing machine, it’s all done with good, old-fashioned makeup and movie magic. This truly gives a realistic quality to it. The transformation scene in the 2010 remake of The Wolf Man was done with CGI. While that scene isn’t bad, it just doesn’t hold a candle to American Werewolf; the makeup special effects really makes this transformation scene a classic bit of cinematography.

Throughout the movie, Landis did a superb job of setting the ambiance of the movie. Especially during the uncomfortable exchange between David and Jack and the pub-goers, followed by the young men being stalked by the werewolf. Landis really gave it a disquieting atmosphere which amplified the tension. There was not even any background music to supplement it, but the tension was still palpable.

My biggest complaint was that I wanted to see more of the werewolf. I wanted to see it chase people, rip things apart, and really see why people were afraid of it. Why else watch a werewolf movie? But we primarily see people running away from a low, angled camera representing the werewolf’s view. We really don’t see any full body shots, just some close ups of the werewolf’s face. That was disappointing, but the transformation scene makes up for it, I suppose.

For what it was, An American Werewolf in London was pretty good. It was weird, silly, scary, and fun, and worth watching if you’re into that sort of thing. It is rated R, what with the sexual dialogue, nudity, language, and gore. There is certainly some content that would put off some viewers. I still say this is a pretty good movie, and among the best werewolf films.

*Yes, I said all three Indiana Jones movies.

Meet Joe Black Movie Review

Every year we get a new set of drama films about life, love, human nature, beauty, and fulfillment. A lot of these drama films are sickeningly obvious attempts to win an award since they are released one or two months before The Oscars. Such “Oscar Bait” is usually fraught with big name actors and dramatic situations which are much more sappy than touching; such as New Year’s Eve (2011). Meet Joe Black (1998), directed by Martin Brest, was probably Oscar Bait, but it still did some creative things.

William Parrish (Anthony Hopkins) is a wealthy media tycoon who has a heart attack a few days before his 65^th birthday. He survives, but is unsure of how much longer he has to live. Later that day, Parrish’s youngest daughter Susan (Claire Forlani) meets an attractive young man (Brad Pitt) at a coffee shop and the two become love-struck. After they part, the young man is killed and his body is becomes inhabited by Death who is coming to warn Parrish of his impending death. Death meets Parrish in his own home, appearing as a handsome visitor. Parrish and Death formulate an agreement that Death can remain with Parrish as a guest to experience some of life in exchange for postponing Parrish’s death. Parrish formulates the name Joe Black for his guest to use. Susan is astonished to see the stranger from the coffee shop at her family dinner table that evening, and wants to pursue the relationship, not knowing that it is now Death. Joe Black’s presence in Parrish’s life causes complications as he joins Parrish in board meetings and family parties, all while Parrish worries about the repercussions of his daughter’s infatuation with Death incarnate.

One of the more interesting components of this film was the character of Joe Black. His character was riddled with abstractions of death that have taken on the form of a personality. Joe insinuates himself into situations where he’s not welcome; his presence makes things uncomfortable and awkward, he always gets the last word, and he’s accustomed to being an unquestioned authority. Joe is more of an angel of death than a dark foreboding reaper. Joe has a few humorous lines. In one scene Parrish is stressed about the legacy he’s leaving behind to which Joe says, “Careful Bill, you'll give yourself a heart attack and ruin my vacation.” There were a few illogical aspects of the character, too; Joe Black seems oblivious to some normal interactions and things like peanut butter. Is this the first time Death has used a body to experience living? It doesn’t really say.

There is a sex scene between Joe and Susan, which was interesting. It was graphically rather  tame, but unlike most sex scenes it focused primarily on the man, not the woman. This was an important character-developing scene because it was a new experience for Joe, and his expressions were communicating that this was so much better than peanut butter.

Parrish was also a pleasantly surprising character. Most wealthy, powerful tycoons in movies are depicted as being uncaring, money grubbing, power hungry scrooges. Parrish is none of these things. He’s kind and loving, he cares for his family, and he misses his deceased wife. He does use his position of authority and power when it is needed, but he is still a unpretentious person. It was good to see this kind of a character for a change.

As a supernatural romance/drama of sorts, this movie could have included a lot of dark visual effects to develop the embodiment of Death. But there wasn’t. This movie was very much grounded and realistic. We’re given reasons to understand that Joe Black really is Death. There are no dark clouds or glowing eyes to depict this. It’s all taken care of in very natural character development.

Meet Joe Black was probably Oscar Bait, but it wasn’t a bad drama. The romance wasn’t the focus of the film, it was more of a commentary about love and life. If you’re the kind of person who enjoys a good drama film once in awhile, Meet Joe Black is a decent choice. But I could see some of viewers not caring for it.