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 Man but a lot
of people seem to hate Tyler Perry. I noticed this awhile ago back
before I really knew who he was, but when I was desperately searching
for information about this movie a few weeks ago, I noticed that he has
quite a few vocal detractors. Now this is nothing new to me, because
every movie/book/play/author/singer/band that I love seems to be hated
by most other people, so I'm used to this kind of vitriol, but it did
give me pause. See, I was innocently watching the movie “Julie & Julia”
when I came across the trailer for “I Can Do Bad All By Myself,” and I'd
only seen part of one Tyler Perry movie in the past (I missed the
beginning and the end, and surprise, I didn't understand what was going
on) so I didn't know much about him... now I don't know much more except
that people seem to hate a lot of his movies,
including this one. Having seen the movie now, I think I can see why.
Good thing I disagree with them.
First of all, there's the character of Madea (an elderly woman played by
Tyler Perry in drag, which probably tells you everything you need to
know about why she annoys people). I'm sure you've seen/heard of her if
you watch television, since she's all over the previews for his movies
(even if she only has a small role, as she does in this one)
wisecracking and being her lovable, cranky old woman self. I envy
elderly people because a lot of the time, because they're old enough
that they just don't care much what people think of them, so they can
say and do whatever they want, and when I get older, I plan to be like
that, so I like Madea.
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She gets on people's nerves,
though, much as Jay and Silent Bob get on people's nerves in
Kevin Smith movies. Actually, that comparison is apt, as Jay
and Silent Bob are recurring characters that serve to yank
people out of the story (“hey, this isn't real, those guys
are in all his other movies too”) in flagrant disregard for
the suspension of disbelief. Some people like Madea and
think she's funny, some people hate her, but if she annoys
you, then you're going to have a hard time with this movie,
since she does have a pivotal role in it. |
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The second problem here is that this movie
is being portrayed as a comedy all over the TV spots, and that pisses me
off, because for anyone who's seen the full trailer, this is most
certainly NOT a
comedy. There is plenty of drama to go around in spades, as the story
centers around a woman in her 30s who is forced to look after her
sister's kids after their drug addict mother dies and the grandmother
who raised them turns up missing. Sounds funny, right? I'm of the mind
that this movie actually needed Madea in it, because otherwise it might
have drowned in its own drama. The story is pretty heavy, and everyone
involved handles the script and the themes of the movie
surprisingly well (even most of the negative reviews seem to agree that
the acting in the movie is good, which is a good sign). Hope Olaide
Wilson in particular gives a stellar performance as Jennifer, the oldest
of the three kids. She's tough, having had to take care of her two
younger brothers for years, and watching her shell crack throughout the
movie is compelling. Adam Rodriguez is great also as the handyman who
comes to stay with the kids and their aunt...they say he's there to fix
things around the house, but we know he's really there to help fix
April's broken heart (and he's cute, too).
Of course the star of the movie is Taraji P. Henson as April, the
troubled aunt thrust unwillingly into the role of mother. I was very
impressed with her performance, as she handled the character and made
her believable and sympathetic without making her maudlin or turning the
story into a big pile of melodramatic slush. Not only that, but she can
sing! In fact, a lot of people sing in this movie, and that's another
common complaint I saw in the reviews. It's true that there are several
musical interludes where characters stop to sing songs (on stage in a
nightclub or in church) but these scenes always tie into the plot
somehow and they relate to something the characters are going through,
so again, it didn't bother me. I was in tune with her journey and I
wanted to see her learn to do the right thing, so I never got bored
watching her. The people who say that her story is
predictable are probably tired of seeing wayward characters suffer
through trials until they learn to love others and love themselves. I
personally know enough wayward characters in my own life (myself
included) that I never tire of seeing them learn to love themselves and
others. It gives me hope that this is possible.
I think the problem here is that this movie simply isn't for everyone. I
was dancing in my seat, swaying to the music, crying when something
touching happened, and jumping up and down during the joyful finale, but
for every viewer like me there's bound to be someone sitting in a seat
scratching their head wondering why the hell people like this movie. I
think the music adds to the story, I want to grow up to BE Madea, and I
became obsessed with this movie after seeing the trailer because I
WANTED to see a story where a broken woman finds love and becomes
whole. All the reasons why I wanted to see the movie are the very same
reasons other people hate it. Fact is, if you don't like soul and
gospel music, if you think Madea is annoying, and if you think the plot
of the movie sounds boring or predictable, you probably won't like this
movie. Lucky for me, I like every kind of music, I always laugh at
Madea's jokes, and my family put the “fun” in
“dysfunctional,” so I was connected to the music and the characters and
the themes of this movie from start to finish. I laughed and cried and
loved every minute.
 There are a
few times when continuity becomes a problem. For instance,
characters will be wearing a totally different outfit when a scene
ends than they were when it began, and this can be confusing. It's
a small thing, but I NEVER notice movie errors like this, so if even
I noticed it, then there's a problem. Also, as much as I ended up
loving the character of Madea, there is one scene where I wished
she'd wrap it up and quit talking...she's telling a story
that went on for too long, and I thought the scene could have been
trimmed a bit. And there are a few other scenes where I thought,
“Ok, I got the point a long time ago, you can stop now...” I loved
the movie, but I can see how it could try the patience of others.
See the above disclaimers about music and characters and storyline, and
if you still want to see the movie, then you'll probably like it as much
as I did. Come see it with me and we can dance in the theater together.
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