Okay, he got me this time.
Silly of me to think that after turning a corner with a string of semi-decent movies like Daddy's Little Girls and Why Did I Get Married?, Tyler Perry would keep the streak alive with his latest offering, Meet The Browns. I've been hoodwinked, bamboozled, led astray, run amok, and I have nobody to blame but myself.
When I saw this trailer, I shoulda known better.
All the elements of a truly bad black movie were right there, but did I listen to my Inner Negro? Nooooo.
I remember seeing some of the stage play that this movie is based loosely on when my relatives bought the bootleg from Detroit a few summers back. It was so godawful I had to leave the house. If only movies came with some kinda money back guarantee. Then I coulda just left the theater on G.P.
The plot, which seems cribbed from about 20 different episodes of Good Times, features Angela Bassett as Brenda, a Chicago single mom of 3 kids by 3 different dads, none of whom is present. Rather than trying to make some statement of how bad this woman's choices are, the flick delves right into the typical "Triflin' Nigga/BabyDaddy with a family on the other side of town" angle to make you feel somehow bad for Brenda, who can't keep the lights on when she loses her factory job, yet always seems to have a fresh hairdo and tight gear. Brenda finds out her father (whom, surprise, she's never met before) died in Georgia, and packs up her clan to go down South to the funeral. There she meets a gaggle of long-lost and unknown relatives, and finds herself and her hoops prodigy son courted by a seedy coach played by ex-NBA Baller and Mr. Vanessa Williams, Rick Fox.
Sorry, I can't even write this review with a straight face, just like I couldn't manage to watch this lazily manufactured "drama" without laughing uncontrollable at times. Reality is, I couldn't help but watch this cluster and think about just how badly Angela Bassett's career has careened out of control. Here's a woman that deserved an Academy Award for What's Love Got To Do With It?, reduced to Loretta Devine status, and her "mail it in" performance shows she clearly just wanted some pocket money. The dialogue in this movie, even during the rare serious parts is so hackneyed a 3rd grader could have written it. The clichés (teenage son who does poorly in school, plays basketball, deals drugs, and is the man of the house; the saucy and stereotypically oversexed Latina best friend; the stumbling bumbling non-talking Southern patriarch, the all-knowing "Big Mama") are piled on heavy. You can sniff out the formulaic storybook ending while the popcorn's still warm.
I expected James Evans, Penny, and Bookman to pop up at any moment.
Since I'm somewhat on topic, how about I get this one off my chest... what's with the horrible depictions of black men in every one of Tyler Perry's movies? Okay, we get it Tyler, all black men are cheating, lying, child support dodging canines who secretly covet white women. We get it, we get it, we get it already! Black men ain't sh*t! Okay, message delivered! But do you have to rub this in our faces during every damn movie? If I wanted to be insulted, I could just save the $40 and watch Fox News for a few hours.
And is it just me, or does anyone else notice that the only unflawed black males characters in all Tyler Perry movies are played by... guess who... wait for it... Tyler Perry? Hmmmmmm. I smell a Grand Hu$tle here.
In short, this movie was sooo bad on sooo many levels, and I guess it proves either of two things:
A) I'm just too smart for this kinda dumb movie.
or
B) AverageSis is right, I can't just "be in the moment" and enjoy something for what it is.
If you saw Meet the Browns, you tell me which one's the right answer.
If you didn't see Meet The Browns, please wait for Netflix. If you just wanna burn $20 that badly, buy an AB.com t-shirt.
Final Verdict: If your neighbor has the bootleg, borrow it. If you've gotta see it, at least go to the matinee. Then again, if you watched the trailer and liked it, go see it, because while I thought the movie sucked, the rest of the theater seemed to enjoy it. Maybe it's just me. 2 Stars (Out of 5)
Tyler Perry's Meet The Browns [Yahoo! Movies]
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I want to see this movie so I can know how bad it is firsthand. But I don't want to pay for my own ticket.
This post was brought to you by Tyler Perry. Hey AB, first time commenter but long time reader.. I keep the treo linked to your site for a daily dose of you insightful blog.. I promise you that you are my long lost mental twin..
I too was bamboozled into seeing that coon fest with my gf.. Initially I had my reservations because for one I know how much "we" love some Tyler Perry in Atlanta and how every joke would be laughed at ad nauseum. Keep in mind I live in Atlanta, So gf decides that maybe we should outside the city limits where there is more of a concentration of the caucasion persuasion. Apparently everyone else got the same idea.. I'm talking about whole families rollin 20 deep..
But you know what annoyed me the most??
The terrible casting done by none other than Tyler Perry. The constant referral of Angela Bassett as a "young mother".. Isnt she 50!!!
Also, how could her son go from not having decent shoes on his feet to being a top flite NBA caliber player?? High school players cant jump straight to the pros anymore.. I could go on and on about dozens of inconsistencies throughout this terrible film. Its like Tyler just said "eff it" why continue to make better films with reasonable plots & decent dialouge they'll show up anyway. I could go on and on about the dozens of inconsistencies throughout this terrible film
but, then I'd just be wasting your time just like Tyler Perry did mine for 2 hours on Friday
I was rather disappointed in the movie. I should have known better. I have been a fan since his first movie but have not seen all of them. At this point there is no excuse for how poorly down this film is. It was just sloppy at times with sequence errors. for example Brown has a piece of paper on the Bible in the front shot but when look over his shoulder no paper.
www.anythingblack.wordpress.com
never liked tyler perry movies.
@zeezy4sheezy:
"The constant referral of Angela Bassett as a "young mother".. Isnt she 50!!!"
Don't go knocking on Angela. She'll be hot at seventy, while your zeezy4sheezy behind will be trying to do a "drive by" on Father Time.
@Ruth Ferguson:
"It was just sloppy at times with sequence errors. for example Brown has a piece of paper on the Bible in the front shot but when look over his shoulder no paper."
Perry's analogizing here, hoping you'll see the deeper, more spiritual message he was trying to convey.
The paper on the Bible symbolizes how we cover up God's word when we look straight on, and how that impediment is removed when we look at it from another perspective.
Tyler Perry is too deep for you ungrateful folks.
He's gonna send you all to the set of his next movie:
Tyler Perry Gone Wild
He needs a few dozen extras for his Gone Wild scenes, and y'all will do just fine.
Dang! ya'all just watch it without being analytical.Its the msg its ryna convey not the cast and
@what's with the horrible depictions of black men in every one of Tyler Perry's movies? Okay, we get it Tyler, all black men are cheating, lying, child support dodging canines who secretly covet white women. We get it, we get it, we get it already! Black men ain't sh*t! Okay, message delivered! But do you have to rub this in our faces during every damn movie?
Ahm Daddy's Little Girls was/is somewhat a good depiction of black AA men.
Oh by the way i havent watched o I think I wont waste my money going to the movies to see it i will just look for it on Net lol!
i thought the plot was typical tyler perry. i really just went to see brown. david mann is hilarious to me in this role. personally the outtakes were the best part of the whole movie. when jenifer lewis said to angela bassett "what you gonna do with all that money anna mae," i HOLLERED!
oh yeah...i NEVER see a black movie during evening hours. matinee times are ALWAYS the best bet if you are trying to hear the movie.
Brother AB, Message delivered. When the brother (TP) first came out on stage it was a novelty and my leval of tolerance was even. From the start,I didn't believe that a man with a dress on could entertain me (too many years -post segegration), but I went to the plays (2) with my spouse of 34 years. She thought the plays were funny and I did have one or two chuckles. After the plays I was very depressed because I had memories of Wesley Snipes and others who were made to wear a dress in movies and etc--- money MIGHT make a man do things and go against his inners. I too am like the other commentors, it time for Brother Tyler to go in another direction. Not having his cash flow- I wonder how much wealth a man needs to stop harming a very fragile people? Either he doesnt know or doesnt care. Surely he is not his brothers keeper, but I am sure there is somewhere in his Bible when it says "Thou shall not...". I content once you go "HollyWood"- you place your life in the hands of people that have demostrated that-- Black men will always be less than. Sometimes I also think that Black men over 40ish have no place in Amerikka to express our feelings/pains associated with us as a people. Thank God for Blogging. Now let me try to construct a way not to blow a dime on this movie. My spouse believes I too sensitve about Black males imaginesb but of course see doesn't have to walk in my shoes.
Just Say No.
I watched and enjoyed Daddy's Little Girl and Why Did I Get Married? He panders to his audience, it is as simple as that. He knows what will work and what will provide a quick response. Cliches runs amok in his films but at this point it is kind of expected. I already knew that I wasn't going to watch "Meet the Browns" because I'm tired of the Geraldine-Sha Nay Nay-Big Momma-Madea gag that's often used for AA comedies.
I have no problem with Perry's spiritually inclined didactic movies its just the execution.
^shinola black, to suggest that Tyler Perry is hoping that we get the deeper message is off. His work usually appears very direct without a hint of subtlety or an artistic use of a metaphor. Deep?? The word I would use is formulaic and predictable.
I understand his portrayal of black men in his films. If you want to reach your audiences quickly employ stereotypes and cliches. I think Why Did I Get Married was veiled attempt at creating real nuanced male characters but he definitely did not stray too far from his proven formulaic style. I don't see Perry casting himself as the "bad" guy any time soon.
AB, Thanks for the review, I am not watching this film.
Tyler hates on black men because far too many sisters hate black men.
It's a form of catharsis for many of them to watch his movies. They can leave feeling they are not to blame for sleeping with trifling cats and that their mister right is just around the corner if they keep being obnoxious.
It ain't happening.
I consider Tyler Perry the 'Beyonce' of the film industry. If you looking for something deep and out the box, you're not going to get it.
TP reminds of what my writing instructor tells his students. Success does not equal talent. Ambition is more powerful than talent. They are a lot talented and brilliant writers with manuscripts stuck in their drawer.
Tyler Perry's success is largely due to his ambition. He works reminds of Rob Schneider(the white guy who does Hot Chick and Deuce Bigalow movies. He knows his has a loyal audience, so he gives them what they want to see.
My only issue is why should I support TP just because he's black and if I don't think he is talented I'm being an hater. I just don't like the "all you need is a good man and Jesus" theme of all his movies. And he doesn't developed his characters. They are all one dimensional.
I remember watching his sitcom (I forget the name, it has Allen Payne in it), and nearly punched the wall in anger. It was badly-written, badly acted, and generally an insult to all humanity. And worst of all, it wasn't funny.
Over in the UK there's a small buzz around Diary of a Mad Black Woman (yes, we're behind, or too busy watching the Boondocks), but would I sit through that film after watching half an interminable hour of that shite? Hell emphatically no.
And I was wondering recently what had happened to the beautiful and talented Angela Bassett. Now I know. Why must I cry?
"I expected James Evans, Penny, and Bookman to pop up at any moment."
Dead.
@miss issues, you hit the nail on the head. I don't care for the "all you need is a good man & Jesus genre" in general. Like you, I just can't bring myself to dole out my hard earned money on plays & movies in this genre. I did try to watch his TV show, House of Payne, but it just was not funny--at all.
But good for him, keeping black actors working because the pickings still seem to be slim for blacks in the film industry.
lol! @ the inner negro analogy, this is so true.
fuck tyler perry.
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