Gosh, I ... I ... I ... think I loved it! OK, that's a little strong. I know I liked it, and I'm so grateful anytime a comedy makes me laugh that I tend to give successful entries in that genre higher praise then they might deserve.
I just checked Rotten Tomatoes, where this film is pulling a 25% "fresh" rating. Lots of tsk-tsking about racial stereotypes, which, of course, makes me feel guilty for laughing throughout most of this film. It only appeals to racists, you see.
Are all Tyler Perry movies this funny? Is it just me? The crowd for a late matinee wasn't huge, and it was racially mixed. But you could feel the film working. Laughter started off on the light side, but a couple of key sequences really got the crowd rollin'.
I'm still not sure who Perry was in the film. I was thinking he was Leroy, who pretty much steals the movie, but I think IMDB has listed another actor in that role, with Perry presumably playing the woman who's the object of a highway chase -- one of the film's lesser moments, but still amusing.
All in all, a generous comedy. Not great cinema, mind you, but gentle in spirit without feeling so safe that it comes across like an after-school special.
Full Version: Meet the Browns
Links to threads on Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005), Madea's Family Reunion (2006) and Why Did I Get Married? (2007). Apparently we have no thread on Daddy's Little Girls (2007).
The only film of his I've seen is Madea's Family Reunion. The only other film of his that had a press screening in Vancouver was Diary of a Mad Black Woman, and that was a week or two AFTER the film had already opened big at the U.S. box office. Meet the Browns isn't even being RELEASED here; according to the publicist, it's opening in only three cities in Canada: Toronto, Windsor and Halifax (all of 'em at least three time zones away from me).
So I can't speak to the Perry ouevre as a whole, but I found Madea's Family Reunion pretty amateurish and not particularly funny. Mind you, while that was the second film Perry wrote and starred in, it was the first one he DIRECTED, so that might be a factor there, too. He might have gotten better with time.
Bizarrely, Perry's first on-screen acting gig in a movie not written by him will be ... J.J. Abrams' Star Trek!
The only film of his I've seen is Madea's Family Reunion. The only other film of his that had a press screening in Vancouver was Diary of a Mad Black Woman, and that was a week or two AFTER the film had already opened big at the U.S. box office. Meet the Browns isn't even being RELEASED here; according to the publicist, it's opening in only three cities in Canada: Toronto, Windsor and Halifax (all of 'em at least three time zones away from me).
So I can't speak to the Perry ouevre as a whole, but I found Madea's Family Reunion pretty amateurish and not particularly funny. Mind you, while that was the second film Perry wrote and starred in, it was the first one he DIRECTED, so that might be a factor there, too. He might have gotten better with time.
Bizarrely, Perry's first on-screen acting gig in a movie not written by him will be ... J.J. Abrams' Star Trek!
I remembered those earlier links, but looking at them now, they're not really about the content of the films so much, are they? I like what Alan had to say in the Madea's Family Reunion thread:
My wife and I watched this last night.
While it shares a level of cinematic art with Ernest Goes to Camp, I have rarely seen a popular film with more heart. Sure, it's a sermon in movie format, but a sermon that the filmmakers clearly believe is desperately needed. I can't imagine a "white" film so explicitly Christian and yet so frank about some of the issues it's trying to address.
My wife said that Madea is the Black equivalent of Larry the Cable Guy--a shorthand caricature that evokes all that's silly yet charming about a particularly stereotype.
That seems like the generous interpretation that I felt Meet the Browns merited, rather than accusations about racial stereotypes and such that I see in the excerpts over at RT. Saying the film is amateurish is OK, although I didn't find Meet the Browns particularly poor in terms of direction. I realize this sort of comedy isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it struck me as refreshingly light, and spiritually direct in spots. I liked it.
My wife and I watched this last night.
While it shares a level of cinematic art with Ernest Goes to Camp, I have rarely seen a popular film with more heart. Sure, it's a sermon in movie format, but a sermon that the filmmakers clearly believe is desperately needed. I can't imagine a "white" film so explicitly Christian and yet so frank about some of the issues it's trying to address.
My wife said that Madea is the Black equivalent of Larry the Cable Guy--a shorthand caricature that evokes all that's silly yet charming about a particularly stereotype.
That seems like the generous interpretation that I felt Meet the Browns merited, rather than accusations about racial stereotypes and such that I see in the excerpts over at RT. Saying the film is amateurish is OK, although I didn't find Meet the Browns particularly poor in terms of direction. I realize this sort of comedy isn't everyone's cup of tea, but it struck me as refreshingly light, and spiritually direct in spots. I liked it.
Alan Thomas wrote:
: My wife said that Madea is the Black equivalent of Larry the Cable Guy . . .
That's interesting, because the films featuring both characters are [1] distributed by Lionsgate, [2] not screened for critics in advance, and [3] the most recent entries aren't even being RELEASED north of the 49th Parallel because the Canadian distributor has just given up trying to find an audience for them here. (Yeah, Meet the Browns is playing in three Canadian cities, but all three cities happen to be SOUTH of the 49th Parallel.
)
: My wife said that Madea is the Black equivalent of Larry the Cable Guy . . .
That's interesting, because the films featuring both characters are [1] distributed by Lionsgate, [2] not screened for critics in advance, and [3] the most recent entries aren't even being RELEASED north of the 49th Parallel because the Canadian distributor has just given up trying to find an audience for them here. (Yeah, Meet the Browns is playing in three Canadian cities, but all three cities happen to be SOUTH of the 49th Parallel.
)
When I read Tony Scott's review on Saturday, I had meant to post it here. I was confident it would be representative of more reviews as they came in over the weekend.
Nope. The movie sits at 33% "fresh" at Rotten Tomatoes. Seems like not many other critics are on the same wavelength as Scott. But his review is worth quoting nonetheless, with key points that reflect my own experience of the film bolded by yours truly:
Since this is a week to speak openly about race, I should note that, at 11 o’clock on Good Friday morning, I was the only white person at a nearly full showing of “Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns.” I was probably also the only person who was there for work rather than pleasure, though the pleasure in the room was pretty contagious. Mr. Perry has never received much love from members of my profession, and like his last few movies, “Meet the Browns” arrived in theaters on Friday without holding advance press screenings.
Not that he needs us — critics, I mean. His work may be rooted in the experience of a particular group, but there is nothing exclusive about it. His ideas about family, religion, love and community — and the contradictions and collisions among those things — are unlikely to seem exotic anywhere. ...
Mr. Perry treats a story a little like a banquet table, loading it up with more stuff than is healthy or easily digestible. But this is an aspect of his generosity, his desire to sate and satisfy a hungry audience. What he serves up — a mixture of moralism and forgiveness, semibawdy humor and cautionary drama, mockery and affection — may sometimes lack coherence, but never integrity.
His sensibility is sentimental and forgiving, but he does not soften his presentation of some hard facts of life. Poverty, drug dealing, the abandonment of children by their fathers — these are among the problems Brenda and her children face. Mr. Perry does not linger morbidly over them, but neither does he wish them away.
His films are hardly realistic, but they aren’t exercises in pure escapism either. They offer comic relief and moral correction. And if they feel corny and hokey at times — O.K., a lot of the time — that is partly because they make everyone who sees them, white critics included, feel right at home.
Well said. And yet, he's in the minority.
Nope. The movie sits at 33% "fresh" at Rotten Tomatoes. Seems like not many other critics are on the same wavelength as Scott. But his review is worth quoting nonetheless, with key points that reflect my own experience of the film bolded by yours truly:
Since this is a week to speak openly about race, I should note that, at 11 o’clock on Good Friday morning, I was the only white person at a nearly full showing of “Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns.” I was probably also the only person who was there for work rather than pleasure, though the pleasure in the room was pretty contagious. Mr. Perry has never received much love from members of my profession, and like his last few movies, “Meet the Browns” arrived in theaters on Friday without holding advance press screenings.
Not that he needs us — critics, I mean. His work may be rooted in the experience of a particular group, but there is nothing exclusive about it. His ideas about family, religion, love and community — and the contradictions and collisions among those things — are unlikely to seem exotic anywhere. ...
Mr. Perry treats a story a little like a banquet table, loading it up with more stuff than is healthy or easily digestible. But this is an aspect of his generosity, his desire to sate and satisfy a hungry audience. What he serves up — a mixture of moralism and forgiveness, semibawdy humor and cautionary drama, mockery and affection — may sometimes lack coherence, but never integrity.
His sensibility is sentimental and forgiving, but he does not soften his presentation of some hard facts of life. Poverty, drug dealing, the abandonment of children by their fathers — these are among the problems Brenda and her children face. Mr. Perry does not linger morbidly over them, but neither does he wish them away.
His films are hardly realistic, but they aren’t exercises in pure escapism either. They offer comic relief and moral correction. And if they feel corny and hokey at times — O.K., a lot of the time — that is partly because they make everyone who sees them, white critics included, feel right at home.
Well said. And yet, he's in the minority.
Richard Corliss profiles Perry:
After the curtain calls for his 2004 theater piece, Meet the Browns--one of the strange comedy-musical-melodramas that have made Tyler Perry a hero to the older black Christian community--the author-director came out onstage to talk to his devoted audience. He confided that he'd been asked to produce a TV comedy series but turned it down because it couldn't be religious. "Did you know you can't say 'Jesus' in a sitcom?" he said, to murmurs of disapproval from the faithful. "They told me that, and I was like, You gotta be kiddin' me. If you don't want my God here, you don't want me here either. God has been too good to me to go and try to sell out to get some money. That's O.K. I will sit in a corner and be broke with the Lord before I will sit there and have them give me millions and sell my soul. It ain't gonna happen."
That's interesting, because other than one punchline involving a scene of reckless driving, I don't remember the name of Jesus being used in the film of Meet the Browns at all. It may have been in there -- I don't have my notes in front of me. Surely the movie drips with references to "the Lord," etc., but I just don't remember the name of Jesus being invoked.
After the curtain calls for his 2004 theater piece, Meet the Browns--one of the strange comedy-musical-melodramas that have made Tyler Perry a hero to the older black Christian community--the author-director came out onstage to talk to his devoted audience. He confided that he'd been asked to produce a TV comedy series but turned it down because it couldn't be religious. "Did you know you can't say 'Jesus' in a sitcom?" he said, to murmurs of disapproval from the faithful. "They told me that, and I was like, You gotta be kiddin' me. If you don't want my God here, you don't want me here either. God has been too good to me to go and try to sell out to get some money. That's O.K. I will sit in a corner and be broke with the Lord before I will sit there and have them give me millions and sell my soul. It ain't gonna happen."
That's interesting, because other than one punchline involving a scene of reckless driving, I don't remember the name of Jesus being used in the film of Meet the Browns at all. It may have been in there -- I don't have my notes in front of me. Surely the movie drips with references to "the Lord," etc., but I just don't remember the name of Jesus being invoked.
FWIW, the film grossed $72,514 in those three Canadian cities over the weekend ... which accounts for 0.36% of the estimated $20 million made this weekend in North America.
Thanks for your words on this, Christian -- maybe I'll have to see it. If I do so, it will be my second Tyler Perry movie, after Daddy's Little Girls, which turned me off to his movies decisively. There is absolutely no connection between the atmosphere you're describing and that movie, which was NOT corny, it was emotionally manipulative, and had one of the most immoral endings I've ever seen to boot. But perhaps it's just a blot on his record, not indicative of what to normally expect...
Looks like I chose to trumpet the one Perry film with toxic word of mouth: When I saw the film's second-weekend gross, I was shocked. Now Karina Longworth is speculating that older middle-class (white) women might be the natural segue into a broader audience for Perry. But preview screenings might help:
First and foremost, Lionsgate needs to disabuse themselves of the notion that these films are critic proof. It may well be that Perry’s core audience doesn’t need a review to convince them to see his latest opus, but again, the demographic who might be most naturally receptive to these films is older, not online and not easily swayed by TV advertising, and thus unlikely to know about a Tyler Perry film unless it’s reviewed in the Friday arts section of their local paper.
The first step would be for the studio to actually show a Tyler Perry movie to critics before opening day. They routinely invite critics to Friday morning “courtesy screenings”; the New York Times will then get a review in the Saturday edition, but a weekly like the Village Voice won’t be able to weigh in until the film has already begun its precipitous box office decline. That’s the point––Lionsgate wants to make as much money as possible before that negative reviews have the potential to hurt word of mouth––but funnily enough, not only are critics starting to take Perry seriously, but Perry’s recent filmography seems to be the one place in the contemporary film industry where there’s some overlap between critical opinion and box office success.
First and foremost, Lionsgate needs to disabuse themselves of the notion that these films are critic proof. It may well be that Perry’s core audience doesn’t need a review to convince them to see his latest opus, but again, the demographic who might be most naturally receptive to these films is older, not online and not easily swayed by TV advertising, and thus unlikely to know about a Tyler Perry film unless it’s reviewed in the Friday arts section of their local paper.
The first step would be for the studio to actually show a Tyler Perry movie to critics before opening day. They routinely invite critics to Friday morning “courtesy screenings”; the New York Times will then get a review in the Saturday edition, but a weekly like the Village Voice won’t be able to weigh in until the film has already begun its precipitous box office decline. That’s the point––Lionsgate wants to make as much money as possible before that negative reviews have the potential to hurt word of mouth––but funnily enough, not only are critics starting to take Perry seriously, but Perry’s recent filmography seems to be the one place in the contemporary film industry where there’s some overlap between critical opinion and box office success.
This just in: Tyler Perry's next film will be set in the busy kitchen of an upscale Atlanta hotel restaurant. Working title: Brown the Meats.
QUOTE (Christian @ Mar 24 2008, 02:54 PM) 
Richard Corliss profiles Perry:
After the curtain calls for his 2004 theater piece, Meet the Browns--one of the strange comedy-musical-melodramas that have made Tyler Perry a hero to the older black Christian community--the author-director came out onstage to talk to his devoted audience. He confided that he'd been asked to produce a TV comedy series but turned it down because it couldn't be religious. "Did you know you can't say 'Jesus' in a sitcom?" he said, to murmurs of disapproval from the faithful. "They told me that, and I was like, You gotta be kiddin' me. If you don't want my God here, you don't want me here either. God has been too good to me to go and try to sell out to get some money. That's O.K. I will sit in a corner and be broke with the Lord before I will sit there and have them give me millions and sell my soul. It ain't gonna happen."
After the curtain calls for his 2004 theater piece, Meet the Browns--one of the strange comedy-musical-melodramas that have made Tyler Perry a hero to the older black Christian community--the author-director came out onstage to talk to his devoted audience. He confided that he'd been asked to produce a TV comedy series but turned it down because it couldn't be religious. "Did you know you can't say 'Jesus' in a sitcom?" he said, to murmurs of disapproval from the faithful. "They told me that, and I was like, You gotta be kiddin' me. If you don't want my God here, you don't want me here either. God has been too good to me to go and try to sell out to get some money. That's O.K. I will sit in a corner and be broke with the Lord before I will sit there and have them give me millions and sell my soul. It ain't gonna happen."
Something must have changed between this event in 2004 and 2006, when the TV series Tyler Perry's House of Payne premiered on TBS. I don't know whether Jesus is referred to in it or not.
This is a "lo-fi" version of our main content. To view the full version with more information, formatting and images, please click here.