Movie Review-I Can Do Bad All By Myself

Tyler Perry is a double-edged sword with me.

On one hand, I commend him for making entertaining, funny movies with a message that the an entire family can watch together. I also commend him for tackling issues most people are afraid to venture towards and he's able to add realism between the buffoonery. I mean he has loads of christian themes where God is a focus, but he still has coarse language, and it's still accepted by religious groups.

The other end of the sword is the fact that his themes are repetitive. In every movie he features a lost/out-on-her-luck woman who is either on drugs or has been molested. Then all of a sudden, a man comes through and changes everything. He rescues her and it turns out all she every needed was the love of a good man and her life is complete.

Though i give him credit for showing black males in a positive light, so few do that, it seems to be counterproductive if you have to trivialize the struggles of black women and act as if it can be taken away by good black men.

I tried to ignore that fact while watching this film, but of course that's nearly impossible. But it doesn't have to be the main focus.

Plot:
Lounge singer April's (Taraji P. Henson) life is transformed when she is forced to watch over her sister's kids after her mother disappears.

Pros:
As with all of his movies. Tyler Perry's Madea character just breaths so much life into any storyline. This one is no different. Though Madea was only in a few scenes, she definitely leaves her stamp on the whole movie. You can tell Tyler Perry hits his creative strive when she is involved.

Though Perry is not as visually artistic as Quentin Tarantino or as talented as a writer as Oliver Stone, he taps into what is just flat out entertaining. A story with dramatic elements with comedy wrapped around it. No one does it better. He showed all those talents again here in this film. Probably better than he has in any other film he's done.

Cons:
The movie has a talented cast, but they all seemed to be playing below their full potential. I've seen Taraji P.Henson, Brian White, and even Mary J. Blige better. Though i feel like using non-actors in pivotal acting roles is risky, Gladys Knight, Mary J. Blige, and Marvin Winans were pretty good. But I don't really feel as if they all could have been a scotch better than they were.

The film felt rushed. The relationship between Rodriguez and Henson developed way too fast, but her inevitable transformation took too long. And then all of sudden they've been in love for a long time though they've had minimal, meaningful interaction throughout the film.

Recommendation:
Wait til it comes on HBO.

Main Cast:
Taraji P. Henson ("Hustle and Flow", "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button")
Tyler Perry ("Madea Goes to Jail", "Star Trek")
Adam Rodriguez (TV's "CSI: Miami")
Brian J. White ("Stomp the Yard", "Family Stone")
Gladys Knight
Mary J. Blige
Marvin Winans
Hope Olaide Wilson ("Life is Hot in Cracktown")
Kwesi Boakye ("Happy Feet")
Frederick Siglar

Similar Titles:
I Can Do Bad Ally By Myself (V), Meet the Browns

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