Tyler Perry movies are always, what the kids call "Gay". It's not just the fact that he does most of his movies in drag, or that the movies spend a good 30-50 percent of the movie bashing men, it's that Tyler Perry's movies are always black Christian chick flicks.
The women are always these very thin, demure, beauties with long relaxed hair that are in unhappy marriages or relationships with these handsome, successful, super rich and super EVIL black men. They are always emotionally damaged damsels that don't want to get into another relationship.
There is always a very handsome, clean-cut Christian black man with dreamy eyes, who is always there for them (but not in a sexual way of course). The guy is always built like a brick outhouse, like he's got to spend more time working out in a gym than reading his bible. The woman eventually addresses her demons and surrenders her heart to the good Christian man.
Madea (when she's not wearing her ankle locator bracelet) is always there to talk about those good old fashioned values, when you can bitch slap a child who's misbehaving and how a woman needs to fight their oppressive male friends. Mr. Perry also plays her horn dog, pot smoking brother who Madea is living with. There is always some comical banter between those two.
I know that Tyler Perry is providing an alternative to the other blacksploitation films that are out on the market. The majority of African Americans are good, hard-working middle-class people and they've got to be tired of the images of "gangsta" urban blacks in the media. On the other hand, there are those "gangsta" elements in Tyler Perry's movies also, and the drama in dealing with those elements, so there's a little there too.
I'm not saying that Tyler Perry's movies are bad. They are very good, well done movies from their church plays. They are very viewable and enjoyable. It would be a much better TV series material, except that viewers would quickly become aware of how similar each story is to each other.
"Madea's Family Reunion" stands out, in that it features Cicely Tyson and the honorable poet, Dr. Maya Angelou. The preaching of where the family had come from slave beginnings and how the family needs to take care of each other was great. However, the woman beater, portrayed by Blair Underwood was written as such a psycho fiancé that it held such an unbelievably plot point to the drama. His character was just put in as an excuse to get back at him at the end. And, thus my main comment from above.
It's OK, Tyler Perry, but give us something new.
