This movie really touched upon an aspect of black life that we can all identify with. More realistic then all of these ghettofied movies that have been presented as representation of black life previously.
Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:106
Fresh:17
Rotten:89
Average Rating:3.9/10
Consensus: Tyler Perry's successful play can't make the move to the screen; this mix of slapstick, melodrama and spirituality lacks a consistent tone.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for drug content, thematic elements, crude sexual references and some violence
Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins
Genre: Television
Theatrical Release:Feb 25, 2005 Wide
Box Office: $50,382,128
Synopsis: Filled with a mix of comedy and drama, the film Diary of a Mad Black Woman is based on the immensely popular play of the same name written by Tyler Perry. The story focuses on Helen McCarter... Filled with a mix of comedy and drama, the film Diary of a Mad Black Woman is based on the immensely popular play of the same name written by Tyler Perry. The story focuses on Helen McCarter (Kimberly Elise), who has seemingly had the perfect life with husband Charles McCarter (Steve Harris). Over the years, Helen has been a faithful and loving wife, while Charles built a successful and lucrative career as a prominent Atlanta attorney. They wear the latest fashions, drive the nicest cars, have all the possessions they need, and they live on an expansive estate complete with an extravagant mansion, swimming pool, tennis court and all the trappings of wealth – a little piece of paradise away from the city. However, on the eve of their 18th wedding anniversary, Helen’s paradise begins to crumble as Charles announces that he wants a divorce. He abruptly and literally tosses Helen out of the mansion to make room for the other woman. With all of her possessions packed in a moving van, Helen starts on her journey to put the pieces of her life back together. Through the assistance of her friends, family, faith, and a twist of fate, Helen finds the strength and empowerment she needs to get control of her circumstances. She also finds that the tragic events of her life soon become comic, especially with the guidance and help-- mostly unsolicited, by the way--of her pot-smoking, gun-toting, and much beloved, grandmother figure Madea (Tyler Perry). Director Darren Grant brings Tyler Perry’s vision to the screen by intricately weaving together a mix of drama and comedy to tell the universal experience of broken hearts, redemption, forgiveness, recovery, new found love, inner strength and the importance of family and faith as revealed through a cast of colorful and sometimes familiar characters. [More]
Starring: Kimberly Elise, Tyler Perry, Steve Harris, Cicely Tyson
Starring: Kimberly Elise, Tyler Perry, Steve Harris, Cicely Tyson, Tamara Taylor, Shemar Moore
Director: Darren Grant
Director: Darren Grant
Screenwriter: Tyler Perry
Producer: Tyler Perry, Reuben Cannon
Composer: Camara Kambon
Studio: Lions Gate Films
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Reviews for Diary of a Mad Black Woman
A lot of it shouldn't work -- and doesn't -- but even while you're sitting there, thinking that it can't go much farther off track, it manages to be fairly involving.
As is true of so many play adaptations, the theatrically pitched performances don't work as well on the screen.
This bizarre movie is many things--a celebration of Christian values, a drag act, a drug plunge, a soap opera, a sitcom revenge fantasy.
Blows to the head are delivered with more subtlety than the message of Diary of a Mad Black Woman.
Nobody in the movie seems to know quite what sentiment he or she should be channeling at any given moment.
Rather sloppily blends melodrama and spiritual uplift with crass comedy, sometimes in the same scene.
I've been reviewing movies for a long time, and I can't think of one that more dramatically shoots itself in the foot.
Tyler Perry, even if he's no church-show Peter Sellers, obviously carves out some kind of niche here. Remember, they laughed at Ed Wood. And they're still laughing at him.
Plenty of mad moviegoers will put this in their diaries as one of the worst pictures in ages.
A satisfying end, but it takes a lot of work -- and a lot of suspended disbelief -- to get there.
I’m not sure if it’s surprising that the film is almost uniformly awful.
Not even Tyler Perry in a dress can save this embarrassing mess of a story
Those who aren't already converts to Perry's dramaturgy will wonder what elevates this material above, say, a typical episode of '227.'
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Competition, or a lack of it, will be the deciding factor at the North American box office this weekend for the half-dozen new releases that studios are packing into already... More...
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July 11, 2007:
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