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Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009)
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Reviews Counted:37
Fresh:23
Rotten:14
Average Rating:5.9/10
Consensus: Though somewhat formulaic and predictable, Perry succeeds in mixing broad humor with sincere sentimentality to palatable effect.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for mature thematic material involving a sexual assault on a minor, violence, drug references and smoking.
Runtime: 1 hr 53 mins
Genre: Comedies
Theatrical Release:Sep 11, 2009 Wide
Box Office: $51,697,449
Synopsis:
When Madea, America’s favorite pistol-packing grandma, catches sixteen-year-old Jennifer and her two younger brothers looting her home, she decides to take matters into her own hands and delivers...
When Madea, America’s favorite pistol-packing grandma, catches sixteen-year-old Jennifer and her two younger brothers looting her home, she decides to take matters into her own hands and delivers the young delinquents to the only relative they have: their aunt April. A heavy-drinking nightclub singer who lives off of her married boyfriend Raymond, April wants nothing to do with the kids. But her attitude begins to change when Sandino, a handsome Mexican immigrant looking for work, moves into April’s basement room. Making amends for his own troubled past, Sandino challenges April to open her heart. And April soon realizes she must make the biggest choice of her life: between her old ways with Raymond and the new possibilities of family, faith…and even true love.
Lionsgate and TPS Present A Reuben Cannon/Lionsgate Production. An uplifting drama infused with music and Tyler Perry’s trademark mixture of laughter and heart, TYLER PERRY’S I CAN DO BAD ALL BY MYSELF stars Tyler Perry, Taraji P. Henson, Adam Rodriguez, Brian White, Hope Olaidé Wilson, Kwesi Boakye and Freddy Siglar, and features dramatic and musical performances by Gladys Knight, Marvin L. Winans and Mary J. Blige, who performs an original song penned by chart-topping R&B writer/performer/producer Ne-Yo. --© Lionsgate
Starring: Tyler Perry, Taraji P. Henson, Adam Rodriguez, Brian White
Starring: Tyler Perry, Taraji P. Henson, Adam Rodriguez, Brian White, Hope Olaide Wilson, Kwesi Nii-Lante Boakye, Frederick Siglar, Gladys Knight, Mary J. Blige, Marvin Winans
Director: Tyler Perry
Director: Tyler Perry
Screenwriter: Tyler Perry
Producer: Tyler Perry, Reuben Cannon
Studio: Lions Gate Films
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Reviews for Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself
After a summer of phony, pasty rom-coms, do this: See a movie where old-fashioned notions of love, faith, strength, and the possibility of redemption are taken seriously.
Ultimately, we wind up with another Tyler Perry movie in which a wayward woman must learn to submit to two patriarchies: the nice blue-collar guy who's going to solve her problems, and Jesus.
To keep empire building, Perry needs to step up his game. And his new film -- the almost-musical I Can Do Bad All By Myself -- ain’t quite there.
It's discouraging to watch Bad build an unusual rhythm in the opening scenes only to stop itself and sprint back into Madea/preach mode, where the uncomfortable marriage of Jesus and domestic violence reigns.
Not a very good movie, but it has some sincerely positive ideas, and those ideas almost make up for the fact that it's not a very good movie.
If Perry continues to surround himself with great talent like this, maybe it'll force him to step up his own game and make a movie that departs from his increasingly tired formula.
Lurches around for nearly two hours before concluding that all its heroine needed all along was a good (and hunky) man and Jesus.
Sadly, the barrage of "inspirational" musical numbers in the second half stops the narrative dead in its tracks.
If the Atlanta impresario is just bored with cranking out two adaptations a year of his earlier stage work, the audience is getting restless, too.
By shoving half a dozen songs -- gospel, funk and soul -- into the film, Perry shows he still hasn't mastered pace and learned to sacrifice scenes to make his movies faster and smoother.
Perry predictably delivers a "lesson" toward the end of the film about the power of love over violence. After watching the movie, you'll either leave inspired or ready to turn in your church membership.
While Perry is still preaching to the already converted, I Can Do Bad All By Myself confirms that he's finally figured out how to turn said sermonizing into a far more mainstream experience.
Though no one would cite him for the cinematic qualities of his visually pedestrian films, Perry is a master conductor of emotions.
Contrived, sentimental, tonally bipolar, and as predictable as clockwork, this latest from chitlin' circuit impressario Tyler Perry is just a fat slab of ecstatic entertainment.
Like a chef who keeps making the same recipe over and over, Tyler Perry has found his strength and he's sticking to it.
Latest News for Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself
September 13, 2009:
Box Office Guru Wrapup: Tyler Perry Does Good All By Himself
This weekend Tyler Perry ruled the charts once again as fans flocked to North American multiplexes for his latest film I Can Do Bad All By Myself which gave the filmmaker his... More...
September 10, 2009:
Critics Consensus: 9 Looks Great, But The Plot's Weak
This week at the movies, we've got post-apocalyptic conflict (9, with voice work by Elijah Wood and Jennifer Connelly); Antarctic intrigue (Whiteout, starring Kate Beckinsale... More...
July 21, 2009:
Official Trailer with with Tyler Perry, Taraji P. Henson, Mary J. Blige, Hope Olaide Wilson, Brian White, Kwesi Nii-Lante Boakye, Frederick Siglar, Gladys Knight, Marvin Winans, and Adam Rodriguez ![]()
More...
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