Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009)
Directed by Tyler Perry
Written by Tyler Perry
Starring Taraji P. Henson, Brian White, Adam Rodriguez, Tyler Perry, Gladys Knight, Mary J. Blige
Release Date September 11th, 2009
Published September 12th, 2009
There are two Tyler Perry's. One is an amateurish boor of a director who interrupts his storytelling so he can cavort about in drag. Tyler Perry is a socially conscious filmmaker who uses this milieu to make valuable points about love, family and community that no other director has dealt with so openly, earnestly and sincerely.
The battle between these two sides of Mr. Perry has delivered mixed results with his poor direction and bad choices as a writer undercut the important social issues he wishes to shine a light upon. Perry's latest film, I Can Do Bad All By Myself, is a perfect example of the two Tyler Perry's.
Taraji P. Henson stars in I Can Do Bad All By Myself as April, a self absorbed wannabe chanteuse singing for indifferent bar patrons. Nights spent on stage are followed by drunken later nights with her married, emotionally abusive boyfriend (Brian White). Alone in her home, just down the street from her church, April seems sadly content.
April's life is upended one morning when she finds Madea (Tyler Perry) angry on her doorstep with April's niece Jennifer (Hope Olaide Wilson) and her two young nephews. The kids had broken into Madea's home the night before and because their mother, a crackhead, has died and their grandmother has gone missing, Madea has brought them to April.
Immediately after taking in the kids, April 's life is interrupted again as her pastor (Marvin Winans) shows up asking her to take in a missionary from South America, Sandino (Adam Rodriguez). In exchange for room and board he will repair her decrepit townhouse. All of this further inflames her boyfriend who will become the villain of the piece when needed.
Part of Tyler Perry's many issues are characters like that played by Brian White. The character is all malevolence with zero nuance. He is a contrivance of a plot that will need a villain to give focus and context to a movie that meanders through one explanatory piece of dialogue after another.
Then there is Madea who continues to exist in this uncanny valley of oddity and humor. Is the character funny? Yes. However, funny doesn't justify the continued shoehorning of this bizarre drag character into what are ostensibly serious social dramas. I understand Perry's wanting to lighten the mood, he's dealing with heavy issues. Unfortunately, he undermines those issues by whirling about in a dress.
It's difficult to take Perry seriously when he keeps interrupting his drama so he can run around in drag. It's a real shame because the issues he deals with are so very important and deeply meaningful. Even with his lack of directorial skill. Even with his limitations as a filmic storyteller, Perry's care in dealing with deep issues comes through and is communicated well enough to touch the audience.
I was moved by the things that the children and April dealt with. Physical, sexual and emotional abuse are the norm for these characters. The healing they find in each other and in their church is moving and unexpectedly powerful, even for an agnostic such as myself.
Sadly, Perry cannot get out of his own way. Even as his characters are going through stunning emotional crises Perry can't help but interrupt with Madea or maybe some unrelated musical moment. Don't get me wrong Gladys Knight and Mary J. Blige are national treasures who I would pay good money to see under any circumstance however the songs they perform in the movie hobble the pace and being that they are sort of Greek chorus songs, they contribute to Perry's tendency for overstating a point.
What the good Tyler Perry does is so valuable. He addresses major issues with care, sensitivity and sincerity that few other filmmakers can muster. The bad Tyler Perry just keeps getting in the way. Whether it's Madea or his tendency for obvious dialogue, Perry lacks polish and self control and his films, his important issues, are hamstrung as a result.
