Good Deeds

I have now seen some Tyler Perry movies that weren't good (like Madea's Big Happy Family) and some that were (his adaptation of For Colored Girls... was the best so far). This one was better than expected since he doesn't play that stereotypical mammy-type character that I just mentioned nor does he put any obvious comedy scenes that makes one groan like in that first movie I just wrote about. In fact, the only character I thought was truly one-dimensional was that of his no-good-brother played by Brian White who has no business being part of their father's company but because he's family...Anyway, Perry plays perhaps the most caring of businessmen one would expect to be depicted in modern cinema as he discovers a female janitor played by Thandie Newton who's on welfare because of some personal troubles. Oh, and Perry's engaged to Gabrielle Union and has a mother played by Phylicia Rashad who's a little uptight though she also knows where she's been. In summation, Good Deeds was a nice surprise for me concerning Mr. Perry's output and on that note, I recommend it.

I just got through seeing Good Deeds. It was a little better than the rest of his movies but not as good as Why Did I Get Married. This movie did have that same old monotonous theme the rest of his other movies have. Even with that being said this movie was as predictable as a Scooby Doo cartoon. Now that can be said about all of Tyler Perry's movies. Phylicia Rashad, Gabrielle Union, and Thandie Newton did do their thing in this movie but that still couldn't help it. I wish Tyler Perry could come up with more imaginative story lines and make movies where you would have to actually think and be surprised as to what will happen in the movie. I mean my 11 year old step daughter can write a more complex script.

I am not a Tyler Perry defender, but I have to call foul on the 3.1 rating. Those who reviewed the movie average about a 6 or 7, so I'm led to believe many who have voted on this movie did not in fact see the movie. Considering the assault Perry receives from critics--myself included at times--it would not be hard to believe some would undermine the rating system here and seek to sabotage anything with the name "Perry" in front of it. Moving on...

I will go out on a limb and say this is Perry's highest quality effort to date. It's the first movie I remember seeing of his that did not run with the trite good-guy/bad-guy story line. This movie had more depth than any of his previous. There were no bad guys. Every character was troubled and coping and...human. Many I think missed the real theme of this movie. It has absolutely nothing to do with a man coming to save a woman. It is about having the courage to follow your own path. It is a universal theme, one that hits home for virtually everyone. Sure there may be better movies out there who execute this theme, but this movie does it competently in my opinion, and by Tyler Perry's standards, it is more than competent. It is dare I say, actually "good?"

I liked the acting. Once I got past Thandie's always-strange accent and the little girl's initially poor acting performance, and Brian White's sometimes over-acting, the movie caught its groove and all of the actors delivered. Newton played a particularly touching role. I have to admit her ability to cry on a dime regarding the loss of her child, made me tear up a bit. To say that I was shocked to find myself actually tearing up from a Tyler Perry movie is the understatement of the day. Perry and Gabrielle Union also delivered. Both portrayed their complex characters well and competently showcased the true ambivalence that often accompanies a relationship, especially one that occurs when the couple is past their twenties and have to grapple with all the life expectations that entails. This brings me to the next highlight--the script.

It seems like Perry actually took his time--or at least more time than he usually does, say on the horrible movies like "Madea Goes to Jail" or the like--on this script. There was more character development, more growth, more nuance, and unpredictability. There were plot holes, sure, but in general, you didn't feel short-changed as a viewer, like the writer was just trying to rush something through to meet a deadline so that he could ultimately get your money--ahem--"Why did I get Married 2" looking at you!

Finally, I liked the pace of the movie. Some may think it was slow, I think it was mature...a mature movie about mature matters. I liked this for a change, especially in comparison to the low-IQ slapstick I had previously associated with Tyler Perry. And let me leave this little tidbit: If you, like me, happen to currently be in a similar place in life as these characters--about to make big life decisions but fear you are not making the right ones--you will doubly appreciate the meditative pace. You will appreciate the more introspective tone than is found in Perry's other movies.

The movie is not perfect, but I will give it a relatively high rating simply to combat the unfairly low rating it has as of this writing. We should applaud growth when we see it. "See it" being the operative phrase. See the movie before low-rating it. Have some integrity folks.

I look at it like this ... for a Tyler Perry movie this was a comeback. Okay some scenes were a little 'awkward' and slow, but I was impressed with this film. You can see he is trying to reset the tone of his movie making and get back to the basics of telling the story. He decided to take the lead part in this film and I think that it was a bold and precise move on Tyler's part. He had to let his audience know that he is here to stay. He is bringing his core essence of film-making that drew people to him in the first place. He is a fantastic black man who tries to cut out 'the crap' of films and just wants to display real life. He has fumbled around casting and made some 'just for giggles' films but he knows how to remind us all of just how simple we all are and how we are all connected in this game of life.

If one thing we should learn from him is his insatiable need to put us all in the shoes of another person. Let's be a little more compassionate for a man who isn't afraid to pick himself up, dust himself off and keep trying ... just my little thought ;-)

This film is true to Tyler Perry's style in that he always wants to convey positive messages. There were so many messages in this film that I don't even know where to start. The film demonstrates that no matter how much money you have, you can still be unhappy in your own skin. It also made me realize that I should stop gripping about the things that I don't have and consider myself blessed to have what I do because there is always someone out there that has it worse. I am glad to see Tyler Perry (Wesley Deeds) step out of the comedic genre. I think that he was very believable as the romantic lead. I really hope that he continues to expand the types of films that he makes so that he does not become stereotyped as a one-hit-pony. Gabriele Union (Natalie) is always perfection in any role that she plays. I don't think that she gets the credit that she deserves, but I will say that she did a fantastic job hosting the BET honors awards (she is very funny). Thandie Newton (Lindsey Wakefield) pulled at your heart strings in this film. Every time I see a homeless person on the streets I always ask myself, "I wonder how he/she got here". Well, Lindsey answered that question for me in this film and makes me realize that sometimes it is to no fault of the individual. It's just life and things happen. Thandie is like a chameleon transforming from a strong-willed woman in For Colored Girls, to a beaten down struggling women in this film. Brian White (Walter Deeds) reminded me that there are still haters in this world and definitely convinced me that he was the king of the haters. Tyler obviously like working with Phylicia Rashad (Wilimena) because he has cast her in a couple of films with good reason. I don't care how many films I have seen her in; every now and then I get a glimpse of Mrs. Huxtable. Is it just me? The one thing that I have to say about the audience in this theater is that we all reacted the same way at the same time and we did it out loud. I love that! I also have to say that I love this film although it was very predictable. It was just refreshing to see a positive film for a change that conveyed basic life messages. I give this film a green light.