Though Perry's films are hard to defend on aesthetic grounds -- the crazy shifts in tone from operatic melodrama to broad comedy could cause seizures -- it's equally hard to begrudge the underserved audiences who embrace them so passionately.
Film Threat
June 21, 2008
All the while Madea's wit, which is refreshing on the stage, feels spurious and often misfires.
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
March 03, 2006
At times it feels as if Perry made three separate films, dumped them in a blender and hit the puree button.
Let's not sell Tyler Perry short. As the vinegar-witted Madea, he's a drag performer of testy charm, but in his overlit patchwork way he's also making the most primal women's pictures since Joan Crawford flexed her shoulder pads.
Although his work isn't high art and is occasionally problematic, he's telling stories that aren't often told. And for that, this black woman can't be too mad at him.
