Madea Goes to Jail

It's funny to think that when I saw Madea's Family Reunion three years ago, I found it shockingly bad. I hated it so much, I even voted it as the worst film of that year. Yet, here I am reviewing Madea Goes to Jail, and I find myself completely indifferent. It's not that I've warmed up to the character, or to the schizophrenic filmmaking of writer-director Tyler Perry, who enjoys melding over the top melodrama with broad sketch comedy into an ungainly package. I think I've just come to face facts that this is the way it is. This is Perry. He doesn't shock me anymore. I may not like his films, but I've become so used to them and their formula that I'm willing to accept that things will never change.

I imagine the reason why his fanbase enjoys his plays and films so much is that they're like fast food for the mind. You always know what you're getting when you walk in, and your brain gets filled with empty calories as the story plays out. People line up in droves for the same thing over and over. And boy, do they ever line up. As I'm writing this, the movie's just enjoyed a $41 million opening weekend. This will ensure many more Madea movies as long as Perry keeps on wanting to make them. Madea, if you remember, is a feisty old battle ax of a grandma who talks like a street gangster, and is not afraid to pull a gun on anyone who rubs her the wrong way. She's played by Perry himself in drag and a fat suit, which always makes it awkward to see this character in real world situations. Everyone else in the movie looks normal, while Madea looks like she stepped out of a bad Mad TV sketch. Despite having her name in the title, Madea has very little to do with the actual film itself. She's mainly here for comic relief, and never really plays any central part in the plot. Heck, she doesn't even arrive at the title destination until the third act of the movie, with only 20 minutes left to go. Talk about your false advertising.

The movie is really about an assistant D.A. named Josh (Derek Luke). He's worked his way up from the streets, and now seems to have it all, including a beautiful young fiance named Linda (Ion Overman). Everything comes to a halt when he has a chance courtroom encounter with Candy (former child star and Cosby Kid, Keisha Knight Pulliam), a former friend of his who is now working the streets as a prostitute. Josh has a "big secret" that somehow ties into Candy winding up where she is, and feels guilty about it. He offers to help, which Linda is completely opposed to. You see, the world of Tyler Perry is composed of extreme blacks and whites. People are either completely good or completely evil. Linda is the villain, because she's rich, spoiled, and doesn't like the idea of her future husband helping out one of "those people", even if he has a past with her. The movie keeps on giving us hints that Candy is a good person at heart. She may be a prostitute and a drug addict, but she's smart, because she reads books a lot, so that makes her a good person. Josh tries to get his childhood friend the help she needs, while Linda plots and schemes to keep them apart any way possible.

Madea, meanwhile, exists in a completely different story (and seemingly a completely different movie). She escapes from a road rage charge due to a technicality early on, but the Judge orders her to go to anger management, leading to a pointless cameo from Dr. Phil, who tries and fails to control her violent and extreme behavior. Madea continues to wreak havoc, leading up to an incident in a K-Mart parking lot where she steals a construction vehicle and destroys a car that belongs to a woman who stole her parking place. This time, the Judge throws the book at her, and she's sent to prison. This is when the two storylines are supposed to come together, since Candy is sent to prison at the same time on a trumped-up charge created by evil Linda, but the movie never quite gels. The movie tries for two completely conflicting tones. The Josh/Linda/Candy plot is heavy-handed melodrama, while the Madea story is broad, over the top comedy with machine gun-packing drag grannies and pot-smoking grandpas. Even though the characters eventually arrive at the same destination, they still seem to exist in two completely different realities.

Like all of his films, Tyler Perry obviously has good intentions, and just wants us to walk out of his movies feeling good. But that does not excuse the sloppy storytelling and uneven performances on display. I'm still trying to figure out why Madea becomes the focus of protestors outside of the prison, when she is actually guilty of the crimes she committed. Candy is the innocent one, yet the entire last half of the movie deals with people coming together to get Madea out. Also unexplained is Josh's eventual romantic feelings for Candy, since they never have any scenes that seem to build to this. It's almost as if Perry is in a rush to get the feel-good stuff. As is usual with his past few films, there is one good performance that rises above the material. This time, it comes from Viola Davis from Doubt, who plays a local social worker. Whenever she's on screen, you get the feeling she's giving the material more respect than it deserves. Everyone else is either over the top, or seems to be phoning it in.

I believe in truth in film criticism, so I will say this for Madea Goes to Jail - There is one funny idea in the movie. When Madea arrives at prison, she discovers her cellmate is a hopelessly sunny and cheerful woman who doesn't seem like she should be behind bars, until we find out she's a serial killer who murdered 18 men. The movie seems to be hinting at some twisted satire here, but naturally, doesn't do anything with this character after she's introduced. It's too bad. Her introduction scene is the closest I've ever come to actually laughing at a Tyler Perry movie.

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