Not sure what to say. Here’s what’s up: my “bestie’ (best friend) and I went to see Tyler Perry’s “Colored Girls”. Fortunately, Cheryle knows me better than almost anyone and was likely, not shocked when I walked out before the movie ended. Yep, I walked out. You can see where my Christian review of For Colored Girls Only is headed.
You see, I felt duped halfway through the film. I hadn’t read the book, but I was initially interested in the complexity of the characters and the riveting transitions between them. Then it all went – as they say ‘in the toilet’.
So, I jetted. Yes, I chose to get off the manic ride. It made me dizzy with it’s harsh transitions and lack of scene development.
Look, I’m no Hollywood insider, I’m just a mom with an opinion.
Somewhere in the middle of the movie, I got the impression that the “F” word should have been in the title for as much homage it received during the film.
I also felt that the movie took a route of some sort of sensationalism – something which turns me off instantaneously.
It threw me into a rather dark place rather quickly and then left me hanging in hopelessness and melancholy.
After you landed there…in cinematic despair, it would have been almost impossible to recognize any redemptive value in the content.
I’m talking children being murdered.
There was no conceivable way to make it better from that point on.
None.
In all fairness, maybe had I read the book, I would have liked and understood the film. I doubt it. Frankly, I don’t like negative movies or negative books. I understand resilience and what makes one tenacious in life, but some things are just fruitless – like children being murdered.
Not for me.
Back to my Christian review of For Colored Girls Only
I didn’t go there just to see a one-note, broad stroke of shenanigans reminding me of the pain of Black women – trust me – that is something of which I am fully aware.
I’m not a big movie-goer anymore because I’d rather be teased intellectually than bashed over the head with the horror stories from someone’s confused mind.
Much less, do I need to be accosted by language intended to shock me rather than challenge me to think? I say nope.
Wait! He did it before.
Truthfully, I should have seen this coming after watching “Why Did I Get Married Too”?
At the end of that movie Perry “jerked” me from one place (an argument) and carelessly threw me into an abrasive, unforeseen death.
This would have been fine had it all not happened in the last five minutes of the film.
I don’t want to spoil it, but a husband dies, and the wife sees Dwayne Johnson smile and now I’m supposed to be happy for her? All this happened within ten minutes or so! Too fast!
Timing is everything in movies.
Even in real life, timing matters – which is why I left. But, I digress…again. Back to my “Christian review of For Colored Girls Only”.
When the man died in a car accident (or when the children were thrown from the balcony in For Colored Girls), there was no room (or potential) to recoup from the murder.
Had the scene been written skillfully enough to guide the viewer through a logical intellectual process, I would have been cool.
Ok. I’m not finished with “Why Did I Get Married Too.”
When Perry killed that husband so quickly (maybe Malik Yoba made Perry really mad) or something, it didn’t respect me enough to let me think before he threw into the mix a bit of eye candy (the Rock) and the possibility of a fresh love affair.
It seemed almost like Perry just got tired of the screenplay and just threw the end together on a whim. My regards to The Rock.
Back to my Christian review of For Colored Girls Only for real now…I’m talking about that movie.
At the conclusion of a film with such sensitive high notes, I wanted to walk away with something I had learned, discovered, or at least been fascinated by the mystery of what could have been.
By almost the end of it, I got nothing but a hollow whirlwind like when you scream into a barrel. The poetry or anything of value was lost in the cinematic experience of it all.
This is why I’m such a fan of old, classic movies. They invite me to think. They challenge me to dream. They craft a mental process. Do you know what I mean?
Not today, though.
Anyhoo, Hollywood is beginning to assume that people no longer have critical thinking skills, and that bugs me a little.
I crave a multi-dimensional cinematic experience that does not offend my Christian sensibilities; is not a cookie-cutter, hapless rendition of an old flick, and will not assume that I don’t want to think.
It may be for you…
Hey, if all you want is to see a bunch of famous women, pretty colors and a little drama, you might like it. But, I was disappointed. I’ll stick to my books..my happy books.
I am fully aware that Mr. Perry will not lose a second of sleep worrying about what one preacher’s wife in Missouri thinks and that’s ok. I actually LOVE Tyler Perry as a human being and even laugh (in a good way) at some of the films he produces.
That’s the good thing about having your own blog, you can say what you want.
