Lionsgate Holds on to Tyler Perry

I believe that before Tyler Perry had come to the seen that there were a lot more African-American Movies and great plays that graced the presence of Hollywood. It just takes time and a little thing called effort for some 'white critics' in reference to yourself, to look more into the movies and etc.; that are produced by this black community that do not contain the "urban" pictures dealing with gangs, guns and drugs" that you say are a usual occurrence in correlation with black films. Take time to open your mind and therefore, to see some of Tyler Perry's movies and maybe, and thats just a maybe yo will find that its not just for black critics or white critics to critique and that the movies are not just for white individuals or black individuals to watch. I own a total of 17 video franchises in the southeast region, and I have a plethora of individuals that are from every race and especially minority backgrounds(black, Asian, Hispanic, and etc.) that absolutely love Tyler Perry's movies and stage plays. However, the funny thing is, that approximately 8.5 out of 10 that are white, tend to rent his movies and say more positive things about these movies the the minority races. It takes opening your eyes to the talent, emotion, versatility, and etc that Tyler Perry portrays through out the entirety of these movies thats so amazing. Benefit yourself and pop in a movie of his, and enjoy.

Sincerely, Nathan A. Guest

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I'm rather offended by your white critic comment. I am not black and happen to really enjoy Tyler Perry's films because they are filled with such great writing and involving characters. I don't think its fair to say that only blacks can enjoy his films because it is one of those films that has crossed over beyond its core audience.

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Christopher Campbell opens his critique with an ironic statement: "I don't really get the whole Madea thing, and therefore I haven't been able to appreciate the films of Tyler Perry. But, that is understandable, and perfectly fine with me."

Ironic, because it confirms and illustrates not only his ignorance of Black life in America, but his complacency of living in his ignorant bliss.

It also shows that he can get away with doing a writing assignment without deigning to see the work of the subject he's writing about.

This is the type ignorance that has perpetuated racism in all facets of American life.From benign rudeness to overt discrimination; Campbell's published statement confirms the attitude of neglect that Blacks suffer in America today. He surely didn't realize what he was saying.

It seems that it's all right to neglect us now, but it's not all right. It is NOT all right.
What is seen in the "Madea films," Mr. Campbell, (although I would refer to them as Perry's films, since Madea is not in all of them) reflects the culture that "willie lynchism" designed. It's the attitude and lifestyle that is a result of, what I call the "willie lynch Economic Plan." Those are the images depicted in Perry's films that you "don't get." Did you get the lesson in school? Neither did I, but it needs to be taught so your ignorance can be replaced with understanding the Black side of American culture that you "don't get."
You "don't get" it because the dominant culture has obfuscated the true history of American Slavery, and therefore
Just as a euphemistically, mendacious version of American History is taught to Blacks, the same lies are taught to many Whites with a little "white man's burden" justification thrown in. I didn't know anything about that until I became a teacher and saw another teacher's lesson plan.
The two ethnicities that were most affected by the heinous hate crimes encapsulated by American Slavery were Black and White Americans, but Blacks are more psychologically damaged. By being ignorant of the psychological hate crime that was perpetrated by "Lynch Law," Blacks have never been able to heal from the residual effects caused by the enslavement of our ancestors in this country.

I guarantee you, that if you learned more about your history as it relates to "Negroes" in America, you will not only learn to appreciate, you'll also begin to understand the characters, conditions, attitudes and, ultimately, Liongate's wise retention of Tyler Perry, a prolific writer of thoughtfully comedic Black films with characters we can relate to with humor and respect.

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Please tell me this post is supposed to be "snarky".

Race is a slippery slope, and clearly you have not mastered the ability to address it with care. You had to know someone was going to be offended.

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I'll start with your last comment - if you haven't seen Perry's plays or movies, why are you commenting? And I'll end with your first comment: You don't "get" Perry because you apparently havent' lived the black experience in America. He didn't "make" the movies of "write" the plays for blacks or whites, he wrote them to depict his own experiences and those of the people he's encountered for most of his life, who just happen to be black...well, because he is a black man and that's just the way it is. He doesn't write to keep people like you from "getting it," he writes what he knows, and unfortunately for you--most black people in America can relate to his characters, his methods, and his motivations.

But I don't "get" Martin Scorsese or Woody Allen, either -- they offer nothing of real value to me nor almost every black person. What's the dif?

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MR PERRY'S MOVIES AND PLAYS ARE NOT ABOUT BLACK ISSUES THEY ARE ABOUT LIFE ISSUES.EVERYONE BLACK, WHITE,PURPLE HAVE AT SOME POINT GONE THROUGH SOMETHING ARE KNOW SOMEONE WHO HAS.IN HIS MOVIES AND PLAYS LET US KNOW THAT THERE IS NOTHING THAT CANNOT BE OVER COME WITH GOD AND PRAY

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The Madea/Tyler Perry movies are made with a certain black aesthetic or point-of-view. Chris Campbell is a white movie critic, who's probably very comfortable critiquing mainstream movies. I'll bet that if you go back and look at some of his reviews, there were some mainstream movies he’s liked and some he didn't like; and whether or not you agree with his reviews, you'll probably be able to see that he's evaluating them with a certain criteria. There's a certain expectation there, and his reviews will speak to whether or not the movies meet that expectation.

He recognizes that these Madea/Tyler Perry movies are made for a different audience. An audience with a different (though no less valid) criteria and sense of expectation. He further recognized that he wasn't really qualified to critique the movie based on that criteria - so he didn't. Rather, he admitted his personal ignorance, and said that while HE couldn't really understand the appeal of the movies, he knew that others did.

I don't get what all the fuss is about. If he'd judged the movie by some criteria that didn't really apply, we'd be just as ANGRY. It would be like evaluating spoken word poetry with an eye toward classical literature, or critiquing a jazz album thru the prism of pop rock, or grunge. We'd look at him like he was CRAZY.

In this case, he confessed his ignorance (with respect to the subject) upfront, and declined to give an opinion. That's got to be better than his assuming that the criteria he's normally use was the only yardstick that mattered. That's got to be better than him lambasting the movie for not appealing more to white audiences.

Let's not look for offense where there really is none.

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Who in the world is Christopher Campbell? And who cares anything about his opinion of Tyler Perry and his plays? To me, his opinion of Perry is about as significant as a roach crawling on the floor. I love and support Perry's plays and I get exactly what he is saying.(Yeah that's right, I don't buy bootleg!) I read the critic's opinion and it didn't affect me at all. He has a right to his opinion. But of course, you know what they say about opinions: They're like "butt holes", everybodys got one.

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I am so glad to see that there are others out there who feel the same as I do. How can you judge any of his work when you haven't taken the time out to see them. Some of the movies that are being produced have absolutely no substance and are down right a waste of money. When I think of Tyler Perry, I think of the Parable - The Talents: Be Active (Matthews 25:14-30). I'm always so amazed how multi-talented he is. Madea is one of the best characters he could have created for African Americans to fall in love with; however Tyler's ability to capture life stories is much more powerful and influential. You never know who is being impacted by these stories be it black or white. With the spiritual mindset that he has, I know this film & everything he sets out to accomplish will flourish because God is FIRST in his life. Tyler's work ALWAYS has a message, if not two, for you to ponder over.

By now, you can tell, well I think you can tell... you've offend a lot of Tyler Perry's supporters. SO, Christopher Campbell, before you judge, take time to open your mind and see some of Tyler Perry's movies or catch one of his shows and maybe, you'll take one of his messages to heart. If not, at least give the man the CREDIT he deserves. You can't take that away from him no matter how you try to rip him with negative reviews. He's brillant and that's scares people. Doesn't it?

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