2 minute read
Madea Proves Love Heals
from Buzz – March 2, 2006
by Daily Titan
THE BUZZ MOVIES 6 M A R C H 2 , 2 0 0 6 T H E B U Z Z @ D A I L Y T I T A N . C O M
MADEA PROVES LOVE HEALS BROKEN HEARTS
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By Jessica Escorsia
Daily Titan Staff Writer
An abusive relationship, a money-hungry mother, trouble with love and a teenage runaway, All of these are just a few of the underlying themes in Tyler Perry’s No. 1 box office hit, “Madea’s Family Reunion.”
Adapted from Perry’s successful stage play of the same name, Mabel “Madea” Simmons (Tyler Perry), the pistol-packing mama, is back to reunite her family that has not had a reunion in five years.
Madea, who always finds herself in trouble wit the law, is sentenced to take in a rebellious teenage runaway.
Her lessons in tough-love and old-fashioned spankings, which Madea does not hesitate to do and are quite entertaining, helps develop the runaway into a well-behaved and respectable young lady. While Madea learns to cope with raising another teenager, the audience is taken on a rollercoaster of emotions with the heart warming love stories of her nieces Lisa (Rochelle Aytes) and her half sister Vanessa (Lisa Arrindell Anderson).
Lisa is engaged to handsome and wealthy Carlos (Blair Underwood) who seems to give her everything from flowers and jewelry to beatings and bruises.
Carlos, a successful investment banker, uses Lisa as a ploy to get what he wants from her moneyhungry bourgeoise mother Victoria (Lynn Whitefield).
While Lisa is enduring beatings, her mother is too caught up on maintaining her status at the top of the social ladder that she doesn’t seem to care much about what her daughter has to put up with for wealth and success.
Meanwhile Victoria’s estranged eldest Vanessa, a poor single mother of two, struggles to learn how to trust and love men because of a shocking experience from her
PHOTO PROVIDED BY LIONS GATE FILMS
childhood.
Throughout the entire movie we cut from scene to scene between both the entertaining storyline with Madea and the difficulties of the teetering relationship with between the two sisters and their mother.
But finally at the reunion everyone comes together and the secrets and lies come out for all to see.
The whole family gets a lesson in life, love and the importance of a family sticking together from their great-aunts Cicely Tyson and Maya Angelou, who give uplifting and poetic words to a much needed Lisa who seeks help at the reunion.
“Madea’s Family Reunion” provides as much entertaining as you would expect from Tyler Perry.
If all you want to see is Madea’s no-nonsense approach to life and how she speaks what’s on her mind, whenever she feels like it, it is best to save your money and wait to rent the movie. Madea’s on-screen time is not what you would expect because the more serious theme between the sisters takes on a stronger role in the movie.
