by Thomas Ferguson

From stage to screen, Tyler Perry is at it again with Meet the Browns, the latest in a long list of screen adaptations of his highly successful stage plays. This time, Perry is telling a story with its focus on the ups and downs of family life…Just like every other film he has produced thus far. Can you say broken record?

Brenda (Angela Bassett) is a hard working single mother from inner city Chicago. She is trying everything she can to keep her head above water, trying to support her three children. When she loses her job, all seems lost. That is until she receives a mysterious letter stating that her father has died. A father she knows absolutely nothing about.

With nothing to lose, she packs up the family and takes a trip to Georgia to see if this deceased man is truly her father. What she gets is a family full of colorful characters that are also coming to terms with her arrival.

Along the way, Brenda falls for Harry (Rick Fox), a basketball coach who finds talent in Brenda’s oldest son Michael (Lance Gross). He wants to mentor and groom Michael for the pros, but is he just there for the potential payday or does he truly love Brenda?
Brenda sorts through her feelings while dealing with her loud and crazy family. Some of which are hell bent on not letting her get a part of the inheritance…if there is one.

Joining the already stellar cast are; Jenifer Lewis, David Mann, Irma P. Hall, Tamela J. Mann, Margaret Avery, Frankie Faison, Sofia Vergara, and of course Tyler Perry…back in the dress for the role of Madea.

I am a huge fan of Tyler Perry and his over-the-top character Madea, but this time around, there was not enough of her for me to highly recommend this movie. Don’t get me wrong, there is a strong family story and an interesting love story, but for me, I needed more laughs.

The laughs were definitely there with Lewis and Mann (as Leroy Brown), but at times I felt them trying a little too hard and it came off a bit corny. The major disappointment was with Madea and Joe. There was less than ten minutes of screen time between the two and again, the comedy seemed forced. You may wonder why a studio would feature these characters so prominently in the trailers and television spots, yet they are barely in the movie. Well, I’d call it a great marketing strategy to get butts in the seats. I hope it doesn’t blow up in their faces. I know I was immensely disappointed.

I believe I have a theory behind this madness. Tyler must be setting us up for Madea Goes to Jail, which is the craziest of all his plays. I hope for Tyler’s sake that is the case. If you have read my reviews in the past, you know I try to help you movie fans out whenever I can. I’m going to do you a favor right now. When the end credits start to roll, stay seated. The funniest moments for me were the outtakes. I laughed so hard that my glasses flew off my face. That alone was worth the price of admission.