Diary of a Mad Black Woman
| Diary of a Mad Black Woman | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Darren Grant |
| Written by | Tyler Perry |
| Based on | Diary of a Mad Black Woman by Tyler Perry |
| Produced by | Reuben Cannon Tyler Perry |
| Starring | Kimberly Elise Steve Harris Shemar Moore Cicely Tyson Tyler Perry |
| Cinematography | David Claessen |
| Edited by | Terilyn A. Shropshire |
| Music by | Elvin D. Ross Tyler Perry |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Lions Gate Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 116 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $5.5 million[1] |
| Box office | $50.7 million[1] |
Diary of a Mad Black Woman is a 2005 American romantic comedy drama[2] film directed by Darren Grant and written by Tyler Perry. Inspired by the play of the same name, it marks Perry's feature film debut and is the first entry in the Madea film franchise. Starring Perry alongside Kimberly Elise, Steve Harris, Shemar Moore, and Cicely Tyson, it tells the story of a woman who is thrown out of her house by her husband on their 18th wedding anniversary and subsequently moves in with her grandmother, and is the only film written, but not directed, by Perry.
Filmed in Atlanta and Fairburn, Georgia, and released theatrically by Lionsgate Films on February 25, 2005, the film received mostly negative reviews from critics, but was commercially successful, grossing $50.6 million in North America against a $5.5 million budget. The sequel, Madea's Family Reunion, was released on February 24, 2006.
Plot[edit]
Helen Simmons-McCarter and her attorney husband Charles McCarter have money, success, and a fine home. Despite seemingly perfect lives, Charles is actually distant, verbally and physically abusive, and has been having multiple affairs, while Helen is unemployed, bored at home, and desperately trying to make her marriage work. On the evening of their 18th wedding anniversary, Helen arrives home to find all her belongings in a U-Haul, and that Charles is abandoning her for his young mistress Brenda, the mother of his two sons.
Helen kicks the driver Orlando out of the truck and visits her intimidating grandmother Madea. Madea takes Helen in and helps her get back on her feet, upsetting Madea's brother Joe. Joe's attorney son Brian defends Madea and Helen after Charles and Brenda catch the pair breaking into and vandalizing the marital home. Judge Mablean Ephriam places Madea, a repeat offender, under house arrest and sets a $5,000 property or cash bond for Helen.
Brian kicks his addict wife Debrah out of their home, causing him to have a strained relationship with their daughter Tiffany, who wants to join the church choir. Fearing that Tiffany will turn to drugs like her mother, Brian refuses until Madea convinces him otherwise, encouraging him to also fix his relationship with Debrah. Helen cultivates a relationship with Orlando. Meanwhile, career criminal Jamison Milton Jackson asks Charles to defend him in his trial for shooting an undercover cop during a drug deal. He gives Charles $300,000 for both attorney’s fee and to bribe the judge to rule in his favor, revealing that Charles received most of his money through drug deals and buying off judges.
In divorce court, Helen lets Charles keep all the money and property, provided he pay Brian's attorney fees and continue paying for her mother Myrtle Jean's stay in a nursing home since he made her place her there; Charles agrees to both terms. In the shooting case, despite Charles' efforts, the jury convicts Jamison. While being led out of the courtroom, Jamison snatches the bailiff's gun and shoots Charles in the back for failing to get him acquitted.
Orlando proposes to Helen, but before she can respond, she sees the shooting on the news and goes to the hospital with Brian, where they encounter Brenda upon arriving. The doctor explains the possibility of Charles being permanently paralyzed from the waist down and asks if he should be resuscitated if his health deteriorates. Brenda chooses to let Charles die, feeling that if he somehow survives but is unable to walk, he will spend the rest of his life using a wheelchair, but Helen, still Charles's legal wife, tells the doctor to do everything possible for him to ensure his survival.
Charles is discharged from the hospital, returns home with Helen, and resumes verbally abusing her, but Helen takes the opportunity to retaliate for years of neglect as well as verbal, emotional, and physical abuse. She physically assaults and upsets him by disclosing that Brenda finally revealed her true colors by not only opting to let Charles die, but also by emptying his bank account and leaving with their sons during his hospitalization. She additionally reveals that their housekeeper Christina has left as well because Charles has no money to pay her, and that all of his friends, associates, and connections have abandoned him now that he has been left crippled and penniless.
Helen and Orlando argue about her moving back in with Charles to look after him, and he leaves heartbroken. Charles realizes the error of his past treatment towards Helen and apologizes to her, realizing that she was the only person who truly cared about him. She assists in his recovery, and one Sunday at church, he regains his ability to walk, while Debrah, now clean and sober following treatment, reconciles with Brian. Charles seeks to begin his relationship anew with Helen, but during a family dinner with Madea, she gives him her wedding ring and signed divorce papers and informs him they will always be friends, ending her relationship with him on amicable terms. She ventures to Orlando's workplace, reaffirms that she loves him, requests that he propose again, and happily accepts when he does.
Cast[edit]
- Kimberly Elise as Helen Simmons-McCarter, a woman who is the soon-to-be ex-wife of Charles.
- Steve Harris as Charles McCarter, a successful lawyer.
- Shemar Moore as Orlando, a moving truck driver.
- Cicely Tyson as Myrtle Simmons, Helen's mother.
- Tyler Perry as:
- Mabel "Madea" Simmons, a tough old lady and Helen's grandmother
- Joe Simmons, Madea's brother.
- Brian Simmons, a lawyer who is Madea's nephew and Joe's son.
- Lisa Marcos as Brenda Marcos, Charles' mistress.
- Tamara Taylor as Debrah, Brian's drug-addicted wife.
- Tiffany Evans as Tiffany, Brian's daughter.
- Avery Knight as BJ, Brian's son
- Gary Anthony Sturgis as Jamison Milton Jackson, a career criminal.
- Chandra Currelley as herself
- Judge Mablean Ephriam as herself
- Tamela Mann as Cora Simmons, a choir member at the church Helen attends who is revealed to be Madea's daughter in other works.
Soundtrack[edit]
The soundtrack was released by Motown Records on April 19, 2005.
| No. | Title | Performer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Purify Me" | India.Arie | 4:07 |
| 2. | "Sick & Tired" | Monica | 4:19 |
| 3. | "Different Directions" | Angie Stone | 3:39 |
| 4. | "Things I Collected" | Tamia | 5:37 |
| 5. | "I Wanna Swing" | Cheryl Pepsii Riley | 2:25 |
| 6. | "I Wanna Love Again" | Chandra Currelley | 4:44 |
| 7. | "Fallen in Love" | Darlene McCoy | 4:28 |
| 8. | "Ain't It Funny" | Heather Headley | 4:03 |
| 9. | "One of Us" | Cheryl Pepsii Riley | 3:31 |
| 10. | "I Wanna Be Free" | Patti LaBelle | 4:56 |
| 11. | "Father, Can You Hear Me" | Tiffany Evans, Cheryl Pepsii Riley, Tamela J. Mann, Chandra Currelley, Terrell Carter, & Anya Washington | 4:12 |
| 12. | "Take It to Jesus" | Tamela J. Mann | 2:57 |
Release[edit]
The film was released on DVD and VHS June 28, 2005 by Lions Gate Home Entertainment.
Reception[edit]
Box office[edit]
On its opening weekend, the film arrived at number 1 on the box office rankings, with takings of $21.9 million. The film grossed an estimated $50.6 million in the United States and Canada, with an additional $19,000 internationally, for an estimated worldwide total of $50.7 million.[1]
Critical response[edit]
Diary of a Mad Black Woman was mostly panned by professional film critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 16% based on 115 reviews, with an average rating of 4.0/10. The site's consensus reads "Tyler Perry's successful play can't make the move to the screen; this mix of slapstick, melodrama and spirituality lacks a consistent tone."[3] Metacritic gives the film a weighted average score of 36% based on reviews from 30 critics, which the site considers "generally unfavorable reviews".[4] Audience polled by CinemaScore gave the film a rare "A+" grade, on a scale from A-F.[5]
Roger Ebert gave the film one out of four stars, arguing that the Madea character "is not remotely plausible [and] not merely wrong for the movie, but fatal to it." Ebert also wrote that Elise, Tyson and Harris offered effective performances and that "[t]here's a good movie buried beneath the bad one."[6]
Sequel[edit]
A sequel to the film, Madea's Family Reunion, was released on February 24, 2006.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c "Tyler Perry's Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005) - Box Office Mojo". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
- ^ RED Interactive Agency. "Diary of a Mad Black Woman — TylerPerry.com". tylerperry.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
- ^ "Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on August 10, 2022. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
- ^ "Diary of a Mad Black Woman : Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 2010-01-17. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
- ^ "Cinemascore :: Movie Title Search". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
- ^ Ebert, Roger (2005) Diary of a Mad Black Woman, accessed 23 February 2013 Archived 9 December 2012 at the Wayback Machine
External links[edit]
- 2005 films
- 2005 comedy-drama films
- 2005 directorial debut films
- American films based on plays
- African-American comedy-drama films
- Films about adultery in the United States
- Films about divorce
- Films about lawyers
- Films about the upper class
- Films directed by Darren Grant
- Films set in Georgia (U.S. state)
- Films shot in Atlanta
- Films with screenplays by Tyler Perry
- Lionsgate films
- 2000s English-language films
- 2000s American films