Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #55315 in DVD
• Brand: Lions Gate
• Released on: 2008-07-01
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Spanish
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 101 minutes

Amazon.com
Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns is a sitcom taken to the next level. Brenda (Angela Bassett) is a single mom struggling to raise her family in Chicago. When she receives a letter inviting her to attend her father's funeral, she's not sure how to feel: Brenda never knew the man and hadn't interacted with that part of her family. But when she loses her job, she decides that now's the time to shake things up. (And, as a friend suggests, there's always the chance her father left her a little money.) While the film's central character grew up with incredible hardships (a prostitute for a mother and a pimp for a father who didn't stick around), writer-director-actor Perry takes every opportunity to inject a little humor into the vignettes. It is not her fault that she is too gorgeous and regal to be believable in the role, but Bassett--a superb dramatic actress--is sorely miscast here in a role where her subtleties are lost in all the fuss. Meet the Browns isn't Perry's best piece of work, but the fast-paced action and raucous dialogue provide enough fun to make the film worthwhile. With his name prefacing each movie, Perry has developed a franchise that doesn't fail to deliver what his fans are accustomed to: some variation of a dysfunctional family comedy and the appearance of his most famous character Madea--a cranky grandmother played by Perry himself that manages to draw laughs, even when her inclusion sometimes is superfluous. --Jae-Ha Kim

Beyond Meet the Browns

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Stills from Meet the Browns (click for larger image)

Amazon.com
Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns is a sitcom taken to the nth level. Brenda (Angela Bassett) is a single mom struggling to raise her family in Chicago. When she receives a letter inviting her to attend her father's funeral, she's not sure how to feel: Brenda never knew the man and hadn't interacted with that part of her family. But when she loses her job, she decides that now's the time to shake things up. (And, as a friend suggests, there's always the chance her father left her a little money.) While the film's central character grew up with incredible hardships (a prostitute for a mother and a pimp for a father who didn't stick around), writer-director-actor Perry takes every opportunity to inject a little humor into the vignettes. It is not her fault that she is too gorgeous and regal to be believable in the role, but Bassett--a superb dramatic actress--is sorely miscast here in a role where her subtleties are lost in all the fuss. Meet the Browns isn't Perry's best piece of work, but the fast-paced action and raucous dialogue provide enough fun to make the film worthwhile. With his name prefacing each movie, Perry has developed a franchise that doesn't fail to deliver what his fans are accustomed to: some variation of a dysfunctional family comedy and the appearance of his most famous character Madea--a cranky grandmother played by Perry himself that manages to draw laughs, even when her inclusion sometimes is superfluous. --Jae-Ha Kim

Customer Reviews

Caught between a crock and a star chase
Short Attention Span Summary (SASS):

1. Angela Bassett stars as a single mother of 3 kids struggling to make ends meet in inner city Chicago
2. A death in the family takes them to Georgia, where they meet the Browns
3. A quick Rick Fox jumps into the crazy clan
4. Over-the-top characters, prolonged punch lines and unnecessary family secrets lead to a predictable ending


This movie has an established talent pool of a cast, and usually they can be depended on to put the "dis" in dysfunctional, but this time the jokes fail to flow smoothly, wasting the comedic talents of Jenifer Lewis, David Mann and Frankie Faison. Tyler Perry appears briefly as his most beloved character Madea, but even this feels like an afterthought in the context of the movie.

Angela Bassett is out of place for this particular role, but excellent actress that she is, her character signifies hope for single mothers everywhere who may be feeling overwhelmed by the pressures of work, home and family.

Some good performances make for a movie with a strong message, but unfortunately it's hard to see through all the noise and confusion.



Amanda Richards, July 20, 2008

Kinda Annoyin'
Meet the Browns 3 star

First, in reference to the reviewer who said that this was predictable, she was right, but so are 90% of the commericial movies produced yearly. In saying that, I wasn't particularly fond of this movie at all. It was a step way back from WDIGM. I gave it a 3 star rating for the following reasons:

The comedy was over the top, particularly the church scene. In fact, I was annoyed and desperate for it to end. Y'all know how it is in church and the choir is rockin' a song. Everybody is feeling the spirit and getting' their shout on. But the choir chase away the spirit(s) by adding 3 more verses and four more choruses, just tiring everybody out. That is how I felt.

Even the spirits rolled their eyes. They looked over at the choir and said, "these folks are trippin. You folks are wearing us out. We can't stay here all doggone day foolin' with y'all. We are scheduled to appear at the 3p.m. at the pastor's anniversary program at the Thank You Lawdy Praise God Baptist Church. We out of heah. See y'all next Sunday!"

Madea fighting the policeman was too silly and just out of place. It did not contribute to or move the story along.

There appears to have been some problems with how the script was written. I don't believe it was well thought out. There were holes and it simply did not flow well. The church scene for me was not culturally authentic, though I know there are variations in how we worship.

The casting seemed sort of off to me.

I liked he following aspect of the movie:

It is always good to see Angela. She looks fantastic.

Lamman Rucker was a feast to my eyes. He was so endearing in Why Did I Get Married. He is my new "pretend" man. I would be satisfied with a close look a like, only if he has the sweetness of character like the Troy character in WDIGM. These men seem to be more real in the make believe world, than the real one. I am also in love with a book character in Tananarive Due's, My Soul to Keep, Dawit/David. I swear y'all I ain't crazy.

Margaret Avery, famous for her line in the Color Purple "you sho is ugly!" was a pleasant surprise.

I loved the fact that Tyler is able to provide opportunities for African American actors and actresses that we don't normally get to see in mainstream productions. Thanks Tyler.

In conclusion, the film appeared to have been put together hastily. It seems like he used over top comedy excessively because there wasn't enough dialogue. I am going to give him one more chance before I kick him to de curb and go bootleg. I don't wanna. I am desperately hoping he offers a better product. I am more than willing to pay the price for admission and even endure the "annoying" movie goers.

In my humble opinion, he should team up with talented scriptwriters and directors who know the craft and frican American culture well to assist him. With such collaboration, I can see Tyler consistently producing 5 star productions.

Lastly, maybe he has over extended himself and putting too much material out in the market, sacrificing quality. A very good movie once a year would be nice. I an rooting for you Tyler.

These are reasons why I can only muster a 3 star for this production.

Tyer Perry's Meet the Browns
Very, very, very funny! This movie is for the whole family. Tyer Perry, I know you might not see this review, but you have done it again! When ever you had your plays here in Las Vegas, Nevada I attended, God has truly blessed you with a wonderful gift, to make people laugh, think about what they went through or are going through. I applaud you, keep up the excellent work.Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns [Theatrical Release]