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Starring:
Kimberly Elise, Steve Harris, Shemar Moore, Tamara Taylor, Tyler Perry, Cicely Tyson Genre: Comedy, Drama
In Theaters: Feb 25th 2005
Review By:
Alexis Tuminello
School:
John Jay 2005
Favorite Quote:I do not regret the things I've done just those I did not do
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I've seen Harris play some minor parts in other blockbusters in the past but in this his performance shines. The complete meaning of his terse words is implied and understood from only the slightest shift in the tone of his voice. This quality is further accented by his soulless eyes and stony face. He is a man more occupied with wealth, public opinion and his fickle interests than using any sort of tact with those close to him. His wife and diary author, Helen McCarter (Kimberly Elise), is a sheepish, dependant woman whose life crashes when her husband says 'get out' on their anniversary. She had a part in Beloved but it's a book I never read and a movie I never saw. I'd like to think this is her portrayal of who the script called for Helen to be because the pathetic loneliness she emanates rings true. Helen's second relationship in this movie is a bit more balanced but other than her brief Misery inspired revenge her strength grows in the disappointing measurements of mere inches. Her standing up for herself seems watered down as if a shift in wind would still wash her away and leave her desperately clinging to the nearest scent of testosterone. Veteran actress Cicely Tyson plays Elise's influential mother Myrtle. Besides Steve Harris there was only one other familiar face and that was Shamar Moore as Helen pursuer Orlando. A google search informed me that Shamar Moore is a popular model but unless he was on a billboard outside my window I wouldn't have noticed him. Also he apparently was once a regular on the popular soap opera The Young and the Restless and I definitely don't know him from there. I would never stoop to watch The Young and the Restless, I'm a One Life to Live gal. So I still have no idea where I know him from but his big screen presence alone is enough to inspire me to write GQ and demand they bring bandanas back into fashion no matter how tacky. Let's just say in Diary of a Mad Black Woman he's every easy on the eyes. Oh, and his acting is pretty good too; definitely above soap opera grade.
But I'm leaving out the best acting performance in the entire film. Despite the fact that this is his virgin performance his comfort in front of the camera is evident. Of course I'm talking about producer/writer/actor Tyler Perry. In Diary of a Mad Black Woman Perry tackles the roles of three characters in Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Brian, Madea, and Joe. Brian is Perry without costume as Helen's cousin who kinda, sorta, not really sets up Helen with Orlando. Brain has his own set of problems too, dealing with two growing girls and a drug addicted wife somewhere on the nearby streets. Joe is a grandfather ...
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