Why Did I Get Married?

from the mom

Now that I have your attention...this is a movie review.

I know very well why I got married and it was a good decision.

However, being overly interested in American Studies, I rented Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married? Subtitle: The Redemption of Janet Jackson (in which Tyler gives her the dignified role in the film and keeps her fully clothed in sweaters and turtlenecks).

Perry is an interesting phenomenon. He works hard and has had success on stage, film, and television. He explores black America, incorporating comedy, Christian faith (though sometimes skimping on the sexual values of Christianity) and the crisis of the black family in his films. He usually has some positive things to say and one or two things that leave me shaking my head at the incongruity of it with all his other good messages.

As a result I've never actually recommended a Tyler Perry film before. Until this one. And this recommendation has some reservations. If gutter language bothers you, skip it. I worked in the restaurant industry for a couple of years and have a built-in four-letter word filter that works so well I'm often embarrassed when I recommend a movie and then someone comments on the horrible language. About half-way through this movie, I started analyzing it from the perspective of "would my mother like it" and that's when I heard the language.

Perry examines four marriages on the premise of four couples who are all friends and vacation together once a year. They set out on a trip to a Colorado lodge, each of their marriages in crisis. Providing some balance, Perry has one his fault, one hers, one theirs, and one life circumstances. Jackson plays the award-winning psychologist/author who works with relationships. She sets about trying to fix things only to discover she needs to focus in on things at home. (Which deep down she knows but it is much easier to solve others' problems than your own.)

If you choose to watch this movie, you will be horrified at some point at the discussion of cheating; hang in there. In the end, he/she who cheats pays. Selfishness is also examined, true beauty, and forgiveness. As well as what happens when she makes more money. The little smattering of prayer and faith is pablum and you might not agree with some of the choices (one marriage ends and a remarriage results). But there is a lot to think about here.

I recently saw Dan in Real Life and loved it. Enchanted-not so much.