Things that make me smile

Over the past two weeks, I have been on an emotional roller coaster. As some of you know, my dad just underwent pretty major surgery to straighten out his spine, realign some discs in his back that are now being held in place by rods and screws and to fix some spinal compression he had in his neck. It's going to be a long, painful road to recovery for all of us and I thank you guys for your prayers, positive thoughts and well wishes for my dad, my family and me.
My brother and I have been going at it since he got here, there have also been a few personal issues that I don't care to discuss anymore and add all that to the fact that this is PMS week. With all of that, I'm in need of a serious smile, aww Hell, I need laughter. And this got me to thinking, I should compile a list of the Top 10 things that make me smile and or laugh hysterically.
I'm gonna do this VH1 style and start from the bottom and go to the top. But I'm not gonna give 'em all to you in an hour or less, you gotta come back for the rest of them later.
So starting from No. 10, here we go:

10. Tyler Perry as Medea. Say what you will but this is funny to me! Everybody feels some kinda way about this dude and him dressing up in drag, but it's funny to me!
*Take that Rocky! :-P*

9. Reese Witherspoon in "Freeway." If you've never seen this movie, slap yourself and then go rent it! This movie came out when Witherspoon was unknown and my sister and I discovered it in the middle of the night while we were on summer vacation. It came on Cinemax so you know we had NO business watching it as 12 and 14-year-olds. Still, it's funny as crap!

8. The Cosby Show Reruns always make me smile if not fall out laughing. My favorite episode is when Cliff had a nightmare that all the men were pregnant. Another favorite is the Gordon Gartrelle episode and the ones where they performed for their grandparents. I could use one of those right now!


7. "Life" with Eddie Murphy, Martin Lawrence, Bernie Mac, Guy Torry, Anthony Anderson and er'ybody else! When I pop this DVD in I watch it like I've never seen it before. It's a combination of the funny ass lines and the way the actors portrayed the characters. Claude and Ray as old men still holds up and 10 years later, this movie is still hee-larious!

6. "Harlem Nights" with Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, Redd Foxx, Della Reese and others. This is another DVD I can pop in and laugh all day long. If ever there were kings of comedy Pryor and Foxx are definitely among them. My favorite scenes in the movie include the exchanges between Redd Foxx and Della Reese because they sound like the old married couple who love to hate each other but would never get a divorce.

What are you doing on Monday night?!

I know what you oughta be doing! You oughta be checking me out on The Jaded Nyer's BlogTalk Radio show.
This show came about after a conversation The Jaded Nyer, 12kyle and The F$%k It List and I had about one Mr. Tyler Perry.
Monday night, we won't have any of those pesky typos getting in our way! We'll be going head to head and the gloves are coming off!
OK, so it won't be the Rumble in the Jungle, but it's going to be a great show! I mean, what else could you be doing at 10 p.m. on a Monday? There is nothing on TV and you need something to help you unwind from the God-awful day that is Monday.
Tell a neighbor, tell a friend, call all your cousins and your mama 'nem! Tell 'em tune into to BlogTalk Radio on Monday night.

Everybody's Talking About Tyler Perry

It's either all good or all bad. I don't know of anyone who feels indifferently.
Earlier this week, a few of us got into a discussion about Perry on Twitter. I saw "Madea Goes to Jail" on Sunday and quite frankly I'm still cracking up. Perry's brand of comedy is not for everybody but those of us who enjoy it, really enjoy it.
I have purchased copies, certified not bootlegged, of the play "Madea Goes to Jail," which is my favorite of all the plays, and the movies, "The Family That Preys," "Why Did I Get Married?," "Diary of a Mad Black Woman," and "Madea's Family Reunion." So yes, I am a fan.
So the arguement from The Jaded Nyer and 12kyle was that Perry's brand of comedy is reminiscent of "shuckin' and jivin'" and his character "Madea" is a "lil' suspect" because he's a 6'5 black man in drag.
Because I am half-Gemini, I kind of see their point. I'll admit, some of the punchlines are a little simple and some of them are a little slapstick, but it is still funny. Well, I laugh at it and millions of others do too.
Some folks are actually comparing his work to misygonistic rappers saying that what he does is degrading to all black people. That I don't agree with at all. How is it that the work of one man tears down a whole race of people?
The way I see it is Perry is paving the way for a lot of filmmakers and actors of color. As a budding screenwriter who has yet to sell a screenplay, I've been researching how hard it is to get a black story greenlighted in LaLaWood. Not only did he get his stories greenlighted, he's doing them on his own terms. You gotta respect that even if you don't particularly care for his brand of comedy.
Perry's success with his plays and movies, both comedy and drama, have afforded him the opportunity to purchase and run successfully his own studios, production company and operate the two most-successful cable sitcoms to date.
Even if you don't agree with it, if you hate to watch his work, respect his hustle and don't belittle the people who enjoy it.
Obviously there is a market for wholesome entertainment that is not riddled with an abundance of profane language and soft porn sex scenes. And if you can relate to the characters, the stuff is hella funny.
I have never gone to the movies to find the meaning of life or to determine how people should act. I go to enjoy a good movie and to laugh when appropriate.
I don't want to get into a whole lot of this, but I guarantee you I know people who have a lot of the qualities that I see in Perry's characters, Madea included. While my mom has not had any run-ins with the law, she will certainly have you laughing like hell at the things she says and will hit you off with some wisdom at the same time - just like Madea.
As for Brown, there is a man in my home church who can't talk worth a damn who always wants to pray for somebody. My high school basketball coach was always ashy and God only knows where he got those shirts he used to wear.
I could go on and on, but my point is, people can relate to his work and we all just want to be entertained. Let us be entertained, dammit!

And they're off ...

... gas prices have again made the trek upward again this weekend.
I gassed up my car on Thursday night for $3.59/gallon and packed my clothes in anticipation of driving down to the Queen City (Charlotte, NC) to see my best friend, my goddaughter and my brand new godson this weekend.
I got up Friday, finished up my stories for the week and jumped on the highway only to find that gas had gone up as much as a dollar in some places overnight. To add injury to insult, some gas stations were limiting drivers to only 10 gallons.
What does that have to do with me since my tank was already full, you may ask? Well, I could get down there, but getting back would be a different story. I could go, but I would run the risk of spending $50 to $60 to fill my tank when I got back and another $40 when I got home for the week. I don't know about ya'll but I don't have it like that.
Long story short, I opted not to head to the QC and went to the movies to see "Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys." And I must say to all of you I was presently surprised. Honestly, I don't know what I expected, but it was a good film. Trust me.

OK, first of all, I have to give Sanaa Lathan her props. Yea, yea, I know she's pretty and everything but up until now, she's always taken on the same type of role. The girl next door, love starved pretty girl who doesn't know how pretty she is type of role. But she really stretched herself for this one.
I must say, I had to sort of deprogram myself to realize that this was only a character that she was playing. With all due respect to Ms. Lathan, she plays a great bitch.
The film also stars two of my favorite actresses Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard. For the first 15 minutes of the movie, I could not get "Misery" and "Crooklyn" out of my head. After that, it was a trip.
Tyler Perry pulled a Spike Lee and cast himself in the movie, but it worked. The only thing that didn't work was that god-awful wig he wore.
Don't get me wrong, there was the overly clueless character who everybody wanted to choke via Rockmond Dunbar. And my girl, Taraji P. Henson. She is so my favorite "new" actress. I say new because she hasn't been around that long, but I just like her. She's picked a lot of different type of characters and she's convinced me as all of them.
I am not going to spoil it for you but I will tell you that it is certainly an entertaining movie and I am proud of Perry. He did his thing on this one. Long story short, go see it. For real, don't bootleg it either, go to the movies, buy some popcorn and mix in some peanut M&Ms and drink a Sprite.
Go on, you owe it to yourself.

Ahhhh, I smell Hater-ade ...

... and the movie critics are over-flowing with negative commentary early this week. There's only one thing that could cause this, there must be a new Tyler Perry movie in the theaters. Well whaddaya know, there is.
"Meet the Browns" opened up nationwide last weekend as the second highest grossing film of the weekend. He came in second to the all-star cast "Horton Hears a Who."
Like his previous feature films, "Diary of a Mad Black Woman," "Madea's Family Reunion," "Daddy's Little Girls" and "Why Did I Get Married," "Meet the Browns" was high anticipated by Perry's cult-like following and dreaded by the Hollywood critics.
I have yet to see the movie, but I have seen both plays the movie is based on, "Meet the Browns" and "What's Done in the Dark." Honestly, I liked both plays and from what I understand from my friends who have seen it, I'll like the movie.
We went through this when "Why Did I Get Married" came out and I told you all that none of Tyler Perry's movies would ever be considered Oscar-worthy by the Academy. First and foremost, Perry's stories about people of color don't portray them as hopeless drug addicts, whores, pimps and dirty cops. And, add to that the fact that there are strong Christian overtones to his films. I'm not so delusional that I don't see the similarities and in some cases repetition of his films, but at the same time, I'm not so tightly wound that I can't enjoy a good story either.
Secondly, Perry has tapped into an ignored segment of consumers, Christian women and families looking for entertainment that does not consist of constant profane and offensive language and constant sex scenes and gratuitous use of drugs.
That's why he's making money, this particular demographic is starving for entertainment and Hollywood is not catering to them, Perry is. That is why the man is making money hand over fist. Add to that the fact that Madea and Brown are hilarious.
I learned a long time ago that a lot of people don't necessarily get some of the things that black folks deem funny. I read one review where the writer said he thought it would be rude to laugh at some parts of the movie and he was unclear if the movie was a comedy or a drama.
Why does it have to fit into one box or category? Perry writes stories that go on in the mirror the lives of a lot of black people. And speaking as one of the black folks who can strongly relate to his stories, I say that life is full of comedy and drama and how we deal with it is to laugh at it.
I have always been told that sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying and I think that is what Perry is doing. He's not writing the stories that answer life's questions. He's writing the stories that give people a 90-minute outlet from the Hell that is their daily reality and that is the point of entertainment - nothing more, nothing less.
With that said, go support the movie. Let's piss off the critics!

It's been a helluva news day ...

First off, a key interest rate was cut by three-quarters of a percentage point today. Now, to be completely honest with you, I have no clue as to what that means. All I know is the stock market took a major nose dive and it affects my 401K. I know I got to do better but I just can't help you right now.
Secondly, I am sad to report that critically acclaimed actor Heath Ledger was found dead in an apartment in the Soho neighborhood of Manhattan. According to a report on CNN, the "Brokeback Mountain" star was found lying naked and unresponsive on a bed by a housekeeper with over-the-counter prescription medication strewn about.
The 27-year-old, Australian-born Ledger left his hometown for Sydney at the age of 17 with $.69 to his name to pursue his dream of acting. He got his first acting job in the 1997 independent film "Blackrock." He went on to appear in several other independent films but got his biggest break when he appeared in "10 Things I Hate About You" and later "Monster's Ball" playing opposite Halle Berry and Billy Bob Thornton.
My heart really goes out to his family. It's hard enough to lose a family member, but to lose one so young and unexpectedly and to have to go through that in the public eye has got to be horrible.
He is survived by his two-year-old daughter Matilda from his relationship with "Brokeback" co-Michelle Williams, his parents and his three sisters.
In political news today, Fred Thompson called it quits in his bid for the White House. He made the announcement today saying only that he's "withdrawn his candidacy" and he hopes the nation and party have benefited from his effort.
I just shook my head and kept it moving. I would love to say that I am surprised about his decision to drop out I mean, I don't think he was ever in a position to be elected. He came into the game in the third quarter expecting to take it over. I don't know if he thought he was the ringer or not. Honestly I hope that he goes back to "Law & Order." Watching him on those dang debates has been throwing me off. I keep waiting for Arthur and Jack to have an argument about putting some witness on the stand that the defense is going to rip to shreds.
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are still going at it like cats and dogs. I think those two are going to argue themselves right out of the White House. They need to watch themselves because John Edwards is gaining on them.
On a brighter note, the striking writers and Hollywood execs have entered into impromptu talks again. Let's hope this will yield some results. I am tired of reruns and reality shows. If I have to watch the same five episodes of "Private Practice" again, I am going to strangle somebody.
Oh and before I go, the trailer for Tyler Perry's "Meet the Browns" is online. The movie premieres nationwide on March 21 and I can hardly wait. Take a look here at Black Voices
I'm excited. I think it is going to be a good movie. I just want everyone to prepare themselves. Know that Hollywood critics will be unkind to the movie and everyone involved in it down to the moviegoers themselves.
In the past, every review I've ever read about Perry's films have called him juvenile, slapstick, unrealistic and too religious. I might be crazy, but I thought people went to the movies to be entertained, not find the meaning of life.
I hope the movie does really well and will once and for all silence the critics because they wouldn't know a good movie if it slapped in the face.

Why Do I Keep Reading Movie Reviews?

It's only going to piss me off. So, for whatever reason today, I opted to find a few "mainstream" reviews of Tyler Perry's "Why Did I Get Married?" And of course, it pissed me completely off.
First and foremost, let me clear up the comment made yesterday that this wouldn't be an Academy Award contender. I said that because this movie was written, produced and directed by black folks and did not have any of our brothers and sisters degrading themselves or portraying a criminal lifestyle.

It seems that the only time our folks get recognized for cinematic achievements is when they play ex-slaves, bums, rogue cops, maids and a step down from crack whores.

Granted Jaime Foxx and Jennifer Hudson won, but he won for his outstanding portrayal in a biopic and she won playing a character, Effie, who was the classic stereotypical Sapphire personality.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Sapphire, according to the Arte Sana Web site, Sapphire is described as an African American woman portrayed as evil, bitchy, stubborn and hateful. In other words, what we call ghetto or 'hood, that is Sapphire. Think those chicken headed girls on VH1's "The Flavor of Love" and you'll have the perfect example.

Now, because the characters in Perry's film were educated and had very high skilled and high paying professions, he won't be receiving many accolades outside of the African American community.

I read on my classmate Eb the Celeb's Renaissance Black Woman blog, http://renaissanceblackwoman.blogspot.com/2007/09/blog-post.html, that VH1 was considering a reality TV show about interracial couples but they were looking for a black woman with, for the lack of a better term, some sense and they couldn't get the show green lighted.

With that said, she posed the question of whether or not America was ready for an educated black woman. I think the downplaying and the outright disrespect for Perry's film goes above and beyond to prove that America is not ready because it doesn't want to be ready.

America has grown comfortable with seeing minorities as one-dimensional. How often do you see black folks in movies where their characters remain true to themselves and life in the suburbs at the same time? How ofter do you see movies with Hispanics where their characters don't have on tropical print shirts wearing their hair slicked down or wearing long sleeve flannel shirts with one button done and tattoos? How often do you see Arabs or Asians in movies where they don't own the convenience stores?

Having a hard time aren't you? You know why? The people green lighting these films have absolutely NO idea of what goes on in the world outside of their own. Their only contact with minorities is through the eyes of the screenwriters who have been known to change their stories so that producers will make the movies.

I'm not saying they are wrong for making some money, I am saying that the gatekeepers are wrong for putting only one dimensional characters out there. Can the Hollywood Higher Ups get a clue?!

In the past 10 years, we have seen feature films like, "Love Jones," "Two Can Play That Game," "Hav Plenty," "The Wood," "The Best Man," "Love & Basketball" and "Brown Sugar." All decent films in their own right, but I guarantee you I can link them all with no more than two degrees of separation. If you think about it for a minute, you can too. I won't waste your time doing it, but if you care to challenge me, I'd be more than happy to oblige you in the comment section.

What I'm trying to say is Hollywood sees our movies and characters so one-dimensionally (is that a word) that they can't even give us more actors and actresses to play the parts. One of the main reasons Perry's films take beatings is because he goes against a lot of the cliches of "urban" films and uses a plethora of talented actors. He brings out a story the entire family can enjoy and he touches on subjects that need to have families and friends talking.

So bottom line, leave the man alone. He's anointed and he's been appointed. You can't mess with God's children and get away with it.

Besides, the only time we're going to get the recognition we deserve is if we come up with some sort of Academy of our own that recognizes achievement in minority cinema anyway. Don't believe me, look at the folks who make up the academy and then look at the folks to get nominated and then tell me that it's all equal.

Humph ...