Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail

As a filmmaker, Tyler Perry has never been able to successfully blend the comedic and dramatic aspects of his stories, which hasn't slowed the success of this one-man industry in the slightest: Madea Goes to Jail grossed over $40 million its first weekend in theaters. This latest Madea adventure opens in the aftermath of a high-speed freeway chase that puts Mabel “Madea” Simmons (Perry in drag, just one of the multiple roles he essays, á la Eddie Murphy) first in front of a judge, and then—despite the support of her eccentric but loyal relatives, the Browns—in the slammer. Meanwhile, ambitious Assistant District Attorney Joshua Hardaway (Derek Luke) raises eyebrows when he refuses to prosecute young prostitute and former drug addict Candace Washington (Keshia Knight Pulliam), whose case he palms off on his fiancée and fellow ADA Linda Holmes (Ion Overman). Candace ends up in jail, but Madea befriends the young woman and vows to help get her life back on track. Not surprisingly, Joshua had a relationship with Candace, and his failure to come clean with Linda provokes an overly dramatic confrontation later on. Perry invariably overplays his hand, lapsing into melodrama when a lighter touch would be more effective, while his comedy is far too broad to work in stories involving serious conflict. However, considering the popularity of the Madea films, this is still a strong optional purchase. (E. Hulse)[Blu-ray Review—Dec. 21, 2010—Lionsgate, 109 min., PG-13, $19.99—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 2008's Madea Goes to Jail boasts a great transfer and DTS-HD 5.1 audio. Blu-ray extras include the “Madea is Back” making-of featurette (7 min.), a “Bringing in the Heavy Hitters” segment on cameos (5 min.), and the behind-the-scenes featurettes “Madea's Crazy” on the character (5 min.), “Looking for the Big House” on location (4 min.), and “You Have the Right to Remain Silent!” on the police in the film (4 min.), as well as a “Leroy ‘Law' Brown” character segment with actor David Mann (2 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a fine Blu-ray debut for a so-so comedy.]