| I Can Do Bad All by Myself | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Tyler Perry |
| Screenplay by | Tyler Perry |
| Based on | I Can Do Bad All By Myself by Tyler Perry |
| Produced by | Tyler Perry Reuben Cannon |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Alexander Gruszynski |
| Edited by | Maysie Hoy |
| Music by | Aaron Zigman |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Lionsgate |
Release date |
|
Running time | 113 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $19 million[1] |
| Box office | $51.7 million[2] |
I Can Do Bad All by Myself is a 2009 Americanromantic musicalcomedy-drama film which was released on September 11, 2009. The film was directed, produced, and written byTyler Perry,[3] who also makes an appearance in the film as his signature characterMadea.[4] The rest of the cast consists ofTaraji P. Henson,Adam Rodriguez,Brian White,Mary J. Blige,Gladys Knight, andMarvin L. Winans. Although the film and play share the same title, the film is not anadaptation of Perry'splay of the same name, the two works have different storylines as this film tells the story of an alcoholic lounge singer who is persuaded to take the custody of her niece and nephews by Madea after she catches them breaking into her house and their grandmother has gone missing. Both are named for a lyric in theChanging Faces song "G.H.E.T.T.O.U.T.". It is the fifth film in theMadea franchise.I Can Do Bad All by Myself received generally mixed reviews from critics.
Madea and Joe Simmons catch Jennifer, Manny, and Byron breaking into their house. The children, whose mother is deceased, are living with their grandmother Rose but have not seen her in four days.
Meanwhile, their aunt April, an alcoholic singer, lives with her abusive boyfriend Randy, who is married with children. Madea brings the kids to April, who does not want to be bothered. Meanwhile, Pastor Brian sends Sandino, a Colombian immigrant, to her house for work and a place to stay. April puts Sandino in her basement, instantly disliking him. While working around the house, Sandino surprises April by cleaning himself up. Randy eventually sees April with the kids and heckles Sandino while makingadvances at Jennifer.
Meanwhile, April learns that Rose is actually deceased, having died from abrain aneurysm on a city bus. Since there was no way to contact any relatives, the city ordered for her remains to be cremated in the event someone claimed her. Devastated, April seeks comfort from Randy, who is sleeping and shrugs her off. Later, Sandino comforts April, who tells him about the last time she spoke with her mother.
Depressed, Jennifer goes to Madea wanting to know how to pray. Inexperienced with prayer, Madea attempts to instruct her.
Sandino and April eventually become good friends. Sandino fixes a ruined bedroom in her house. This makes Manny and Byron happy, but upsets Jennifer, who feels April does not want them there. While on a date, Sandino tells April he does not understand why she is with Randy. One Sunday morning, Sandino knocks on April's bedroom door to get her ready for church, but Randy threatens to kill him if he continues to spend time with April.
The next night, Manny needs his insulin shot and Jennifer goes to the kitchen to get it. As she prepares the shot, Randy attempts torape her, but Sandino fights him off. April walks in on the fight, and Randy claims Jennifer offered him sex for money. April pretends to believe him and sends Randy to take a bath. When he is in the tub, April threatens toelectrocute him with a plugged-in radio. Sandino tries to stop her, but April is enraged, revealing that she wassexually abused by her stepfather Lee, who then lied about it to her mother. This caused April to lose her faith in the people that cared about her. April became an alcoholic due to Lee lying to her mother for years over the abuse. It is also revealed why April chose not to have any children because of Lee’s lies and manipulation and April’s mother not seeing the signs of April's behaviour and choosing to believe her husband Lee instead of April. She drops the radio into the water, giving Randy anelectric shock. Randy jumps out just in time, and Sandino orders him to leave.
April goes to the nightclub for a drink and blames herself for not seeing the signs, just like her mother did not see them with her. Sandino tries to stop her from drinking while mentioning that Randy has moved out, but she pushes him away. She then asks Sandino if he is a child molester because of all the attention he gives the children. Sandino talks about his childhood as a child laborer and explains that he loves the children because he sees himself in them. Feeling hurt at her accusations, Sandino says farewell to the children and leaves.
April tells Jennifer about her bad experience as a child, and the two begin to connect. Jennifer says that April should recognize Sandino as a good man. Eventually, Sandino returns. April apologizes to him and admits that she loves him like a friend. Sandino says that April cannot love anyone until she learns to love herself. He is in love with April, but wants her to love him back the same way he loves her. He then kisses her.
Eventually, April and Sandino get married. April and Sandino then hold a block party for their reception.
The film features 13 songs,[5] including two new songs by Blige. Perry was not able to produce a soundtrack album for the film due to the various record companies involved.
I Can Do Bad All by Myself received mixed reviews from critics, becoming his most acclaimed film, until 2021'sA Jazzman's Blues.[6]Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 62% approval rating based on 45 reviews, with an average rating of 5.9/10. The site's consensus states: "Though somewhat formulaic and predictable, Perry succeeds in mixing broad humor with sincere sentimentality to palatable effect."[7]Metacritic reported that the film has a score of 55 out of 100 based on 13 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[6] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[8]
Entertainment Weekly'sLisa Schwarzbaum gave the movie an "A−" grade, saying, "After a summer of phony, pasty rom-coms, do this: See a movie where old-fashioned notions of love, faith, strength, and the possibility of redemption are taken seriously."[9]Ty Burr ofThe Boston Globe called the film "overlong but well-shaped and involving", praising Perry for finding a balanced mix of "earnest soap opera moralism with [his] comic instincts", calling it his "most confident and competent mixture of uplifting black middle-class melodrama and low-down comedy."[10] Cliff Doerksen of theChicago Reader said about the film: "Contrived, sentimental, tonally bipolar, and as predictable as clockwork, this latest from chitlin' circuit impresario Tyler Perry is just a fat slab of ecstatic entertainment."[11]
Rob Humanick ofSlant Magazine felt the film was a great gateway for people not familiar with the "scabrous antics and homegrown moralizing" delivered by the Madea character, saying that Perry lends his creation a more "greater level[s] of tonal consistency" than his previously contradictoryMadea Goes to Jail, writing that "I Can Do Bad acknowledges Madea's flaws with loving scrutiny, and doesn't require approval of her more selfish attributes."[12]
Randy Cordova ofThe Arizona Republic was critical of Perry's filmmaking for delivering lengthy musical numbers and overlooked story elements but gave praise to the performances of Henson and Wilson for showcasing his ability to "create meaty roles for women."[13]The A.V. Club'sNathan Rabin gave the film a "B−" grade, praising Henson's performance and the "riveting musical numbers" by Knight and Blige for emitting more "feverish emotions" to the film than Perry's "characteristically ham-fisted screenplay", concluding that "His oeuvre has always been shameless and over the top, butBad might just be the first of Perry’s films to border on operatic."[14] Kimberley Jones ofThe Austin Chronicle criticized Perry for prolonging the film's conclusion but gave him credit for bringing "increasingly mature moviemaking" to his production, highlighting the Madea scenes as being "pretty damn funny" and the performances of Wilson and Henson for being "nuanced and quite moving" and having a "likable screen presence" respectively.[15]
