Madea And E. Franklin Frazier

Somewhat appropriately, Postbougie is on the case:

I'm a fan of diverse (and preferably complex) representations. They don't have to be reflective or realistic, as long as everything is not The Cosby Show and everything is not Shaft. Perhaps people are up in arms because in the gaping absence of national minority representation in media, Perry has the authority of being the foremost employer of black actors/actresses and the most widely watched storyteller amongst black audiences. But that is an issue of lack of representation and shouldn't be addressed by attempting to narrow down the few existing representations into an image we prefer. Regardless of how artistically or politically progressive Tyler Perry's films may seem, he is pulling in record-making numbers at the box office which means he is reaching sizable audiences on a consistent basis. And because these audiences are predominantly black and latino, white critics have been drastically off the marks with their predictions, and are having to cope with a loyal audience that was previously rendered invisible. But this is an important audience, TP is an important filmmaker, and to dismiss him would be to dismiss the spectatorship of a bunch of people who -- to the dismay of many film and culture critics -- are basically dictating what's popular right now in Hollywood.

Basically. I think I've seen all of one Tyler Perry flick. His movies just aren't made for me. But neither is the new Star Trek. Or the latest rendition of Saw. Or the new Transformers. Whatever. Let Tyler do Tyler. It isn't his fault that everything ain't Love Jones (nor should it be).