Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns (PG-13, 2008)

Brenda Brown (Angela Bassett) is having a bad run: She just lost her job, her electricity's been cut off, her unpaid babysitter is disgruntled, and she can barely feed her kids. So when a letter shows up at her Chicago apartment inviting her to her long-lost father's funeral -- with three bus tickets to Georgia enclosed -- she's left with no reason to say no. It turns out to be a smart move. The unnamed Georgia town she visits is truly an escape, an antidote to the harsh big city. Here, relatives who hardly know Brenda embrace her family warmly, the slow pace teaches her to give pause, and a handsome neighbor (Rick Fox) takes Brenda's son, Michael (Lance Gross) -- and Brenda, too -- under his wing. But the call of the city proves too great, so she and her kids go back, only to face tragedy that brings them South once more.

It would be totally predictable to say that MEET THE BROWNS is predictable (the same thing has been said about nearly every single Tyler Perry movie). As Perry's movies go, this one is actually less stilted and slightly more inventive, plot-wise. The characters don't speak in cliches as often as they have in the past, and the warmth feels genuine.

Ultimately, it's a feel-good film, despite its flaws. Perhaps that's largely because the central character is played by Bassett, who manages -- for the most part, though not fully -- to transcend the cloying storyline. That said, even she can't save the bits that are played all-out for laughs, especially the funeral scenes at the church and cemetery, which just aren't all that funny. (Neither is Perry's Madea cameo.) Memorable moviemaking it isn't. But entertaining? If you like Perry's work, yes.

Studio: Lionsgate
Director: Tyler Perry
Cast: Angela Bassett, Rick Fox, Tyler Perry
Genre: Drama
Run time: 100 minutes
Theatrical release: March 21, 2008
DVD release: June 30, 2008
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA explanation: drug content, language including sexual references, thematic elements and brief violence.