Common Sense Media Review
By Jennifer Green
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Black women grapple with trauma; violence, language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
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Tyler Perry's Straw
What's the Story?
Janiyah (Taraji P. Henson) is struggling to make ends meet to care for her daughter, Aria, who needs life-supporting medications, in TYLER PERRY'S STRAW. One day, things seem to go especially wrong from the start. Aria is publicly shamed at school for not having lunch money. Janiyah is at risk of being evicted from her dingy apartment if she doesn't pay her rent. When she takes time off work to run to her daughter's school, she's fired. A police officer hits her car then threatens to kill her the next time he sees her. A robbery goes awry, and Janiyah ends up involved. When she goes to cash a check, she's mistaken for a bank robber. And things only get worse from there.
Is It Any Good?
This thriller sustains tension and may even draw tears with its quick build-up to a hostage situation and heartfelt message about empathy. Tyler Perry's Straw (as in the last one) relies on the bold authenticity of Henson's performance as a woman in shock and stuck in a vicious cycle of poverty who can't handle a single further injustice, grief, or humiliation. Sweaty and jumpy from the opening scenes, Henson makes it impossible not to empathize with Janiyah, even despite some of her character's actions. This makes it plausible when Black female hostages and a cop sympathize with her.
Perry often overwhelms his scripts with a few too many dramatic details, and this one also teeters toward this fate, especially toward the end when Janiyah begins recounting her experience with medical racism and a late-story plot twist is revealed. But ultimately this film gets its messages across in an adeptly dramatic way. One hostage who doesn't seem to feel for Janiyah's predicament is called "not nice" by another. Indeed: no viewer should be left indifferent to the systemic injustices dramatized in this film.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why so many empathized with Janiyah, even as she was accused of killing, robbing a bank, and holding hostages in Tyler Perry's Straw. Do you feel empathy for her? Why or why not?
Explain the film's ending. How does it change how you view Janiyah's behavior throughout the film?
How does this film sustain tension during the long stand-off in the bank?
The film depicts systemic injustices that negatively impact Black women disproportionately. What are some examples of these injustices?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : June 6, 2025
- Cast : Taraji P. Henson , Sherri Shepherd , Teyana Taylor
- Director : Tyler Perry
- Inclusion Information : Black Movie Director(s) , Female Movie Actor(s) , Black Movie Actor(s) , Black Movie Writer(s)
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Drama
- Character Strengths : Empathy
- Run time : 107 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : August 18, 2025
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