I really liked this film, BUT, the character of Leanne is supposed to be taken as white for the second half of the film. Solea Pfeiffer is a fine actress and quite beautiful. But none of the white Southerners in this film noticed that she was either Black or at least mixed race? That's the key to this film. And, it is always a challenge in films that deal with such topics. About the only time it was handled well was in the old film "Pinky", but there the actress portraying the lead character was Jeanne Crain, who was white. It's a difficult thing to pull off, and I'm quite sure that Tyler Perry didn't here.
Aside from that, I thought the characters were well developed and the story was very interesting. The acting was top notch. And Tyler Perry has reached that point in his career when some people who have been overly critical in the past need to take a second look at his talent for producing highly dramatic and sensitive films.
Joshua Boone, the lead actor here, is superb. I think we'll be seeing a lot of him in the future, and I look forward to it. Austin Scott...his character is so unlikable here that I couldn't decide whether to like him as an actor. Hopefully I'll see him again in something very different. Amirah Vann is also superb here.
My title for this review was that 'I hoped for' something, but in my heart I knew it wasn't to be. And what did I hope for? A relatively happy ending...even if, perhaps, that was a reasonable expectation. I can't blame Tyler Perry for that. He had a story to tell, and he told it well. Aside for wishing for that elusive happy ending, the one other disappointment at the end of the film was not learning the future of Willie Earl.
I rarely sit through a whole film anymore. Usually now I divide it up into two or three segments. Not this film. It was riveting. Highly recommended.
Aside from that, I thought the characters were well developed and the story was very interesting. The acting was top notch. And Tyler Perry has reached that point in his career when some people who have been overly critical in the past need to take a second look at his talent for producing highly dramatic and sensitive films.
Joshua Boone, the lead actor here, is superb. I think we'll be seeing a lot of him in the future, and I look forward to it. Austin Scott...his character is so unlikable here that I couldn't decide whether to like him as an actor. Hopefully I'll see him again in something very different. Amirah Vann is also superb here.
My title for this review was that 'I hoped for' something, but in my heart I knew it wasn't to be. And what did I hope for? A relatively happy ending...even if, perhaps, that was a reasonable expectation. I can't blame Tyler Perry for that. He had a story to tell, and he told it well. Aside for wishing for that elusive happy ending, the one other disappointment at the end of the film was not learning the future of Willie Earl.
I rarely sit through a whole film anymore. Usually now I divide it up into two or three segments. Not this film. It was riveting. Highly recommended.