There’s a joke about halfway through “Tyler Perry’s A Madea Homecoming” that sums up the humour of Perry’s Madea series, which spans multiple mediums.
Tyler Perrys a Madea Homecoming Review
Perry takes a break from the action to show a black and white flashback in which his short-tempered, unfiltered title character recounts how she sparked the Civil Rights movement by threatening her husband’s lover, Rosa Parks, who subsequently sought refuge on a Montgomery bus. Madea produces an instant photo from her phone as evidence. She calls it her “aPhone” because “iPhone” didn’t exist till later.
It’s completely disrespectful nonsense, but if it makes people laugh, then by all means, go for it. It appears that Perry has brought Madea back for the same reason he said he would retire his hallmark character after 2019’s “A Madea Family Funeral”: because he can.
In this episode, Madea throws a celebration for her great-(Brandon grandson’s Black) college graduation. A dozen members of the Brown family use the occasion to razz each other, laughing as Mr. Brown (David Mann) deliberately sets himself on fire.
It also provides a platform for Madea to discuss her ambivalent views on the Black Lives Matter movement. Madea is pissed off that her granddaughter Ellie (Candace Maxwell) joined the police force and now poses a threat to her marijuana stash, but she’s just as angry that protesters might set fire to her corner liquor shop.
Even by soap opera standards, the script’s storyline twists are completely insane. Perry has even scheduled a visit from Brendan O’Carroll, the Irish comic actor who plays the bosomy Agnes Brown in the Irish sitcom “Mrs. Brown’s Boys,” his cross-dressing counterpart.
Last Words
Perry’s one brilliant remark about love, “Stop building those walls and build you some fences,” is overshadowed by a half-dozen outrageously absurd ones as the film rushes to a slapdash finale. He seems to be in a hurry to get to the final credits, where he dons a blonde wig and short shorts to parody the upcoming Beyoncé concert film “Homecoming.” What may possibly cause this? Probably because he can and he wants to.
