Saturday, March 31, 2018

FILM REVIEW: Acrimony (2018)

Directed by Tyler Perry

* *

Isn’t it just amazing the crazy things love tends to make us do? How amazing how we sometimes become totally different people: goals, money, and agendas are sometimes altered to polarizing degrees, all because of our obsession for one’s loving affection. I’m aware I’m over-generalizing here, and while I’m aware that the changes that love constitute aren’t usually too drastic and commonly for the better, love still makes some do some wacky stuff at times. As morbidly entertaining as it might be to watch in real life, does it translate well to the movies? Regardless of whether it be comedy or drama, it can, but other times it’s a recipe for a train-wreck of a movie. Case in point: Acrimony, the latest output from Tyler Perry.

As Acrimony opens, Melinda (Taraji P. Henson) has been lawfully issued mandatory counseling after a restraining order. Cut to her first counseling session, just to cut to the real beginning of the plot. She narrates throughout as we watch a young Melinda (Ajiona Jones) meet Robert (Antonio Madison), a seemingly well-to-do upstanding young man. They collide in the rain, complete with scattered papers: he personally delivers some of her lost papers to her, along with offering assistance with studying for an upcoming test. I think Cupid’s hovering around here somewhere, guys.

After the death of a family member, Melinda inherits $350K as well as the family house. Sometime later, she marries Robert, whose life work revolves around a self-charging battery capable of powering a whole house. In spite of graduating college, a felony from his adolescence leaves him unable to get a job, so he confines himself at home working on the battery while Melinda does all of the financial heavy lifting – eventually, the beloved house and all of the money is gone. She’s frequently lectured by her sisters and acquaintances to leave him, but Melinda just can’t seem to find herself able to do so.

This goes on for years, perhaps even a decade or two, after their initial encounter, and we can’t help but wonder in frustration “why the hell doesn’t Melinda just leave him?” for the duration of the movie, to the point where it becomes quite the task to show any sympathy for her. It doesn’t help her case that she’s just plain crazy: early in their relationship, she catches Robert with another woman. Now, I’d be pretty enraged myself, but what I wouldn’t do is attempt to kill them in the act, which is exactly what Melinda does.

This becomes Acrimony’s biggest problem: just who in the world are we supposed to root for? We may lack sympathy for Melinda for her insistence to stick with Robert, but we’re not exactly with Robert either. To the film’s credit, they don’t depict him as a malicious human parasite, but rather a boy of a man just a little too much naïve ambition. Granted, this initial dynamic is not what is problematic: as difficult as it may be to sympathize fully with Melinda, it is next to impossible to sympathize with Robert, who continues to dig both of them into a deep hole.

The problems arise at the end of the second act. Robert and Melinda have moved on from each other. Not long after, Robert’s luck changes for the better. Much, much better, to the point where he apologizes to Melinda’s face with roses and a very generous check. Melinda’s feelings about Robert completely change, desperately wanting him back, but he’s moved on to bigger and better things, to Melinda’s disappointment. Forget disappointment: she is absolutely enraged, spending her lonely evenings stalking his social media complete with threatening rhetoric. It’s kind of scary in just how parallel it is to Travis Bickle’s behavior, complete with a climactic outburst. It’s one thing if Acrimony were aspiring to be a psychological drama a la Taxi Driver, but considering Tyler Perry’s less than stellar reputation, I doubt this was his goal.

Almost every review I’ve seen on Acrimony keeps talking about how Taraji P. Henson is too talented to be in a movie like this. Maybe there is something to her, but Acrimony never gives Henson a chance for her alleged acting chops to shine. On a side note, it’s kind of funny that Melinda makes a speech about being labelled a stereotype of the typical angry black woman, but continues to be that stereotype. While Acrimony isn’t offensive, it lacks the understanding that the character needs to divert criticisms of racial stereotyping. On the flip side, because Acrimony plays as commercialized drama, it does make it a bit more offensive in that light.

Complete with everything above, Acrimony isn’t even made that well, either. Visually, it’s extremely generic – I must admit that I thought I was watching a Hallmark movie half the time (though that slow zoom on Henson in the beginning is actually quite effective). Where it gets hilarious is the use of blue screen on occasion. There are a few moments where Acrimony just had to have blue screen for whatever reason, and it’s so painfully and laughably obvious. What makes it funnier (and really odd) is that the locations they use blue screen to replace aren’t even locations that would require such action. Like, could the budget really not afford a walk alongside the city flood channel?

There’s really nothing else to say. No noteworthy performances, no interesting themes, no technical expertise, nothing. What I can say is that this is my first experience with Tyler Perry, so I can at least say that I walked in with an unbiased mindset – in turn, you’re getting a fair review at the very least. Walking out, though, I can’t exactly say I’m eager for what Tyler Perry brings next. As far as black cinema goes, you and I are probably better off waiting for the next Spike Lee joint.


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