"Diary of a Mad Black Woman" is one of the most annoying, badly-paced & schizophrenic movies I've ever seen. It's sad, really, because somewhere in this 116 minute endurance test is a really good movie waiting to get out. Maybe the original play on which it's based is better, but not only is it staggering the film was a box office hit, I'm amazed anyone would greenlight something like this to begin with. It's a film that you watch in dumbstruck awe at the utter banality of the stupid & insulting attempts at broad humor, lament over some admittedly interesting characters who drown in a script that often betrays them, and grow irritated at the ever-shifting tone.

Kimberly Elise plays Helen, married for 18 years to a successful lawyer, Charles (Steve Harris). When Charles (who's heavy-handedly established as a cold-hearted bastard in the first five minutes) kicks her out of the house so his mistress can move in, Helen turns to Madea (Tyler Perry), her loud, obnoxious, gun-toting grandmother, who immediately goads her into getting revenge and recouping what's owed to her. This is depicted in a scene of rampant vandalism that's as stupid as it is embarrassing...despite Helen's formerly meek persona, she's suddenly violent with rage, while Madea is able to produce a chainsaw out of nowhere to lay waste to Charles' furniture. Confronting Charles doesn't work out the way she hoped, and having nothing but Madea's roof over her head, Helen starts over, getting a job for the first time and finding romance with earnest steelworker Orlando (Shemar Moore). The problem is, even though Orlando possesses all the qualities Charles lacked, she's reluctant to risk being hurt again. Later, just as Orlando proposes to her, Charles is shot by a gangster client and rendered temporarily paralyzed. Since they are still legally married, Helen uses the opportunity to exact revenge on him, subjecting him to days of verbal abuse & torment. In the meantime, WE'RE subjected to a few subplots and "humorous" asides, one of which is totally out of place in a film like this, such as the goofy, confrontational relationship between Madea and her lecherous brother, Joe (also played by Tyler), Charles underworld connections, and the tumultuous marriage between her cousin Brian (also Tyler) and drug-addicted Debrah (Tamara Taylor). If the summary above sounds like pretty morose for a movie purporting to be a comedy, it's with good reason. "Diary of a Mad Black Woman" tries to be all-at-once a serious exploration of the nature of relationships & forgiveness, a revenge fantasy, and a slapstick comedy...and it fails on all counts due to Perry Tyler's script, which is all over the map. Taylor's goofy Madea & Joe characters, whom he made popular through a series of stage plays, has no place in a story like this. Imagine watching "Apocalypse Now," and in the middle of the jungle, the Three Stooges pop up to do their shtick every ten minutes. Worse, his characterizations aren't funny; they spout ridiculously stupid lines that would evoke "whoooOOOOs" from a WB sitcom audience. We're subjected to endless scenes of Tyler putting these characters through their paces (with Madea repeatedly pulling her gun from her purse, almost randomly dropped in between truly great scenes of Helen finding love with Orlando and getting on with her life. Without exception, these moments of laughless gags suck the viewer right out of the movie. Which brings me to another point why this movie fails... ample screen time is dedicated to the romance between Helen and Orlando, the crux of the film, only to have it completely undermined when Helen sees an opportunity to get back at Charles, even though she's emotionally and physically moved on. The movie obviously wants its audience to cry out "you go girl!", when what we're really thinking is "what the hell are you doing?" If the movie initially established itself as a black comedy, the scenario might have worked, but not after we grow to care about the love interest between Helen & Orlando. Much of the blame must be placed on Tyler, who obviously has talent as a screenwriter, but has no idea what to do with his characters, especially those he plays.

The film is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, and the results are pretty good, though nothing to scream about. The overall image is passable, but the lines aren't as sharp as bigger-budgeted efforts, and it seems just a bit more grainy than other recent discs I've watched. The sound is good, though nothing outstanding or creative...at least, it's nothing that's gonna prompt you to put in this disc to show off what you're home theater system can do. Still, it's good enough for what the movie is...nothing more.

Tyler Perry offers a pretty interesting and earnest commentary, with lots of anecdotes and info. "Making of Diary" is a short featurette about the production, while "Reflections" offers Tyler's views on the subject of faith, God and the movie's characters. "Who's Tyler Perry" features several actors who boast about Perry's creativity, and "You Can Do It" is a truly stupid how-to that covers a calculated line-dance number cynically put into the movie. Also included is a promo for some of Tyler's filmed stage plays, trailers for "Diary of a Mad Black Woman," and some outtakes.

This may be considered blasphemy, but I'd love to see "Diary of a Mad Black Woman" remade without Tyler Perry's input. As it stands, the movie tries to be too many things at once, undermined by a simplistic & heavy-handed script that doesn't feel the need to transition its audience from one tone to another. The result is a truly terrible movie that will likely insult the intelligence of anyone watching. For those able to look beyond my criticism, there are enough extras to make this disc worth exploring, but most folks will feel they've been shortchanged. Similar Movies: "Bridget Jones' Diary"; "The First Wives Club"