I think the movies are good for what they provide: cheap laughs on a shoestring budget. If the studios wanted to really reach more people then maybe they should put more into the production value. The Wayans Bros. movies cross-over just fine (Scary Movie, White Chicks, etc). Difference is their studio is actually putting money into the films.

Sent by Bill M | 12:39 PM ET | 04-01-2008

I thought his movies already have a cross-over appeal. Perhaps I'm looking through the prism of my environment but everytime I've seen TP's movies (save for the latest one), it has been a pretty diverse crowd in the theater audience.

Besides, I don't think a movie has to have a "true cross-over" appeal to be successful. The movie business is full of niche movies catering to a certain demographic and they are deemed successful even to spun sequels.

Sent by Moji | 1:30 PM ET | 04-01-2008

So what if "mainstream" audiences are not crossing over to Perry's movies. I'm sure he's crying all the way to the bank. I am so tired of the "too black," "not black enough" debate. I have never been able to sit through one of his movies, but I think Perry's a wonderful role model for anyone who has a dream and the desire to make things happen.

Sent by James McKissic | 3:19 PM ET | 04-01-2008

Why is it that for blacks to be considered successful we have to have white support? Why can't black patronage be enough for the mark of sucess? Other movies do not have to scale the same tidewater mark to be deemed successful. We spend more $'s for movie and entertainment per ethnic goup than ANYone else. So why is it not enough?

Sent by Diane | 3:20 PM ET | 04-01-2008

Interesting. I read a piece in Time this past week where the article's author was wondering the same thing: whether Perry's movies can have wider appeal because they feature, unapologetically, Black characters...and whether it matters.

Funny thing is this: No one would have dared continue to say the same thing about shows like "Friends" which posited a New York from an alternative universe where there were no people of color--any color--anywhere in one of the most diverse cities in the world. Oh, Lord, and don't get me started about Seinfeld!

Still, Black people watched Friends. We're used to being written out of the scripts (or not written in in the first place). Whites, however, tend not to be comfortable in situations where they are not centrally featured. They like being represented as the vast majority with people of color being added for "spice" and tend to dismiss as "not for or about them" movies and television programs with "too much melanin" (much in the same way men--I'm going to say it--arrogantly dismiss as "chick lit" books the feature the experience or points of view of women little realizing that Zane Gray books, for example, can be equally dismised as "dick lit"--yeah, I said it!). Note: Even Star Trek had one, lonely little Black woman, Uhura, in all of vast outer space...and no Asians other than Sulu and not Hispanic-the-first...and we still watched (and are watching now even though little in the Stark Trek universe has changed all that much).

I think the double standard from Hollywood is disgusting. More power to Perry's elbow for not caving into it. Maybe their question could be: How can we help capitalize the next Tyler Perry (or a Hispanic or Asian cousin) and make it easier for him or her AND make more money in the process.

Sent by Lalita Amos | 3:42 PM ET | 04-01-2008

The Wayans Brothers compared to Tyler Perry? Obnoxious. Tyler Perry delves into the lives of African Americans while using comedy as a way to alleviate some of the pain. The cross-over is also within the viewers who can identify their significant other keeping secrets from them, struggling to maintain healthy familial relationships, etc. The Wayans Brothers were critiqued for bafoonery whereas Perry is critiqued for opening up African-American's lives. Two very distinct arenas.

Sent by Hola | 4:38 PM ET | 04-01-2008

Too Hola:

Tyler Perry dresses up like a woman in 85% of his movies. Let's not talk about bafoonery.

Sent by Bill M | 5:01 PM ET | 04-01-2008

To Bill: (p.s. you should proofread)

And yet his character as a grandmother is still more comical and intellectually stimulating than that of both "White Chicks" to say the least...

Sent by Hola | 5:20 PM ET | 04-01-2008

Play nice. No one wants to get into a proofreading and grammar war. It obscures the point and will shut down what has been a very interesting discussion.

Sent by Lalita Amos | 7:47 PM ET | 04-01-2008

The Wayans, Eddie Murphy and Tyler Perry are all sons of Stepin'Fetchit. I can't believe people pay money to watch any of their ignorant crap.

None of it is funny. They same people that think what Perry does is good are the same people that Mary J Blige can sing.

Sent by Thomas B | 9:33 PM ET | 04-01-2008

Question: Why are folks getting all bent out of shape with this?
In a phrase: It is what it is.

Hopefully his product with evolve. Meanwhile people are getting valuable industry experience through his process.
In an industry still marginalizing, he is succeeding. In the beginning Good Times did have John Amos and Esther Rolle. Maybe just maybe this whole thing is a reversal.
You know, from worse to bad to good.

By-the-by, if you think production values and all are bad with Perry, you should check out direct to video stuff from Nigeria. Tyler Perry, Lincoln Perry, Butterfly McQueen and a bunch of others have nothing on the acting et al in Nollywood films.
They care not a wit about crossing over to anywhere.

Sent by audiodramatist | 3:09 AM ET | 04-02-2008

What is TOO Black, Jewish, Chinese, Indian, Caucasian, etc and by whose yardstick?

Sent by Venita | 8:05 AM ET | 04-02-2008

I enjoy the plays and movies that Tyler Perry produces.
To me it is a lifesaver to know that there is a black person who brings to life and keeps alive the lives,feelings,traditions,ups and downs of Black people. He not only shows us the struggles of Blacks in America, but he triumphs by creating characters and story lines about successfull Blacks. No matter how funny or sad the story line there is always a life lesson to be learned.

Sent by PME | 11:06 AM ET | 04-02-2008

Well, Tyler Perry is certainly a successful man and successful at what he does.

I personally don't think that a program or movie or any media can be too black. Girlfriends, the tv show, was highly successful. i think the issue here is his stereotypical, low-brow humor that makes me wince and cringe.

Sent by maya | 11:13 AM ET | 04-02-2008

Some of you guys are just too much! I guess I am not as intelligent and cultured as some of the folks on this thread.

While I am not the biggest fan of Perry's movies I do respect his work. Where is it written that Tyler has to make films that meet the standards of every black person in America? Dude is making his money. So that means there are a significant number of people out there that likes his material.

At least I can actually go see his movies with my mother or grandmother. That is more than I can say for most of the films Hollywood churns out, black or white.

Seriously, some of you need to get over yourselves.

Sent by T. Rogers | 2:33 PM ET | 04-02-2008

Tyler Perry is fresh! Revolutionary! While still being dealing with contemporary taboo issues.

Sent by BLC | 9:21 PM ET | 04-02-2008

this is funny... it really is....
how do we measure blackness? is there a scale for that?

i am not a big fan of Tyler Perry. I think his writing is way below average. I admit that I dug WHy Did I get married.. his BEST work EVER. but i guess you can get it right when you do twenty movies or plays.

dude is paid. i don't think it matters whether he gets mainstream appeal or not. I love Dune, I don't expect everyone else to dig it.

Sent by Dan Tres OMi | 10:47 PM ET | 04-02-2008

90% of the films screening in theaters right now are absent of the Black Experience, I enjoyed Daniel Day Lewis in let there be Blood, didn't see one single black person. The bottom line is White People don't necessary want to share in anybody else experience other than there owm. And white folks want to know how comee he is making 500mm and flew below there radar!

Sent by Mike Hammonds | 1:58 PM ET | 04-04-2008

Having not seen any of Perry's work, i cannot comment on whether they are too "black" or not. What i can say from a media economic analysis point of view is that if the tenet is to denigrate Africans then the white/jewish money of hollywood will flow in, if the tenet is to create pseudo-titillating, fake wealth rapper lifestyles, white/jewish capital will flow in. The flip side is that African Americans are played cheap since the paradigms and constructs of media projection of our vast arrays of lives are always the same. Alls the same and not good. What is the difference really if Mr. Perry cross-dresses as his grandmother and Flip Wilson as "Geraldine Jones" [some of you might be too young to recall this one - wiki it]? Not much. My dilemma with all this is what really constitutes "success"? You go to a Perry movie and spend twenty dollars for two hours, Perry might get five of the twenty and the whites and jews of media have walked away with fifteen to stack in their communities and banks and further their economic exploitation of the most vulnerable portion of the African community with another bad media projection project. In my view, Perry loses and the African community loses too. He might employ a hand full of African folks but in the end it is a vast majority supporting them all. A vast majority whose combined wealth might be better well spent in other ventures than a two hour fantasty trip in the dark. But given the new technology, going to movie theatres and wasting such resources will be pass??. One will be able to download it and project it for a faction of the cost on their flat screen TVs. What???s the point, I think it time we as a people get more selective about what we will and will not support from the media industrial complex. Cooning, Jigging and Bafoonery is out, I think we need some serious historically acute accounts of our histories that are teaching us something and sparking a quest for researching certain aspects further. Then, maybe we can achieve a state of being too ???black??? when I see the Marcus Garvey movie, the George Jackson one, the Barbara Jordan one, the Nzinga one, the one about the brothers with Fidel liberating Cuba, the one about Kwame Nkrumah and the independence of Ghana from the British colonist rule, etc.

PS-- 40 years ago just like today. Interesting that Mr. Lee attempted to put el Hajj el Malik Shabazz twenty plus years of quality growth into three hours but missed the mark by not focusing on the final six months of the man's life to give thought to where he was going for the future. It was Feb 1965 when the government killed him. Three years later, Martin finally came wandering down the same road and true to form the government killed him. And, yet no one African in hollywood has tackled the Martin movie, how come?

Sent by K MJUMBE | 4:58 PM ET | 04-07-2008

I like Tyler Perry movies. No they are not the best movies ever. However, they are good movies and it is a black man representing us instead of white people adding their opinion about how they think black people should be represented. There are always characters in his movies who remind me of someone I know from the succeful ones to the not so succesful ones. I dont think there needs to be any white lead characters at all. As someone said before white movies and shows dont include us and when they do they have a minimal role or it's a degrading role. that doesn't stop me from watching white movies. So, why can't they get over it. Anyhow, I personaly don't have white friends that I hang out with on a daily basis. I have white aquantenses at school and work that I occasionally go to lunch with or something like that. Most other black people that I know are the same, so why do they need to be in the main cast lineup of our movies. I guess that is how white Hollywood feels as well. Which means black people need to step it up and realize that if we want our race represented in a decent manner we are going to have to do it ourselves. If you don't like Tyler Perry, Hughs bros, or Spike Lee movies then write your own. No matter how many blacks go to college and achieve success, white hollywood is going to choose to represent us as drug dealers, rappers, dropp outs, and gangsters. At leas Tyler represents the good, the bad and the ugly within our race.

Sent by amber | 4:47 PM ET | 07-22-2008

Well I have a problem with Tyler Perry movies. And I find it insulting to compare him to Spike Lee. Spike Lee's movies have depth and are insightful and leaves an impression on the audience.

Tyler Perry movies are like soap operas for black people. They are all the same. And have no depth at all. Some of his characters are classic examples of bafoonery...I mean "Brown" are you serious. What can we learn from such a character?

It seems as if he writes more profit, than to have something to profound to say about the black community....

Sent by TSJ | 6:12 PM ET | 07-24-2008

And this is just coming from me. I happen to be a black women myself. I love all of Tyler Perry's movies. I dont think the issue is that the movies are too "black", I think the issue is that they are not white enough. I mean, come on now. Too black? Well I think "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is TOO WHITE.

Sent by Christina | 11:47 PM ET | 08-25-2008

I'm not the biggest fan of his movies, but my mom is. I mean, I'm not sure what the title means by his movies are too black, but think about this:
Aren't Woody Allen's movies too white, then?

Sent by Emprice-Sario | 8:32 AM ET | 09-10-2008