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Movies / On DVD / Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail
Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail

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Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail (2009)

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Reviews Counted:43

Fresh:12

Rotten:31

Average Rating:4.9/10

Consensus: Divided between sincere melodrama and populist comedy, Madea Goes to Jail fails to provide enough laughs -- or screen time -- for its titular heroine.

Runtime: 2 hrs 17 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: Multitalented screenwriter, director, playwright, and actor Tyler Perry delivers yet another comedy feature from his popular MADEA film series. Largely concerned with African American family life,... Multitalented screenwriter, director, playwright, and actor Tyler Perry delivers yet another comedy feature from his popular MADEA film series. Largely concerned with African American family life, Perry splits his efforts between the outrageous Madea films and other, slightly more serious features such as 2008’s THE FAMILY THAT PREYS. As the name suggests, MADEA GOES TO JAIL, based on the 2006 play of the same title, once again stars Perry himself as Mabel B. Simmons (nicknamed Madea), the feisty, gun-loving grandmother audiences have adored on stage and screen since she first appeared in the 2002 play MADEA’S FAMILY REUNION. When Madea ends up in jail following a series of violent outbursts, she finds herself in equally eccentric company and causes chaos among her fellow inmates. In a fat suit and women’s clothing, Perry keeps things light while exploring signature themes of redemption, such as the young attorney (Derek Luke, NOTORIOUS) who sets out to help a prostitute (Keshia Knight Pulliam, THE COSBY SHOW) who holds a special place in his heart. The New Orleans-born Renaissance man once again proves himself to be comfortable wearing many hats: as star, producer, writer, and director, Perry retains a constant presence but is careful not to outshine his talented co-stars, including Viola Davis (Oscar-nominated for her role in 2008’s DOUBT) as a determined social worker. Rivaling Woody Allen with the speed at which he releases films, Perry manages to pack Christian values, positive messages regarding the power of forgiveness, and plenty of laughs into his quickly produced features. This is all communicated through his signature blend of outrageous comedy and almost soap-operatic drama. [More]

Starring: Tyler Perry, Derek Luke, Keshia Knight Pulliam, David Mann

Starring: Tyler Perry, Derek Luke, Keshia Knight Pulliam, David Mann, Tamela Mann, Ronreaco Lee, Ion Overman, Vanessa Ferlito, Viola Davis, Sofia Vergara

Director: Tyler Perry

Director: Tyler Perry
Screenwriter: Tyler Perry
Producer: Reuben Cannon
Composer: Aaron Zigman
Studio: Lions Gate Films

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail

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1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
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I like Tyler Perry's movies best when the character of Medea isn't in them.

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment 8 Comments
03/03/09
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

Wouldn't be Perry if the film wasn't outrageously irrational, flimsily edited, acted with rafter-quaking severity, and scripted with Magic Markers. I'd feel cheated at this point if he actually made a concentrated effort to maintain a steady dramatic tone

Full Review Source: BrianOrndorf.com | comment 6 Comments
02/20/09
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
BrianOrndorf.com

Tyler Perry's best endeavor to date!

Full Review Source: NewsBlaze | comment 4 Comments
02/20/09
Kam Williams
Kam Williams
NewsBlaze

Tyler Perry continues to preach to the choir with his entertaining albeit stereotype-laced blend of melodrama and comedy.

Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment 2 Comments
02/20/09
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

Hokey and ham-fisted, cheaply made and appallingly edited. Even good actors like Derek Luke and Viola Davis are at a loss to get past the dialogue and the characters.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment 2 Comments
02/24/09
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Perry brings his own sensibility to every movie he makes and has enjoyed great success by following his own path. But he leaves you wanting more.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment 1 Comment
02/23/09
Bill Goodykoontz
Bill Goodykoontz
Arizona Republic

It's a patented Perry formula to cram as much as possible into one movie, but Madea Goes to Jail proves the strategy remains as artistically dubious as ever.

Full Review Source: Metromix.com | comment 1 Comment
02/20/09
Geoff Berkshire
Geoff Berkshire
Metromix.com

Crowd-pleasing African-American filmmaker Tyler Perry has been heralded as an entrepreneur, a populist, and an expert on the wants of female audiences, but none of that would have been possible if he weren’t also an expert drag performer.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment 1 Comment
02/23/09
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader

The law of diminishing returns catches up with the mega-successful multihyphenate in this wildly uneven effort.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment 1 Comment
02/23/09
Joe Leydon
Joe Leydon
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Pulliam lends the material emotional shadings that Perry does not write into the script himself.

Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com | comment 1 Comment
02/26/09
Michael Dequina
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
08/19/09
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

The best parts of Madea Goes to Jail are the title character's motormouthed harangues. The rest of it is a fairly clumsy tale of sin and redemption.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
02/23/09
A.O. Scott
A.O. Scott
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Tyler Perry knows how to push his audience's buttons. It's just disappointing that the most successful African-American filmmaker of this generation refuses to try any harder than that.

Full Review Source: MSNBC | comment Comment
02/20/09
Alonso Duralde
Alonso Duralde
MSNBC

Not everything Madea says is gold, and yet the storyline will literally stop so we can hear the crazed crone go off for no particular reason.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
02/20/09
Bill Gibron
Bill Gibron
Filmcritic.com

Madea is the antithesis of the moralistic soapbox Perry's movies stand on, which is why she is usually the enjoyable ingredient in his films.

Full Review Source: BET.com | comment Comment
07/03/09
Clay Cane
Clay Cane
BET.com

Adapting his own play, Perry has pared the plot way back while giving his law-breaking matriarch more room to run free.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
02/23/09
Elizabeth Weitzman
Elizabeth Weitzman
New York Daily News

Heaven help me, this Madea character is starting to grow on me.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
02/21/09
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

Obviously Perry's fanbase will turn out to support his latest morality play, but don't expect Madea Goes to Jail to bring any new converts to the Church of Tyler Perry.

Full Review Source: Giant Magazine | comment Comment
02/20/09
Ethan Alter
Ethan Alter
Giant Magazine

Two movies for the price of one, but the comedy smashed against the drama makes the whole thing less entertaining

Full Review Source: jackiekcooper.com | comment Comment
02/24/09
Jackie K. Cooper
Jackie K. Cooper
jackiekcooper.com

if it doesn't work quite as well as some of Tyler Perry's previous efforts, it certainly isn't for lack of trying.

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
03/11/09
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk
 
 
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Latest News for Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail

March 08, 2009: Box Office Guru Wrapup: Watchmen Scores $55.7 Million Opening
The adult-themed superhero film Watchmen seized control of the North American box office posting the biggest debut of the year with an estimated $55.7M in ticket sales over the... More...

March 01, 2009: Box Office Guru Wrapup: Madea Schools Jonas Bros., Chun Li
Despite the arrival of rocking teens, Tyler Perry enjoyed a back-to-back stint at number one with the hit comedy Madea Goes to Jail which led a sluggish frame despite suffering... More...

February 22, 2009: Box Office Wrapup: Madea Crushes The Competition
THIS WEEKEND Tyler Perry once again showed why he is the King (and Madea his Queen) of the box office as Madea Goes to Jail slaughtered the competition this weekend. Holdovers... More...

February 21, 2009: Tyler Perry back in drag for another modern morality play. Opens in new window
More...

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