Now in Theaters - 'The Family That Preys'

Tyler Perry yet again invites us to follow along in another story of married couples who just don't seem to know how to find love. I personally am a huge fan of Perry's and have enjoyed pretty much all of his plays and movies. That is why this one was really starting to upset me. Almost 30 minutes into this one, I was not intrigued. And that is a huge no-no for a movie. Luckily it picked up pretty well as it continued.

Perry gives us the same things that he usually gives us in his films. Dynamite cast... check. Character that you love to hate... check. Good humor... check. Story line with a message... check. As usual, Perry makes his appearance as one of the actors as well. However in this one, it was a tad bit smaller than some of his other roles. However, two acting legends had much larger roles in this one. Both Alfre Woodard and Kathy Bates were sensational in their respective roles. The dialogue between the two carried the film in my opinion. And I for one really enjoy watching Bates in comical roles. Sanaa Lathan, one of my personal faves, was wonderful as well. It was good to see her in this role.. because up until this one I always loved her on screen. But for the first time, I hated her in this one. Well, not her per se, but her character that is. She is truly an @$$ in this one. And speaking of being an @$$, Cole Hauser really fits the bill. I have enjoyed watching this guy be a jerk on the big screen dating all the way back to 'Pitch Black'. The guy is just the type that you love to hate. He does a great job and is VERY believable in this film.

One thing that Perry really has to get past one day is the fact that his movies are generally very predictable. As much as I enjoy his brand of humor and his morally charged stories... just once I would like to NOT see what's coming next. On top of that, all his movies have these perfect story book endings. Everything just falls magically into place and everyone is happy. If you have ever seen 'Daddy's Little Girl's' you will know exactly what i mean. Those two things coupled with the incredibly slow start to this one lead me to say that this is probably at the bottom of the Tyler Perry collection. Does that mean its bad? Not necessarily. Could it have been better? Yes, very much so.

All in all, the movie is worth seeing. If you are a fan of Perry you will still enjoy this one. If you aren't a big fan of his, you may want to wait on this one. It's a pretty decent date movie, but it doesn't have the amount of humor of a typical date movie should have. This is more one that you would go see with someone that you have been with for a while. In typical Perry fashion, the both of you will get something out of it.