Madea's Witness Protection (FILM REVIEW)
Madea's Witness
Protection
Film Review
by Kam Williams
Tyler Perry and Eugene Levy Make for Strange
Bedfellows in Fish-Out-of-Water Comedy
George
Needleman (Eugene Levy) is so naive that he has no idea that his boss, Walter
(Tom Arnold), is running a Ponzi scheme right under his nose. It only dawns on the
terminally-nerdy CFO that something is awry when arrived at work one day to
find all of his co-workers in the office of Lockwise Industries feverishly
shredding documents.
At
that point, he’s belatedly informed by Walter that the Wall Street investment
firm is about to be raided by the FBI, and that the only reason he’d been paid
a million-dollar salary for the past seven years was to be the fall guy in the
event of just such a collapse of the business. But after being arrested, instead
of participating in the cover-up, George opts to cooperate with the authorities
and agrees to testify against his former employer.
However,
because the company had also been laundering money for the mob, he soon finds
unsavory characters hanging around his sprawling mansion. So, rather than take
any risks, the prosecutors decide to hide the whistleblower in the Witness
Protection Program to makes sure he survives ‘til the trial date.
In
trying to decide the last place that anybody would look for a wealthy white
family from Connecticut, the Feds settle on a
humble abode in faraway Atlanta
belonging to none other than Madea Simmons (Tyler Perry). The sassy granny
jumps at the $4,000 per month compensation, unaware of just how much of a
challenge she’s about to take on.
For
Needleman is a package deal who arrives with his family in tow, including his
senile mother (Doris Roberts), a pampered trophy wife (Denise Richards) half
his age, and a couple of spoiled-rotten kids (Devan Leos and Danielle
Campbell). There’s friction right from the start when daughter Cindy complains
“What, are we sharecroppers, now?” about living in a black community. Madea is
concerned, too, asking, “How am I supposed to hide five white people in this
neighborhood?”
That
is the promising point of departure of Madea's Witness Protection, a
fish-out-of-water comedy co-starring Tyler Perry
and Eugene Levy. The movie makes the most of the theme, such as when the hefty
heroine introduces the Needlemans to a skeptical visitor with, “These are my
cousins and they done lost all their pigmentation.”
Most
of the fun flows from the tension between the hostess and her uncomfortable
houseguests, although the ensemble does feature a motley crew of colorful
characters, including Madea’s brother, Joe, and nephew, Brian (both played by
Perry), a nosy neighbor (Marla Gibbs), and an impassioned pastor (John Amos)
with a Prodigal Son in need of redemption (Romeo Miller). It’s just too bad the
laughs aren’t as frequent as your typical Tyler Perry production.
When
all is said and done, the real purpose of this modern morality play is to enable
Madea to right some wrongs and deliver a few well-timed sermons, whether she’s giving
the Needlemans marriage counseling, teaching their offspring to appreciate
their blessings, helping wimpy George develop a backbone, evening the score
with a crooked corporate executive or scaring a juvenile delinquent straight.
Madea
goes mainstream!
Good (2 stars)
Rated PG-13 for crude sexual remarks and brief drug references.
Running time: 114 minutes
Distributor: Lionsgate
Films
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