A Review & My Two Cents: For Colored Girls

I said I wouldn’t talk about For Colored Girls, the Tyler Perry produced, written and directed big screen adaptation of the iconic 1975 Tony Award nominated play For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf by Ntozake Shange.

I was tired of reading and hearing about the film a week before it opened.

The grumblings from die hard Shange fans reverberated throughout the internets – and rightly so.

A Hollywood mogul whose films are filled with hackneyed themes and story lines on the Black experience was helming a treasured literary masterpiece written by a Black woman about the Black woman’s experience.   But after watching the film yesterday afternoon – and enjoying it – I had to add my two cents.

I grew up with Rainbow around but I never read it.  I remember being a little boy and seeing a tattered copy of it on my mama’s bookshelf or lying around the house.  Therefore, I went into the movie with no preconceived notions or great expectations.

The one thing that stood out most: Knock out performances.

Perry assembles a fine cast of seasoned actresses who ignite the screen, most notably, Kimberly Elise who plays Crystal, a mother who suffers abuse at the hands of her boy friend and is left to cope with a devastating tragedy. 

Elise plays Crystal with such fragility, a nuanced performance that’s sure to be recognized come awards season.  In fact, the most powerful moment in the film is a scene between Elise and her next-door neighbor played by Phylicia Rashad. When Rashad comes over to Crystal's apartment to “let the light in,” something magical happens on screen that will leave a lump in your throat.

Loretta Devine delivers her monologues with such ease while adding an easy, breezy, comedic feel to the film in a way only Loretta Devine can.

And Anika Noni Rose is sensational as Yasmine, a free spirited dancer who has her world rocked to its core when a man she thought she knew violates her in the worst way.

Shange’s words ooze out of these characters mouths so easily, it’s clear to see where her prose stops and Perry’s begins.   But the women mange to rise above Perry’s trite dialogue and subplots, which hamper the script and slow down the visceral pace of the film. (Kerry Washington’s subpar story line and Janet Jackson’s predictable character arc were both uninteresting and manipulative).

It's so easy to criticize Perry and it has become quite trendy to do so.  But instead of jumping on the I-Hate-Tyler-Perry-He-Should-Have-Never-Been-Allowed-To-Direct-This-Classic bandwagon, I’d like to take this moment to commend him for having the courage, the audacity to bring this great piece of work to a mainstream medium where Black girls and Black women can see talented Black actresses in roles that show strength and resilience and uplift their spirit.

If only at a snail's pace, Tyler Perry is starting to grow as an artist and I think this film is a great example of that.

For Colored Girls may not translate well for fans of the play, but it does something even better: Introduces Shange's work to a whole new generation of people.

That tattered copy of Rainbow I grew up with? Mom is pulling it out for me this week.  I can't wait to start reading it.

Did you go out to see For Colored Girls this weekend?

What did you think of the film?

I'd love to hear your thoughts.