ACRIMONY (2018)
Starring Taraji P. Henson, Lyriq Bent, Ajiona Alexus, Antonio Madison, Crystle Stewart, Jazmyn Simon, Ptosha Storey, Danielle Nicolet, Nelson Estevez, Kendrick Cross, Jay Hunter, Shavon Kirksey, Bresha Webb, Racquel Bianca John, Angelique Valentine, Jarvis Shaffer, Moses Jones, Terayle Hill, Katie Carpenter and Alonzo Ward.
Screenplay by Tyler Perry.
Directed by Tyler Perry.
Distributed by Lionsgate. 120 minutes. Rated R.
Tyler Perry had so little faith that people would understand the meaning of the title of his latest film – which is a word which is not exactly uncommon – that in the opening credits when they show the film’s name a long group of synonyms is listed underneath.
Acrimony: Bitterness, anger, rancor, resentment, ill feeling, ill will, bad blood, animosity, hostility, enmity, antagonism, waspishness, spleen, malice, spite, spitefulness, peevishness, venom.
Yeah, thanks Tyler. We know what it means.
In what is undoubtedly Perry’s five-hundredth film this year, the highly prolific writer-director-producer-actor is trying to do his own mash-up of Scenes from a Marriage and Fatal Attraction. (Acrimony! It rhymes with matrimony!)
You always want to give Perry the benefit of the doubt. He seems like a nice enough guy. He seems to be very smart. He is a hard worker. He has found an audience niche that is way under-served. He has a substantial following. He offers job opportunities to hundreds of actors and crew members who may be frozen out of the traditional Hollywood power structure.
However, Acrimony (or Tyler Perry’s Acrimony, depending if you are willing to deign to use the official branding) is just further proof of a fact that has become more and more obvious over the years: The only thing worse than a Tyler Perry comedy is a Tyler Perry drama. I mean seriously, the guy has been insanely prolific over the years. You’d think he’d have gotten the hang of filmmaking by now.
Still, Perry seems to be going back to his roots as a filmmaker (a mere 13 years ago!), because this film could easily share the title of Perry’s first movie: Diary of a Mad Black Woman. Oh well, at least Perry doesn’t dress in drag as Madea yet again in Acrimony.
This time out, the mad black woman is Melinda Moore – played at different stages of her life by Ajiona Alexus and Taraji P. Henson. (Henson also does the nearly wall-to-wall voiceover narration – really Tyler, didn’t you pay attention to the “show, don’t tell” section in your screenwriting class?)
We meet Melinda in court, as she is being admonished by a judge for her anger-management issues towards her ex-husband. The only way to stay out of jail is through court-ordered therapy, though Melinda seems to have no interest in getting past her hatred towards her ex. However, in therapy we flashback through their relationship, so she can show how her no-good-con-man of an ex Robert (played by Antonio Madison as a young man and Lyriq Bent in the current day) stole her money, stole her life, cheated on her and left her the bitter, bitchy woman she is today.
Now, part of the problem with this is that screenwriter Perry makes Mel like that from the jump. We know she’s batshit crazy from the very first time they meet in college – when she violently rips into him for mistakenly bumping into her on the street. Talk about red flags. Dude should have just kept going and never looked back.
However, instead he insists on buying her coffee, which leads to over two decades of misery for them both. (As well as two hours of misery for the audience.)
The narrative follows a pretty standard structure over the years. Robert has an invention which will revolutionize the world, if only he can get it to the right people. (In Perry’s universe, there is only one company in the world that might be interested in purchasing this game-changing battery.) Through the rejections and the hard knocks, Mel supports him romantically and financially, even though her family is sure he’s just with her for the money.
Because he is working “fulltime” to make their dreams come, he never gets a real job, leaving Mel to pay for everything, blow through her inheritance and even lose the family home which was given to her free and clear. Then Robert will do something awful (have an affair, blow money, buy a car, screw up her sisters’ business, etc.) which leads Mel to say this is it, I’m leaving. But she never does.
And when she finally does do it: Oops, he became rich from the battery after all. To make it worse, he’s back together with the woman she caught him cheating on her with decades earlier, a woman who just happens to work for the company that he has been trying to get into for decades.
It’s enough to drive a woman mad. Well, if she wasn’t mad already. Which Mel obviously was.
Melinda constantly talks in the narration about her own life decisions, her continued support of the man who did her wrong, as if she had no choice. But, of course she did. She could have kicked the loser to the curb at many, many points in this screenplay. Most women would have. It’s not his fault that she was too weak to stand up to him until it was just too late.
More to the point, Melinda is proud of her craziness. She luxuriates in it during her voiceovers. Her family acknowledges it. It is no secret that Melinda will overreact to just about anything. So, by the time we hit the point of the “shocking” finale, there is absolutely nothing about this woman that would surprise us.
It would seem nearly impossible for a director to make a performance by such a vital actress as Taraji P. Henson seem flat and lifeless, but here we go. She does what she can with Melinda, but she is stranded without motivation, or a coherent script. The same goes for most of the rest of the cast, who seem talented enough, but they are stranded on a vast island of bad dialogue and melodramatic (if not ridiculous) plot points.
But on the plus side – perhaps the only plus side here – the film’s soundtrack is made up almost entirely of classic music by Nina Simone.
Perhaps Perry should stop trying to make three movies a year (as well as TV shows, theatrical productions, books, etc.) and instead concentrate on making one movie every year or two – and try doing it right.
Jay S. Jacobs
Copyright ©2018 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: June 26, 2018.
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Noticias de series de la semana: 'Grace and Frankie' renovada
Renovaciones
Netflix ha renovado Grace and Frankie por una séptima y última temporada
Movistar+ ha renovado Hierro por una segunda temporada
BBC Three ha renovado Jerk por una segunda temporada
Cancelaciones
TBS ha cancelado The Detour tras su cuarta temporada
Noticias cortas
Tucker Albrizzi (Walter) será regular en la segunda temporada de Mr. Iglesias.
La tercera temporada de Westworld tendrá ocho episodios.
Katlynn Simone (Treasure), Meta Golding (Teri), Wood Harris (Damon) y Mario (Devon) serán regulares en la sexta y última temporada de Empire.
Incorporaciones y fichajes
Netflix confirma que Gillian Anderson (The X-Files, Sex Education) será Margaret Thatcher en la cuarta temporada de The Crown.
Milo Ventimiglia (This Is Us, Heroes) interpretará al motorista de acrobacias Evel Knievel en Evel, una limited series de USA Network escrita y producida por Etan Frankel (Sorry For Your Loss).
Darren Criss (Glee, American Crime Story), Patti LuPone (Pose, Penny Dreadful) y Holland Taylor (Two and a Half Men, Mr. Mercedes) protagonizarán Hollywood, de Ryan Murphy para Netflix.
Will Poulter (The Maze Runner, Midsommar) se une a The Lord of the Rings. Se desconocen detalles.
Gary Sinise (CSI: Miami, Forrest Gump) será Robert Ellman, terapeuta familiar que ayudará a Clay (Dylan Minnette) con la ansiedad, en la cuarta y última temporada de 13 Reasons Why.
James Marsden (Westworld, X-Men), Amber Heard (Aquaman, The Danish Girl), Odessa Young (Assassination Nation) y Henry Zaga (13 Reasons Why, Trinkets) protagonizarán The Stand, la adaptación de la novela de Stephen King para CBS All Access. Serán Stu Redman, Nadine Cross, Frannie Goldsmith y Nick Andros. No se ha confirmado la participación de Whoopi Goldberg y Greg Kinnear, que estaban en conversaciones para interpretar a Madre Abigail y Glen Bateman.
Natasha McElhone (Californication, The Truman Show), Bokeem Woodbine (Fargo, Underground), Shabana Azmi (Neerja, Fire), Bentley Kalu, Natasha Culzac y Kate Kennedy se unen al reparto de Halo. McElhone interpretará a Catherine Halsey, creadora de los supersoldados Spartan, y a Cortana, la inteligencia artificial más avanzada de la historia. Woodbine y Azmi serán el corsario Soren-066 y la almirante Margaret Parangosky.
Loretta Devine (The Carmichael Show, Grey's Anatomy) será recurrente en la sexta temporada de Black-ish como Lynette, la nueva prometida de Pop (Laurence Fishburne).
Naomie Ackie (The Bisexual, Lady Macbeth) será Bonnie, una forastera con un pasado problemático y una misteriosa conexión con Alyssa, en la segunda temporada de The End of the F***ing World.
Rochelle Aytes (Mistresses, Designated Survivor) y Danika Yarosh (Heroes Reborn, Shameless) serán recurrentes en la segunda temporada de The Purge.
Tiffany Haddish (Girls Trip), Carmen Ejogo (Selma, True Detective), Blair Underwood (When They See Us), Garrett Morris (2 Broke Girls) y Kevin Carroll (The Leftovers, Snowfall) se unen a Madam C.J. Walker. Serán Lelia, hija de Sarah Breedlove (Octavia Spencer); Addie, peluquera y antigua amiga de Sarah; Chares James Walker, marido de Sarah; Cleophus, padre de Sarah; y Ransom, conserje ferroviario graduado en derecho y patentes por la Universidad de Columbia.
Kali Hawk (New Girl, Bridesmaids) se une como regular a la segunda temporada de Schooled. Será Wilma, profesora de ciencias.
Jason Johnson (The Hate U Give), Ptosha Storey (Empire), Vaughn Hebron (TiTi Do You Love Me?), Teesha Renee, Lodric Collins (Grimm), Ciera Payton (She's Gotta Have It), Taja V. Simpson, Walter Fantleroy (Grey's Anatomy), Brad Benedict (Castle), Travis Cure y Matthew Law (The Paynes) protagonizarán The Oval, la nueva serie de Tyler Perry para OWN, junto a Ed Quinn, Kron Moore, Paige Hurd y Daniel Croix Henderson.
Babou Ceesay (Dark Mon£y, National Treasure), Eve Myles (Keeping Faith, Broadchurch), Dipo Ola (Baghdad Central, Inside No. 9) y Hermione Corfield (The Halcyion) protagonizarán We Hunt Together. Serán dos detectives y dos asesinos.
Daveed Diggs (Hamilton, Snowpiercer), Wyatt Russell (Lodge 49) y Joshua Johnson-Lionel (Ray Meets Helen) protagonizarán Good Lord Bird, adaptación de la novela de James McBride, junto a Ethan Hawke. Serán Frederick Douglass, el antiguo esclavo y líder abolicionista que conoció a John Brown (Hawke) y le aconsejó que no comenzase la redada que acabaría desembocando en una guerra civil; Jeb Stuart, oficial del ejército y enemigo de Brown; y Onion, el esclavo adolescente que se convierte en miembro de la variopinta familia de Brown.
Xosha Roquemore (The Mindy Project, I'm Dying Up Here) y Alano Miller (Underground, Jane the Virgin) protagonizarán Cherish the Day, nueva serie de Ava DuVernay para OWN. Serán Gently James y Evan Fisher, pareja que se conoce y enamora en Los Ángeles.
Deborah Ayorinde (Luke Cage, True Detective) y Ashley Thomas (Salvation, Ice) protagonizarán Them: Covenant, primera temporada de la antología de Lena Waithe. Escrita por Little Marvin y ambientada en 1953, se centra en Lucky y Emory, que deciden mudarse desde North Carolina a un barrio blanco de Los Ángeles, donde fuerzas malvadas tanto reales como sobrenaturales intentarán destruirlos.
Olivia Williams (Counterpart, Dollhouse), James Norton (Grantchester, Happy Valley), Tom Riley (Da Vinci's Demons, Ill Behaviour), Nick Frost (Sick Note, Into the Badlands), Ben Chaplin (Dates, Apple Tree Yard), Ann Skelly (Red Rock, Vikings), Eleanor Tomlinson (Poldark, The White Queen), Denis O'Hare (American Horror Story, Big Little Lies), Kiran Sonia Sawar (Pure, Next of Kin), Elizabeth Berrington (Stella, Sanditon), Ella Smith (Ray & Liz, Hoff the Record), Viola Prettejohn, Anna Devlin (12 Monkeys, All the Money in the World), Pip Torrens (Preacher, The Crown), Zackary Momoh (Seven Seconds, No Offence), Amy Manson (Once Upon a Time, The White Princess), Rochelle Neil (Episodes) y Martyn Ford protagonizarán The Nevers junto a Laura Donnelly.
Ian Hart (Boardwalk Empire, Harry Potter), Tanya Moodie (A Discovery of Witches, Sherlock), Joanne Whalley (The Edge of Darkness, The White Princess) y Kerrie Hayes (Little Boy Blue, The Mill) se unen a la tercera y última temporada de Tin Star.
Anne Ramsey (Lisa) y Jerry Adler (Mr. Wicker) también volverán al revival de Mad About You.
Rufus Sewell (The Man in the High Castle, Victoria) y Kaya Scodelario (Skins, The Maze Runner) protagonizarán The Pale Horse, la adaptación de BBC One de la novela de Agatha Christie (1961). Además, estarán Bertie Carvel (Doctor Foster, Baghdad Central), Sean Pertwee (Gotham), Henry Lloyd-Hughes (Killing Eve, Indian Summers), Poppy Gilbert, Madeleine Bowyer, Ellen Robertson, Sarah Woodward, Georgina Campbell (Broadchurch, Flowers), Claire Skinner (Outnumbered, Next of Kin), Rita Tushingham (In the Flesh), Sheila Atim (Harlots) y Kathy Kiera Clarke (Derry Girls).
Pósters
Nuevas series
Ewan McGregor (Moulin Rouge, Trainspotting) interpretará al diseñador Halston (1932-1990) en una limited series de Ryan Murphy (American Crime Story, Feud) para Netflix.
Milo Ventimiglia (This Is Us, Heroes) interpretará al motorista de acrobacias Evel Knievel en Evel, una limited series de USA Network escrita y producida por Etan Frankel (Sorry For Your Loss).
Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock from the Sun, Inception) protagonizará, escribirá, dirigirá y producirá Mr. Corman, drama en desarrollo para Apple sobre un profesor de escuela de Los Ángeles que lidia con la madurez.
Hulu desarrolla The Testaments, adaptación de la novela secuela de The Handmaid's Tale.
Ryan Murphy (Glee, Pose) prepara una miniserie adaptación del musical A Chorus Line. Diez episodios.
HBO Europa ha encargado seis episodios de Tuff Money, comedia rumana sobre dos perdedores adorables que bromean sobre cometer el robo perfecto y se ven obligados a ejecutarlo. Creada y dirigida por Daniel Sandu (Hackerville, One Step Behind the Seraphim).
AMC trabaja en la adaptación de la novela gráfica Farmhand, de Rob Guillory, con un granjero sureño que creó una planta que es capaz de fabricar órganos humanos y salva muchas vidas. Ahora, algo siniestro ha echado raíces en su granja familiar. Producida por LaToya Morgan (Into the Badlands).
AMC desarrolla Of Two Minds, comedia negra sobre una mujer que sufre una lesión traumática en el cerebro que hace que sus dos hemisferios no se comuniquen y deberá construir una nueva forma de vida con dos cerebros en constante desacuerdo. Producida por Morgan Dover Pearl.
Showtime ha adquirido Three Women, basada en el libro de Lisa Taddeo (2019), que necesitó diez años para investigar los casos y escribir el libro. La propia Taddeo escribirá y producirá la serie, que contará la historia real de tres mujeres americanas que sufrieron reacciones públicas y/o privadas por sus deseos sexuales: Una madre en la treintena que reconecta con un amor del instituto cuando su marido rechaza afecto físico, una veinteañera que denuncia a su antiguo profesor por perseguir una relación sexual cuando ella tenía diecisiete y la dueña de un restaurante cuyo marido y socio elige sus parejas sexuales.
Amy Schumer (Inside Amy Schumer, I Feel Pretty) protagonizará, producirá, escribirá y dirigirá la comedia Love, Beth para Hulu. Diez episodios.
Amazon encarga The Banker's Wife, thriller internacional centrado en el mundo de las finanzas sobre dos mujeres que buscan respuestas tras un misterioso accidente de avión y encuentran cuentas secretas, blanqueo de dinero y una red terrorista. Basada en la novela de Cristina Alger (2018), escrita por Meredith Stiehm, creadora de Cold Case y The Bridge y guionista de Homeland o Beverly Hills, 90210, y dirigida por Lesli Linka Glatter (Homeland, Mad Men). Ocho episodios.
HBO Max encarga Made for Love, basada en la novela de Alissa Nutting (2017). Cristin Milioti (How I Met Your Mother, Fargo) interpretará a Hazel Green, una mujer que se refugia en su pueblo natal, donde viven su padre viudo y su muñeca sexual, escapando de su marido Byron Gogol, un multimillonario sociópata que le ha implantado un chip en la cabeza que le da un acceso sin precedentes a su cerebro. Escrita por Patrick Somerville (The Leftovers, Maniac) y dirigida por S.J. Clarkson (Collateral, Life on Mars).
Apple desarrolla False Flag, remake de la serie israelí. La primera temporada contaba la historia de cinco personas que se ven injustamente implicadas en un secuestro tras la desaparición del Ministro de Defensa iraní. Los boletines no paran de mostrar sus fotos y sus nombres y sus intentos de limpiar su nombre no dan frutos. Incluso el Gobierno los acusa, y están convencidos de que el Mossad, la agencia de inteligencia de su país, está tras la operación.
CBS All Access encarga The Man Who Fell to Earth, adaptación de la novela de Walter Tevis (1963) y la película protagonizada por David Bowie (1976) en la que un alienígena que llega a la Tierra en busca de agua para su planeta deberá enfrentarse a su pasado para determinar nuestro futuro. Escrita y producida por Alex Kurtzman, Jenny Lumet y John Hlavin. Kurtzman dirigirá también.
Amazon adquiere Truth Seekers, comedia sobre dos investigadores de lo paranormal que descubren y graban avistamientos en Reino Unido y los cuelgan en su canal online. Las experiencias sobrenaturales son cada vez más frecuentes y aterradoras cuando empiezan a descubrir una conspiración que podría amenazar a la raza humana. Escrita y protagonizada por Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, The Boys) y Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Sick Note). Ocho episodios.
Danny Trejo (Machete), Franziska Schissler y Dilan Gwyn (Beyond, Da Vinci's Demons) protagonizarán Paragon, serie de ciencia ficción en la que el cielo ha desaparecido y los humanos e incluso la Muerte luchan por entrar en una pequeña parte del más allá, un lugar llamado Elysian. Trejo será Kincaid, el líder semimuerto de un grupo de parcas. Busca cadena. Siete episodios.
Viola Davis desarrolla Fast Color, adaptación de la película de 2018 con tres mujeres con superpoderes, para Amazon. Julia Hart y Jordan Horowitz, guionistas de la película, escribirán el piloto.
Amazon desarrolla la serie adaptación de Event Horizon, película de terror de 1997. Producida y dirigida por Adam Wingard (Blair Witch).
Netflix encarga Into the Night, primera serie original de Bélgica, en el que los pasajeros de un vuelo a Bruselas intentan sobrevivir cuando el Sol empieza a destruir todo lo que se cruza en su camino.
Fechas
Defending the Guilty se estrena en BBC Two el 17 de septiembre
Watchmen se estrena en HBO el 20 de octubre.
La segunda temporada de Jack Ryan llega a Amazon el 1 de noviembre
El revival de Mad About You se estrena en Spectrum el 20 de noviembre
Tráilers y promos
Limetown
The Purge - Temporada 2
Defending the Guilty
Monarca
Criminal
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - Temporada 14
World on Fire
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