Adapted from the stage play, TYLER PERRY'S MEET THE BROWNS is a touching family drama and very funny romantic comedy rolled into one. Angela Bassett gives one of the best performances of her career as Brenda, a single mother trying to raise three children, from three different men, in the Chicago projects. After the plant where she works with her best friend, Cheryl (Sofia Vergara), closes down, she can no longer afford her rent, electricity, or day care. But when a surprise letter arrives telling her that the father she never knew has died, and inviting her to the reading of the will and the funeral in Georgia, she has nowhere else to go, so she and her kids, Michael (Lance Gross), Tosha (Chloe Bailey), and Lena (Mariana Tolbert), head down south to meet her half-sisters and -brothers. Her newfound extended family includes the overemotional Vera (Jenifer Lewis), who is suspicious of Brenda; the wacky Leroy Brown (David Mann), who mangles the English language and wears some hysterical outfits; and the steady L.B. (Frankie Faison), who is married to the sweet and caring Sarah (Margaret Avery) and has become the patriarch now that Pops Brown has died. In the meantime, Michael, a high school basketball star, is being pursued by Harry (Rick Fox), a talent scout who is also interested in Brenda. Bassett is outstanding as the dedicated mother who sacrifices her personal life in order to do whatever she can for her children. But Mann nearly steals the show as the wild and crazy Leroy, especially during the funeral scene (outtakes of which run during the closing credits). Perry, the creator of such hit films as DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN and MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION as well as the television series HOUSE OF PAYNE (all of which feature recurring characters), also appears in the film as Uncle Joe and, in a riotous subplot, Madea, who is on the run from the law.
DVD Features:
2-Disc Set
Widescreen - 1080p
Audio:
Dolby Digital EX 5.1 - English
DTS HD 5.1 - English
Subtitles - English, Spanish
Additional Release Material:
Featurettes - 1. Angela and Rick: Meet the Lovebirds
2. Bakin' It and Shakin' It With Mr. Brown
3. Jenifer Lewis: Unleashed
4. Meet the Manns
5. The Browns are Born: The Story of MEET THE BROWNS
6. The Music of MEET THE BROWNS
Additional Products:
Digital Copy
Stars
Angela Bassett: American actress, WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT
Rick Fox:
Margaret Avery: American Actress
Frankie R. Faison: American Supporting Actor
Jenifer Lewis: Actor, WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO.../STRONG MEDICINE series
Lance Gross: Actor, MEET THE BROWNS
Sofia Vergara: Star, BIG TROUBLE (2001)
Tamela Mann: Actress, MEET THE BROWNS
David Mann:
Tyler Perry: Screenwriter, DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN (2005)
Irma P. Hall: Actress/"A Family Thing"
Mariana Tolbert: Actress, MEET THE BROWNS
Chloe Bailey: Actress, MEET THE BROWNS
Director
Tyler Perry: Screenwriter, DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN (2005)
Producer
Reuben Cannon: Film Producer, DANCING IN SEPTEMBER (2001)
Screenwriter
Tyler Perry: Screenwriter, DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN (2005)
Composer
Aaron Zigman: Composer, JOHN Q (2002)
Director of Photography
Sandi Sissel:
Review 1:
"Angela Bassett, as Brenda, turns in the most forceful and self-possessed performance seen in a Perry film."
Source: Los Angeles Times
03/24/2008