|
Actors: Kimberly Elise, Steve Harris, Shemar Moore
|
|
| Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Diary of A Mad Black Woman |
|---|
Helen McCarter (played by Kimberly Elise) is about to celebrate her 18th wedding anniversary to her successful attorney husband Charles (played by Steve Harris) when problems occur. Helen returns home one afternoon to find all her clothes and personal belongings removed from her closet. When she sees a brand new rack of designer clothes hanging in her closet she assumes that Charles has brought her a new wardrobe. When Charles returns home that night he is not alone. He has brought along his mistress, who is the mother of his two illegitimate children and the woman he wants to marry. Helen is devastated by the news and is in severe denial as she begs Charles not to leave her.
Charles, who is arrogant and selfish, has hired a Uhaul service to take away all of Helen's possessions. In the most degrading manner possible, Charles drags Helen and tosses her out of the house. With nowhere else to go, Helen asks the Uhaul driver named Orlando (played by Shemar Moore) to drive her to her Aunt Medea's house. Although a bit reluctant to get involved, Orlando agrees to help Helen. After Orlando and Helen argue en route to her aunt's house, Helen manages to get into the driver's seat and she takes off on Orlando with the truck.
Upon arriving at Aunt Medea's house (played by Tyler Perry) Helen must do a little groveling and explaining in order to stay with the aunt she has virtually abandoned since she married Charles. It seems Charles didn't want Helen to have anything to do with her less well off relatives. Medea is a sassy woman who becomes infuriated when she hears about Charles' shenanigans. The following morning she convinces Helen to go back to the mansion and go on a rampage.
Ultimately, the two women end up behind bars after Charles calls the police. Luckily, Helen's cousin Brian (played by Tyler Perry) bails the two women out. Helen's mother (played by Cicely Tyson)is a religious woman who urges Helen to heal her pain through prayer and forgiveness. When Helen meets up with Orlando again during a family barbecue, romantic sparks begin to fly between them. For the first time in her adult life Helen is forced to get gainful employment. Pushing her pride aside, Helen gets work as a waitress at a restaurant and starts earning her own money for the first time in her life. Helen gets deep satisfaction out of the way she has stood on her own two feet and rebuilt her life. At the divorce hearing Helen surprises everyone when she tells the judge that she wants nothing from Charles other than her attornies fees.
When Charles is shot and paralyzed by a disgruntled client Helen rushes to his side while his girlfriend bails out on him. Torn between compassion and revenge, Helen takes care of Charles and nurses him back to health. Meanwhile, Orlando has presented her with an engagement ring and is awaiting her answer to his marriage proposal. Can Helen manage to forgive Charles and rebuild a life with him? Or does her future lie with Orlando?
--Sandra Calhoune, Resident Scholar
|
| Analysis of Diary of A Mad Black Woman |
|---|
Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about
books by breaking them down into many different literary
elements, all of which are searchable (click here). |
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- present (2000-2010)
Romance/Love/Hugging
Yes
Kind of romance:
- marriage going to pieces
Family, loving
Yes
Special relationship with
- aunt
Lover is...
- totally uninterested
Main Character
Identity:
- Female
Profession/status:
- waitor/waitress
Age:
- 40's-50's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Hair color?
- brunette (Brown)
Hair type
- (woman) medium/shoulderlgn straight
Body type
- (woman) fat
Events of movie makes character more...
- tougher
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Black
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor?
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Hair color
- bald
Hair style
- (man) bald
Body type
- (man) average build
Unclothed?
- chest
How much in movie?
- 60%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Black
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- a lawyer creature
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 60%
Hair color
- bald
Hair type
- (man) bald
unclothed?
- chest
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Black
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Deep South
City?
Yes
Misc setting
- fancy mansion
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- explicit references to torture
Movie makes you feel...
- all mixed up
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- kissing
- touching of personal anatomy
- actual description of sex
Any profanity?
- Occasional swearing
Is this movie based on a
- play
|
| Most similar reviews by Gordonator ranking |
|---|
| Shoot the Moon
starring Albert Finney, Diane Keaton, Karen Allen, Peter Weller, Dana Hill, Viveka Davis, Tracey Gold, Tina Yothers
|
| A Good Lawyer's Wife
starring So-ri Moon, In-mun Kim, Tae-gyu Bong, Jeong-min Hwang
|
| The Squid and the Whale
starring Laura Linney, Jeff Daniels, William Baldwin
|
| 5x2
starring Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Stéphane Freiss, Géraldine Pailhas, Françoise Fabian, Michael Lonsdale
|
| Time Out
starring Aurélien Recoing, Karin Viard
|
|
Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
|
