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Naysayers likely to hear them from Tyler Perry, TV and movie writer, producer, director, actor
By Rich Heldenfels
Beacon Journal popular culture writer
Published on Thursday, Sep 11, 2008
A recurring element of the new movie The Family That Preys is the song I Hope You Dance.
The Lee Ann Womack version is in the movie, as is a new version by Gladys Knight, and the lyrics are in the dialogue.
So it made sense to ask Tyler Perry — writer, producer, director and co-star of the movie — where his own dancing joy came from.
''For me . . . it's a lot of prayer and my faith that has helped me get through tough times in my life,'' he said during a promotional visit to Cleveland. ''I have to rely on it a great deal."
No question that prayer and faith helped in Perry's life. Once a struggling artist, he now makes movies, has a hit TV show (House of Payne), produces successful stage shows and on Oct. 4 will open his own studio — with 300 employees ''so far'' — in Atlanta.
And he has done all that while following his own vision of what his various productions should be.
But you would go too far if you thought that Perry is simply a happy warrior. He is more complicated than that.
Asked about the chances for success at his studio, he mentioned faith first. But he went on to note that he has two TV series and three movies lined up for the studio, and that he works on a business model of ''low investment, high return.'' He believes in dreaming big, but he also knows that not everyone shares his dreams.
The Family That Preys, which opens Friday, involves the adult children of two longtime friends, played by Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard, and how they all go about achieving their dreams.
At least one character has given up trying. Another is constantly told that his ambitions are unrealistic. And that resonates with Perry, who told the audience at a Family That Preys screening in Valley View that the movie came about in part because ''I was going through something in my life.''
In a half-hour chat with print reporters, Perry was asked what he had gone through.
''From '98 until 2004, when Diary [of a Mad Black Woman] came out, I would walk down the street, and I was really famous with black people. I couldn't go anywhere without high fives and support. . . . Then I get to Hollywood and I start doing films, and for the first time, I started experiencing a lot of negativity from naysayers and critics. . . . I was really disturbed by it,'' he said.
He thought about not acting anymore, working strictly behind the camera, so there would not be so much negative attention. But he concluded that that was ''a coward's thinking.''
''Now, I'm a whole lot better,'' he said. ''I got it. I figured it out. I came up with these three little words that . . . that helped me through, you know, when I'm hearing a lot of the negativity.''
And those three words? ''Go to hell.''
He has done far more than just use that as a mantra. Perry does not allow his films to be reviewed before they open; even those of us who attended the Valley View screening did so with the understanding that reviews would not appear until Saturday, after audiences had their first shot at The Family That Preys.
He believes the critics do not understand his movies. Focused on ''low investment, high return,'' he sees no financial benefit in spending the money on advance screenings that will just generate negative reviews. ''Why pay for this?'' he said. ''I'm not gonna pay for this. . . . I'm gonna make sure people get an opportunity to see what the movie's about and go from there.''
Which does not mean that Perry hates criticism. Again, he's not that simple. He invites audiences to tell him what they think of his work on his Web site, http://www.Tylerperry.com, and endured a lot of abuse when House of Payne premiered. ''I didn't know anything about television,'' he said. ''Just what I thought it should be.'' He recalled online messages saying, ''Listen, Tyler, I like what you're doing but this show sucks.''
And when it comes to the early episodes, he does not disagree. But the show got better with time, he said, and his next series, Meet the Browns, will benefit from the learning experience of Payne.
He is also self-critical, including about his own early acting in movies.
''I've never had a problem with Madea or Joe,'' he said of two characters he is known for. ''You give me a costume, I'm good. I can be crazy.'' (And another Madea movie is in the works for 2009.)
''But the minute you ask me to be myself in front of a camera, it was tough,'' he said. ''I can't even look at my first [screen] work.''
Still, there are limits to what he will endure. He does not think that there's any profit in working within a Hollywood system that does not believe in what he does.
''If it's not working for you and you're not getting the job that you need, why can't you go somewhere else and create your own job and your own situation?'' he said. ''You don't have to follow the road. Some people blaze their own path.''
Rich Heldenfels writes about popular culture for the Beacon Journal and in the HeldenFiles Online blog at http://www.ohio.com. He can be reached at 330-996-3582 and rheldenfels@thebeaconjournal.com.
A recurring element of the new movie The Family That Preys is the song I Hope You Dance.
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