I Can Do Bad All by Myself is a 2009 American romantic musical comedy-drama film which was released on September 11, 2009. The film was directed, produced, and written by Tyler Perry,[3] who also makes an appearance in the film as his signature character Madea.[4] The rest of the cast consists of Taraji P. Henson, Adam Rodriguez, Brian White, Mary J. Blige, Gladys Knight, and Marvin L. Winans. Although the film and play share the same title, the film is not an adaptation of Perry's play of the same name, the two works have different storylines. Both are named for a lyric in the Changing Faces song "G.H.E.T.T.O.U.T.". The film adaptation tells the story of an alcoholic nightclub singer being ordered to confront her actions, after being prompted to take in her estranged niece and nephews. It is the fifth film in the Madea cinematic universe. I Can Do Bad All by Myself received generally mixed reviews from critics.

Plot

April is a nightclub singer of Club Indigo. One night of the nightclub shift, Madea and Joe Simmons notices Jennifer, Manny, and Byron breaking into their house, in which Jennifer accidentally drops and breaks the VCR, Joe owned. The grandmother of the children is reported to have the children to reside with her, coinciding the period of their mother being dead. Their grandmother, however, had been missing for reportedly, four days.

April gathers alcoholic beverages, while questioning the location of her boyfriend Randy, with the question irritating Tanya, the bartender of the nightclub. April arrives to her residence with Randy, who have another residence with his wife and children, in which April openly permits. The next day, Madea brings the children to April, in which April is revealed to be their estranged aunt. Sandino, a Colombian immigrant and Handyman, is sent to reside and work for April, after arriving as a targeted-guest to the church missionary work, done under Pastor Brian and Wilma.

April tells of how her sister died from drugs, after Pastor Brian had alerted the occurrence of Jennifer escaping the nearby drugstore with stolen needles. Pastor Brian also reveals of how the grandmother of the children is seemingly aging and is becoming notably weak. April orders Sandino to reside in her basement, and to have facial makeover, in a partially jokingly manner. The needles are revealed to be for Manny, who have potentially life-threatening diabetes. Randy arrives, and heckles Sandino for being unexpectedly present, and proceeds in making advancements to Jennifer, after intervening to verbally discipline Jennifer, to express proper manners, after she was arguing with April, and when she aggressively responded back to Randy.

The children visit Madea, to clean the house. It is a totally separate day, where Pastor Brian and Wilma announces to April; her mother Rose had died from a brain aneurysm on a city bus. Rose was dead for approximately one week, resulting in her cremation, which occurred before she was claimed. April receives the urn, and she attempts to hug Randy to his backside, in attempt of comfort. Randy was sleeping and he shrugs her off, since the couple were already awoken by Sandino with construction noise. Subsequently, April eventually goes to Sandino for comfort, in which, April tells of her strained relationship with her sister and mother.

Jennifer tells Madea about her finding out of her grandmother being dead and the potential impacts on her brothers. She asks about prayer, which she said is one of the topics her grandmother heavily spoke of. Madea attempts to instruct her, but subsequently also chooses to give incoherent stories in the Bible.

Later during the same night, Tanya calls out April of being a regular alcoholic, and also only allowing Randy for certain periods of time, while actually using Randy for her own advantage with money and conditional security. April is eventually in a love-triangle, with Randy and Sandino. One day, April goes on a date with Sandino, before it is revealed that Sandino renovated a bedroom for the children. Manny and Byron expresses their glee, but Jennifer orders her brothers to leave the bedroom, while expressing how April still does not allow them to be welcomed. One Sunday morning, Sandino knocks on the door of the bedroom, April and Randy use. Randy calls out Sandino for knocking on the door, while inviting April to attend the ongoing church service. Randy gives a death threat to Sandino, before April attempts to calmly tell Randy of her choice to attend the church service that she subsequently visits with Sandino.

After the church service, it is later during the same night; in which Jennifer goes to the kitchen to get the insulin shot for Manny. Jennifer accidentally stumbles upon Randy at the table, in which Randy accuses Jennifer of consistently giving him suggestive glances towards him. Randy continues to follow Jennifer elsewhere in the kitchen, and he attempts to be in conversation, before he tries to rape her. Sandino quickly hits Randy to the head, with a board of construction wood. Sandino also uses this opportunity to use other fighting methods, to express his vengeance to Randy for the other previous actions. April arrives to the scene, with Randy frantically claiming that Jennifer offered him sex for money. April encourages Randy to go in the bathtub water, in response to the effects from the fight. Jennifer sobbingly refuting the claim that Randy gave, after April ignored the refute that Sandino gave. April frantically stares at the reaction Jennifer gave, before entering into the upstairs bathroom. Randy refutes the occurrence while in the bathtub, before April leaves and returns with a radio; plugging it up and using this to threaten Randy with electrocution. Randy continues to repeat the refutes, before April reveals the occurrence of having a similar experience under Lee, who is presumably the boyfriend of her mother, in which April was framed in front of her mother as being the one who requested the act. Sandino is alarmed of how Randy and April are actually arguing and arrives to the scene. April mocks Sandino, who had arrived and calmly attempts to forbid her from trying to kill Randy. April subsequently drops the radio into the water, with the radio short circuiting, with smokes and flashes. Randy collapses onto the floor after trying to escape the tub, while the short circuiting also causes the ceiling lights to flicker. April notices Randy, and leaves after being alarmed of the scene. Sandino also notices Randy, but orders him to get his belongings and diverge his presence from the house.

April is drinking inside the nightclub, and expresses guilt of not being aware of the signs, comparing it to her mother not being aware of the previous occurrence. Sandino arrives, and April continues to express her guilt. April also expresses her guilt in the electrocution, with her asking Sandino on why he let Randy be in his condition while being alone in the setting. Sandino reveals how he took the keys and still found his way to have Randy to leave. April realizes of how Sandino is attentive to her niece and nephews, in which she uses the claim to accuse Sandino of being a child molester. While exiting the nightclub, Sandino explicitly exclaims to April of her overall seemingly-mentally ill persona, and tells his backstory of being a child laborer and explains that the predicament of Jennifer and her brothers, triggers his trauma. Sandino bumps his shoulder onto April, and diverges his presence from her.

April tells Jennifer that she understood the facial expression given, which happened when Jennifer attempted to refute the claims. April apologizes to Jennifer for her resentment and officially welcomes her and brothers to be in her residence. During a separate day, Sandino announces to the children, on his departure from April. Jennifer subsequently tells the incoherent Bible stories, given from Madea, while encouraging April to recognize Sandino as being needed. Periods later, Sandino returns, with April subtly expressing her romantic love to him. Sandino is skeptical, but eventually tells April, of how she should love herself and love others properly. The pair exchange kisses.

Periods later, April and Sandino gets married, with the subsequent block party for their reception.

Cast

  • Taraji P. Henson as April, an alcoholic nightclub singer of Club Indigo; Cheryl Pepsii Riley does singing overdubs for April.
  • Adam Rodriguez as Sandino Ramirez, a Colombian immigrant who is a residing-handyman for April
  • Brian White as Randy, April's boyfriend and the proclaimed co-owner of her household who expresses disapproval to the eventual-inhabitants of the residence of April
  • Mary J. Blige as Tanya, a bartender at Club Indigo
  • Gladys Knight as Wilma, a member of the church establishment located near the residence of April.
  • Marvin L. Winans as Pastor Brian, the pastor of the church establishment near the residence of April.
  • Hope Olaidé Wilson as Jennifer, the niece of April who is the oldest of the three siblings and was the essential guardian of her siblings
  • Freddy Siglar as Byron, the nephew of April
  • Kwesi Boakye as Manny, the nephew of April
  • Tyler Perry as:
  • Eric Mendenhall as Man #1
  • David Paulus as Miller
  • Randall Taylor as Mr. Bradley
  • Tess Malis Kincaid as Ms. Sullivan
  • Joseph Taylor as Announcer
  • Cheryl B. Pratt as 911 Dispatcher

Soundtrack

The film features 13 songs,[5] including two new songs by Blige. Perry was not able to produce a soundtrack album for the film due to the various record companies involved.

Reception

Critical response

I Can Do Bad All by Myself received mixed reviews from critics, becoming his most acclaimed film, until 2021's A Jazzman's Blues.[6] Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 62% approval rating based on 45 reviews, with an average rating of 5.9/10. The site's consensus states: "Though somewhat formulaic and predictable, Perry succeeds in mixing broad humor with sincere sentimentality to palatable effect."[7] Metacritic reported that the film has a score of 55 out of 100 based on 13 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[6] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[8]

Entertainment Weekly's Lisa Schwarzbaum gave the movie an "A−" grade, saying, "After a summer of phony, pasty rom-coms, do this: See a movie where old-fashioned notions of love, faith, strength, and the possibility of redemption are taken seriously."[9] Ty Burr of The Boston Globe called the film "overlong but well-shaped and involving", praising Perry for finding a balanced mix of "earnest soap opera moralism with [his] comic instincts", calling it his "most confident and competent mixture of uplifting black middle-class melodrama and low-down comedy."[10] Cliff Doerksen of the Chicago Reader said about the film: "Contrived, sentimental, tonally bipolar, and as predictable as clockwork, this latest from chitlin' circuit impresario Tyler Perry is just a fat slab of ecstatic entertainment."[11]

Rob Humanick of Slant Magazine felt the film was a great gateway for people not familiar with the "scabrous antics and homegrown moralizing" delivered by the Madea character, saying that Perry lends his creation a more "greater level[s] of tonal consistency" than his previously contradictory Madea Goes to Jail, writing that "I Can Do Bad acknowledges Madea's flaws with loving scrutiny, and doesn't require approval of her more selfish attributes."[12]

Randy Cordova of The Arizona Republic was critical of Perry's filmmaking for delivering lengthy musical numbers and overlooked story elements but gave praise to the performances of Henson and Wilson for showcasing his ability to "create meaty roles for women."[13] The A.V. Club's Nathan Rabin gave the film a "B−" grade, praising Henson's performance and the "riveting musical numbers" by Knight and Blige for emitting more "feverish emotions" to the film than Perry's "characteristically ham-fisted screenplay", concluding that "His oeuvre has always been shameless and over the top, but Bad might just be the first of Perry’s films to border on operatic."[14] Kimberley Jones of The Austin Chronicle criticized Perry for prolonging the film's conclusion but gave him credit for bringing "increasingly mature moviemaking" to his production, highlighting the Madea scenes as being "pretty damn funny" and the performances of Wilson and Henson for being "nuanced and quite moving" and having a "likable screen presence" respectively.[15]

References

  1. ↑ "I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009) - Summary". The Numbers. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
  2. ↑ "I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved September 20, 2009.
  3. ↑ "I Can Do Bad All By Myself". Turner Classic Movies. Atlanta: Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner). Archived from the original on October 18, 2021. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  4. ↑ Perry, Tyler. "Meet the Browns starts March 21st". Archived from the original on March 4, 2011. Retrieved April 14, 2008.
  5. ↑ Internet Movie Database, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1385912/soundtrack
  6. 1 2 "I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009): Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  7. ↑ "I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  8. ↑ Young, John (September 13, 2009). "Box Office Report: Tyler Perry's 'I Can Do Bad All By Myself' is No. 1 with $24 mil". Entertainment Weekly. Dotdash Meredith. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  9. ↑ Schwarzbaum, Lisa (September 15, 2009). "Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
  10. ↑ Burr, Ty (September 12, 2009). "'Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself'". The Boston Globe. Boston.com. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2019. StarStarStar
  11. ↑ Doerksen, Cliff (October 2, 2009). "I Can Do Bad All by Myself". Chicago Reader. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
  12. ↑ Humanick, Rob (September 12, 2009). "Review: I Can Do Bad All by Myself". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on December 12, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2019. StarStarHalf star
  13. ↑ Cordova, Randy (September 15, 2009). "I Can Do Bad All by Myself". The Arizona Republic. Gannett. Retrieved December 3, 2019.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) StarStarStarHalf star
  14. ↑ Rabin, Nathan (September 11, 2009). "I Can Do Bad All By Myself". The A.V. Club. The Onion. Archived from the original on December 3, 2019. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
  15. ↑ Jones, Kimberley (September 18, 2009). "Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All by Myself". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on December 9, 2019. Retrieved December 9, 2019. StarStarHalf star
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Can_Do_Bad_All_by_Myself_(film)