Review in a Hurry: While two unlikely old friends (Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard) take a cross-country road trip, their corrupt, corporate-climber children (Cole Hauser and Sanaa Lathan) have an affair and engage in other nefarious deeds.
The Bigger Picture: Perhaps it's because of low expectations, or the smartness of the stunt casting, but amazingly, prolific writer-director Tyler Perry's latest work of Gospelsploitation is honest-to-God entertaining, thanks in large part to its Oscar-caliber leading ladies. Bates plays her wealthy widow role like Miss Daisy on goofballs, while Woodard makes Perry's Christian clichés feel honest and true.
Aside from that, Perry has generally dialed the divine way down, eschewed such broad caricatures as Madea and Mr. Brown, and amped up the soap opera elements. Adultery and corporate crimes are played more for voyeuristic entertainment than cheap tears. As a writer, Perry still telegraphs every plot twist, and as a director he'll probably never have a great eye, but with an acting ensemble that also includes the likes of Robin Givens and Taraji P. Henson, he strikes a good balance here between campy and melodramatic that's likely to please anyone who's ever found themselves enjoying a daytime drama, whether as a guilty pleasure or otherwise.
But never fear, hard-core fans: Abusive spouses are still punished while charity is rewarded. And the canvas is a little broader this time—both men and women get to be bad spouses, and both blacks and whites have to learn to be better people.
The 180—a Second Opinion: Die-hard Perry acolytes might be disappointed by the lack of fat jokes, while casual viewers may be distressed that a scene in which a man hits a woman in the face is actually played for cheers rather than jeers.