49
Metascore
14 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75TV Guide MagazineKen FoxTV Guide MagazineKen FoxThanks to some first-rate acting from its stars, it ranks among Perry's best.
- 75Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyPhiladelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyWas it just three years ago that Perry made his feature debut with "Diary of a Mad Black Woman?" Then his filmmaking was strictly amateur; now his sweeping pans and portentous closeups approach those of Pedro Almódovar.
- 70VarietyVarietyBates and Woodard strike up a real dynamic, and picture gives the duo room to improvise, leading to one raucous scene after another as they Thelma-and-Louise it in a top-down convertible.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterThe Hollywood ReporterWoodard conveys the rock-solid values of a true Christian without ever falling into sappiness. Bates is enjoyably larger-than-life, as the role requires.
- Dude, what made you refuse to screen your film for critics before it opened Friday? I'm betting you would have received an earful of praise for your writing and directing.
- 60New York Daily NewsNew York Daily NewsPerry's notoriously overstuffed plots have sometimes been top-heavy, but this movie, like Woody Allen's "Hannah and Her Sisters," hangs on an elegant structure that doesn't feel forced.
- 58Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment WeeklyAll over the place:It's a boardroom/family/couples/road-trip story.
- 50L.A. WeeklyChuck WilsonL.A. WeeklyChuck WilsonWhat's memorable here is the sparkling chemistry between Bates and Woodard, whose scenes together are a pleasure to watch, even as one thinks that their next outing should be to co-teach a master class entitled, "How To Rise Above Cliché."
- 38Boston GlobeTy BurrBoston GlobeTy BurrFamily, sadly, is a plate of leftovers: a bland, baldly written melodrama about two longtime best friends and their messed-up families.
- 30The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenThe suds that cascade through Tyler Perry’s The Family That Preys more than equal the cubic footage from nighttime soaps like "Dallas," "Dynasty" and their offspring.