Tyler Perry is indeed the man with the golden touch in Hollywood, and his movie and TV magic has earned him the Forbes‘ title of the highest paid man in Hollywood. And although millions of fans adore his hit comedy projects, some detractors deplore the filmmaker’s work, (Spike Lee famously called it “coonery and buffoonery”). But now Perry has a new high-profile detractor to add to the list.
During an appearance on CNN Newsroom earlier this week, cultural commentator and author Touré criticized Perry’s directing skills.
“Tyler Perry is one of, if not the, worst director in Hollywood. He’s willfully ignorant of the craft and I can think of no aspect of the craft that he is good at,” said Touré
Speaking of Perry’s films, Touré called them “cinematic malt liquor” and adding that they are “celebrating a certain ‘victimhood’ for colored girls.”
“Tyler Perry is definitely serving an audience that is underserved by Hollywood. Especially black southern women [who] do not see themselves at all in Hollywood fare,” said Toure. “So, when he’s serving them movies where they appear to be in situations that are naturalistic and recognizable to them and definitely have that Christian message, I absolutely understand why my grandmother, my mother, and my aunts love this stuff, and my family down south, they love this stuff. I just can’t watch it without cringing because I’ve seen good movies and I know these are poorly made films,”
Dr. Boyce Watkins, finance professor at Syracuse University, came to the defense of Perry, claiming that his films and TV shows create jobs for black entertainers, something that Hollywood typically fails to do.
Touré, clearly unconvinced by Watkin’s words, countered, “Drug dealers also create jobs, but we’re not giving them credit for creating jobs. Just creating jobs is not enough. He’s creating bad jobs.”
What are your thoughts on Touré’s criticism of Perry? – nicholas robinson
