Good Deeds

Tyler Perry doesn't play Madea in this movie, thank goodness!  Good Deeds is about a wealthy business owner, Wesley Deeds, (Perry) who befriends and falls in love with a homeless cleaning lady, Lindsey (Thandie Newton).  His brother, played by actor Brian White, loathes Wesley because he's running the family business left to them by their father.  Their mother, played by Phylicia Rashad, pits the brothers against one another with the classic good brother vs. bad brother, which causes more drama. 

Thandie Newton struggles to care for her daughter after her husband dies.  She's a cleaning lady in the office building that the Deeds family owns.  They eventually meet and Wesley does a good deed by allowing her to stay in a corporate apartment until she can get on her feet. Wesley and Lindsey become close and Wesley realizes he can be himself with the "clean-up” woman.  Eventually, Wesley and his fiancee, played by Gabrielle Union, decide to call off their engagement. Wesley decides to live out his dream, ride off into the sunset and take Lindsay and her daughter with him.   Only in a movie, right?

The message of giving to others who are in need was the overall message of the film.  Tyler Perry is smart enough to surround himself with talented actors and actresses whenever he attempts to act.  In this case, Thandie Newton does the heavy lifting with support from veteran actress Phylicia Rashad.  I like Tyler Perry and respect him for the work he does but he is not the best actor around...but at least he wasn't playing the role of Madea again!  I give this movie 2 out of 4 stars.