Madea's Witness Protection - D

Rated PG-13, 114 minutes

"Madea's Witness Protection" shows Perry at his worst

Tyler Perry as Madea

"Madea's Witness Protection" is a first for several reasons. It's the first Tyler Perry and Madea movie to be released in the summer. It's also the first Madea film not based on a play. It also happens to be one of Perry's worst in some time, which isn't saying a lot given his track record of popcorn films strictly made for his following. Madea's always good for a laugh or two but this is otherwise a badly executed, painfully unfunny vehicle that shows Perry's flaws as a filmmaker. This one is about George Needleman (Eugene Levy), a clueless executive of an investment firm who is shocked to learn that his firm has been operating a mob-backed Ponzi scheme, and that he's been set up as the fall guy. Facing criminal charges and death threats from the mob, George and his entire family are put under witness protection in the safest place that federal prosecutor Brian (Tyler Perry), can think of: his Aunt Madea's (also Perry) house down South. If you think you know where "Madea's Witness Protection" is going, well you're right and you're wise to avoid this unpleasant, woefully unfunny movie. Perry gives himself the best scenes and the best lines as the over-the-top Madea, played in his usual very broad comedic style. You'd think that talented, award-winning actors like Levy and Doris Roberts (as George's mother) would shine above the material, but they're wasted here, and any film relying on Denise Richards and Tom Arnold (you read that right) for laughs is in deep trouble. The sloppy, listless "Madea's Witness Protection" blurs the line between unfunny and just plain unwatchable (and seems very rushed given how bad the scenes look); this only shows that the talented Perry is also very smart by releasing a Madea movie in the summer. Madea's now his cash cow for all seasons. A huge disappointment even by Perry's standards.