Tyler Perry, the one-man writer-producer-director, has done it again with his latest weekend box office hit. In his recent movie “The Family that Preys,” he created an entertaining and funny film with a with an easy-to-follow, and sometimes a bit too predictable storyline. And true to Perry fashion, no matter whether the tale turned sad or sweet, humor was present at every step.

“The Family that Preys” is about two southern families that are tied together by the interracial friendship between the matriarchs, Alice Pratt (Alfre Woodard) and Charlotte Cartwright (Kathy Bates). The issues of race, class, adultery and interracial relationships are played out mostly through the lives of their children.

Perry’s characters were a bit one-dimensional. They were either good or bad; likeable or not. Andrea, played by Sanaa Latham, was a successful, Harvard-educated financial professional who lands a high-paying job at Charlotte Cartwright’s development company. Although Andrea had the good job, education and money, she ended up being the classless sister who talked down to her hard-working mother, Alice, and sister Pam (Taraji P. Henson) who both worked in her mother’s diner. Depicted as the ingrate, Andrea’s character became super un-likeable after the audience realized that her big paychecks were the result of her affair with Charlotte’s son, William (Cole Hauser) instead of her Ivy League education.

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Back in July, McCain accused Obama of pulling the race card after Obama told supporters in Missouri that he didn’t look like the other presidents on the dollar bill. Well now, someone “loosely” associated with the McCain & Palin duo is truly showcasing the race issue. However, in this particular case, I’m not sure it’s believable.

According to a video circulating around YouTube, an African American guy named Kevin is claiming to be the father of Bristol Palin’s baby. He says that Bristol was sexually intimate with him “outside of her relationship” with Levi Johnston, the reported father. He even asks Bristol to call him, and he would take the video off YouTube.

Kevin actually blames race as the reason the truth about the child’s paternity is being kept a secret. In the video, he said:

I didn’t want to pull the race card but feel like Ms. Palin (he mispronounced as PAL-in, not PAY-lin) is keeping me away from my child to keep her political career in good standing. She understands that an African American male being the father of her child wouldn’t be best for her career.

The kicker to this paternity video is that old Kevin doesn’t agree with Gov. Palin’s politics, and is voting for Obama. And it probably comes as no surprise; Kevin is a “musician working on his urban rap career in LA.”

smooches,

The Caramel Bella

Check out my interview with the RZA of WuTang posted online at PopandPolitics.com…

Who knew Wu-Tang’s The RZA was such a pundit? We caught up with him last night in the press line at Creative Coalition’s celebration of African-American leadership. In just five minutes, RZA dished on Denver, Obama, McCain, the election, and African-American youth culture. He was earnest and insightful, sharing honest thoughts without pretending to be an authority.

Like Bobby Digital, the RZA is yet another example of the strong African-American presence throughout Denver. Being here, you can feel the level of energy and rallying behind Obama’s candidacy that is both electric and very palpable. It’s one thing to hear the talking heads espouse about the excitement behind the campaign, it’s another thing to actually see and feel the historic nature of this candidacy first-hand.

Interview: Brooke-Sidney Gavins
Multimedia Producer: Sharifa Johka
Video editing: Chris Nelson