Why Did I Get Married? (2007)

The big screen adaptation of Perry's stage play about the trials of marriage, and what happens to one family when a sexy young temptress arrives on the scene.

Director:

Tyler Perry

Writer:

Tyler Perry (play)

Stars:

Tyler Perry, Sharon Leal, Janet Jackson

1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tyler Perry	...	Terry
Sharon Leal	...	Diane
Janet Jackson	...	Patricia
Malik Yoba	...	Gavin
Jill Scott	...	Sheila
Richard T. Jones	...	Mike
Tasha Smith	...	Angela
Michael Jai White	...	Marcus
Denise Boutte	...	Trina
Lamman Rucker	...	Sheriff Troy
Keesha Sharp	...	Pam
Kaira Akita	...	Keisha (as Kaira Whitehead)
Sheri Mann Stewart	...	Professor Stewart
Brian Bremer	...	Jay
Bart Hansard	...	Bartender

Storyline

Dr. Patricia Agnew, a psychologist, has written a best seller about marriage: hers and those of three other couples who together take a week's vacation each year to ask themselves, "Why did I get married?" It's time for one of those weeks, and all four relationships are strained: Patricia and her husband Gavin have the shadow of grief between them; Terry believes that Diane has abandoned him for her work; Angela, who's built a successful business, belittles her husband Marcus, who works for her; Mike is cruel to Sheila, his religious, overweight wife. During the week, each person's secret comes out. Will these marriages survive?

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Plot Keywords:

marriage | work | overweight | secret | psychologist | 

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Taglines:

...Because no one inspires me more.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, sexual references and language

Details

Official Sites:

Lions Gate Entertainment [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 October 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married?

Filming Locations:

Agnes Scott College - 141 E. College Avenue, Decatur, Georgia, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$21,353,759 (USA) (12 October 2007)

Gross:

$55,184,721 (USA) (7 December 2007)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lions Gate Films, Tyler Perry Company, The, Capital Arts Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Never theatrically released in the UK - though oddly, its sequel Why Did I Get Married Too? was. (Tyler Perry's films do not enjoy commercial success in Europe and hardly ever receive theatrical releases there.)

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Goofs

When the ladies are in the store and Trina suggests the gown for Sheila to buy, the gown is short. When Sheila wears the gown for Mike, its long.

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Quotes

Terry: What kind of a man has to make an appointment to sleep with his wife?

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Crazy Credits

Special Thanks to: Bishop T.D. Jakes (for the "80/20 Rule")

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Connections

Referenced in Attack of the Show!: Episode dated 14 April 2011 (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Band of Gold"
Written by Edith Wayne and Ron Dunbar
Performed by Kimberley Locke
Courtesy of Curb Records
By Arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing

User Reviews

Love and marriage... or not.

Last night I went to the threatre not knowing what I was going to see. Literally. I had no notion of what films were playing. I wanted to see "The Lost Legion" because I was in the mood for a swords and sandal epic, but it wasn't playing anywhere nearby. Would I not be able to see Roman legions clashing with native armies in Briton? Answer; no. So, I looked up at the list of films, saw "Why did I Get Married", and made a blind ticket purchase for a film I had never heard of, nor had any notion of what it was about.

I've never seen the stage-play upon which this film is based, but, having seen many a stage play adaptation to the big screen, and having been thoroughly disappointed with every one of them, I can say that this one did a fairly good job.

The revolves around several couples whose marriages are teetering in varying degrees of distress. Secrets that have been held tight by husband and wife are eventually thrust into the open, testing the couples' fortitude.

Visually the film is warm and intimate, and keeps a good amount of zest by way of fine emoting. There are some ever so brief lulls, but the story content and delivery by the actors keeps the viewer's attention.

The one "antagonist" in the film (if he can be called that) was almost a little too obvious. The boorish husband character was barely disguised as to his true intentions. So much so that I was wondering if the character wasn't supposed to be putting on some kind of act. But alas, that wasn't the case. It was a shortcoming of the creative team.

Most of the film is light, but there is one segment that came out of left field to break up wit bound dialog. The more dramatic scenes were respectable, but weren't always given the same amount of care to the lighter scenes.

My one real complaint about the story is that I felt somewhat lost as to who was suffering from what history. There's a lot implied, and the more relationship-savvy viewer can probably puzzle out the nuances and idiosyncrasies of marital secrets and scandal. But I have to admit that I just didn't get a lot of the situations until they were spelled out for me. Ah well :-) Some light entertainment that delivers an abridged version of a play with fairly good aplomb. It is a film marketed for an African American audience, but marital situations are universal to all, and as such this film can be enjoyed by all audiences (though your theatre's audience may vary). Definitely a good rent when it comes out on DVD.