Eighteen years ago, Tyler Perry brought his DIY play to the big screen. Released in 2005, “Diary of a Mad Black Woman” chronicles one beleaguered woman’s journey to healing and self-discovery after being betrayed by her philandering husband. The film features all the classical elements of Perry productions. It’s set in a predominantly Black area of the South, there are theatrical church scenes and plenty of the over-the-top histrionics extracted straight from his plays. But more importantly, there was Madea.
Played by Perry himself, the matriarch emerged as a rambunctious, pistol-packing matriarch who’s as comfortable espousing quirky wisdom as she is ferocious clapbacks.