For Colored Girls (2010)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Nicki M

  
  Pleasantly surprised by this one. Subject matter is extremely grim, so if you don't like sad movies, this isn't one for you, but under all the sadness is a message of hope and resilience. Excellent cast and extremely well acted. This deals with a loosely connected group… More
  Pleasantly surprised by this one. Subject matter is extremely grim, so if you don't like sad movies, this isn't one for you, but under all the sadness is a message of hope and resilience. Excellent cast and extremely well acted. This deals with a loosely connected group of women who mainly live in the same apartment block, some of them related. All have their issues and the main theme is betrayal. I don't want to say too much and spoil it, but the inspiring part is how these women find their strength and learn to move on and and deal with what has been dealt to them. It is quite poetic, some of what they say does not make a lot of sense, but you get the gist. I found it fascinating. Really hooked me in from start to end.

• Jennifer X

  
  A shockingly compelling melodrama, color me surprised. It really shouldn't have worked, what with all the turgid descents into poetry and blatant attempts to get us to cry, but it made me cry nevertheless. My favorite storyline was definitely Thandie Newton's, as the feral… More
  A shockingly compelling melodrama, color me surprised. It really shouldn't have worked, what with all the turgid descents into poetry and blatant attempts to get us to cry, but it made me cry nevertheless. My favorite storyline was definitely Thandie Newton's, as the feral Tangie.

• Everett J

  
  I usually like Tyler Perry movies,but this one just didn't work for me..found some of the women were way over the top in their acting,and it was too melodramatic for me...just not a movie for me, then again most men probably wouldn't care for a movie where women randomly… More
  I usually like Tyler Perry movies,but this one just didn't work for me..found some of the women were way over the top in their acting,and it was too melodramatic for me...just not a movie for me, then again most men probably wouldn't care for a movie where women randomly break out into poem...should have had Madea in it for some comic relief.

• Thomas J

  
  Troubled situations with a dash of poetry does not a good movie make. These depressing situations only show the desperation of the character's lives. There is little hope or redemption for such a sad series of connected stories.

• Bradley W

  
  For Colored Girls is another melodrama from Tyler Perry but in many ways he has changed with this film. Its story and characters would be perfect if Perry did not focus on making it just African-Americans, I will never get over that he believes only black people have issues. The… More
  For Colored Girls is another melodrama from Tyler Perry but in many ways he has changed with this film. Its story and characters would be perfect if Perry did not focus on making it just African-Americans, I will never get over that he believes only black people have issues. The cast is phenomenal, this may be the best cast I hve seen in a Tyler Perry film and I believe there should have been an Oscar nomination for at least one performance in this film. This movie focuses so much on the drama and not enough on its essense, and with all these different characters it was hard to follow and love the film. The movie is decent, and I could tell Tyler Perry put his heart into it, but the story sadly makes it fall short.

• Jasen L

  
  Tragic, terrifying and beautifully poetic. âFor Colored Girlsâ? is a poetically woven tragedy about the trials and struggles of black women. The movie is based on Ntozake Shange's play "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf." Janet… More
  Tragic, terrifying and beautifully poetic. âFor Colored Girlsâ? is a poetically woven tragedy about the trials and struggles of black women. The movie is based on Ntozake Shange's play "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf." Janet Jackson, Anika Noni Rose, Whoopi Goldberg, Kimberly Elise, Loretta Devine, Thandie Newton, Phylicia Rashad and the entire cast give remarkable emotionally powerful and moving performances. This movie will rub some people the wrong way. It is different in style and approach, and very graphic, blatant and shocking. Yes a lot happens and yes there is a deliberate urgency here and I say, so what? What better time for deliberate urgency then when the subject is so relevant?

• Fascade F

  
  Poetically depressing but soaked with messages of hope within a losing relationship. Strong memorable performances from Kimberly Elise, Janet Jackson, Loretta Devine, & Thandie Newton. The use of poetry to define the pain that the women goes through and the way they came to to… More
  Poetically depressing but soaked with messages of hope within a losing relationship. Strong memorable performances from Kimberly Elise, Janet Jackson, Loretta Devine, & Thandie Newton. The use of poetry to define the pain that the women goes through and the way they came to to grips had a Shakespearean feel to it...but it was very necessary. See it for the highest level of understanding what it is that any woman goes through when she is in a troubling relationship.

• Jeff B

  
  For Tyler Perry, For Colored Girls marks a quantum leap forward so far as HIS filmmaking goes (compared to the Madea movies, this is like his Citizen Kane). Sometimes, not even a quantum leap is enough, however. So far as filmmaking in general goes, For Colored Girls is often as stagy… More
  For Tyler Perry, For Colored Girls marks a quantum leap forward so far as HIS filmmaking goes (compared to the Madea movies, this is like his Citizen Kane). Sometimes, not even a quantum leap is enough, however. So far as filmmaking in general goes, For Colored Girls is often as stagy and melodramatic as bad community theater. Though inspiring at times, the true plaudits belong to Ntozake Shange who wrote the Obie Award-winning stageplay on which the film was based. In this R-rated drama based, the lives of several women of color (Kimberly Elise, Phylicia Rashad, Kerry Washington, Whoopi Goldberg, Anika Noni Rose) are explored. Certainly, the play's issues of rape, abortion, fractured families, and domestic violence are as poignant as ever, but Perry has no idea what to do with Shange's often poetic prose. For example, there are awkward transitions between monologues and dialogues that come off as jarring and amateurish. Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier chose to film experimental projects like Dogville on empty soundstages as if the films WERE a stage production and the results still weren't nearly as stagy as For Colored Girls. Also, some of Perry's actors give hammy-off-the-bone performances. Others, however, blow the scenery-chewers out of the water (Oscar voters, take notice of Thandie Newton). Bottom line: Not for everybody.

• Sarah P

  
  I enjoyed the plot and how all of the stories came together...it reminded me a little of "Crash". However, It lost me when the scenes turned into a poetry monologue. I could do without that.

• Sunil J

  
  I kinda hate Tyler Perry but I did kinda enjoy this movie. I thought it mostly pretty well acted but Janet Jackson's character could have been cast better. A harsher watch than I expected but it was mostly pretty well written and relateable.

• Remi L

  
  This film was clearly dismissed just because Tyler Perry's name was attached to it. "For Colored Girls" is based on the 1970s play of the same name about a group of black women growing up in America and dealing with typical issues women face (sexism, sex, male/women… More
  This film was clearly dismissed just because Tyler Perry's name was attached to it. "For Colored Girls" is based on the 1970s play of the same name about a group of black women growing up in America and dealing with typical issues women face (sexism, sex, male/women relationships, mother/daughter relationships, work, etc). This film adaptation was a hybrid of film and a live play, the characters breaking off into monologues, breaking down the "third wall." I think Perry should get a pat on the back for adding this film to his vault. He picked various respected and well-known black actresses that would've gotten token roles in any other "mainstream" film. It was great seeing Loretta Devine and Phylicia Rashad after such long hiatuses. It was great seeing Kimberly Elise and Kerry Washington play main characters as opposed to the "best friend who just happens to be black." All their performances were powerful and I think Ntozake Shange would be happy to see her work done so well. I also love that Thandie Newton, such a respected and serious actress, can still bring such humor and personality into an otherwise depressing and heartbreaking role. I also loved seeing familiar male faces: Michael Ealy, Omari Hardwicke (Dark Blue), Hill Harper (CSI: NY) and Khalil Kain (Girlfriends) getting their shine as well. These are actors who are also typically relegated to the sidelines. "For Colored Girls" is one of those must-see cultural films simply because of the play it is based on.

• Daisy M

  
  For Colored Girls was not a movie to blow you away, and Mr.Tyler did a decent job not a great one,but that doesn't mean to just slam this movie down, and I don't understand why critics hated it so much. Not the whole movie or somethings in it was overreacted, but it was not… More
  For Colored Girls was not a movie to blow you away, and Mr.Tyler did a decent job not a great one,but that doesn't mean to just slam this movie down, and I don't understand why critics hated it so much. Not the whole movie or somethings in it was overreacted, but it was not a disaster.The movie itself was very disturbing and emotional, seeing these women life and the different problems they all had to face. It was really well shown but the problem was,there was too much to show in little time, audience could not just connect with it instantly, too many stories too many emotions. Maybe that was the main reason why they hated it. The movie had perfect casting and very great performances. They all performed brilliantly their own characters, sometimes a little overdone but it was okay.Any woman could relate as well, seeing their struggles that their mothers,sisters, wives and friends never talk about. It was deep, intense and passionate BUT definitely with some flaws or other wise this could have been a great movie.

• Movee C

  
  Raw, brutal, and in someways truthful. Many will dislike it, but some will find Perry's adaptation of Shange's 1975 play about different issues that affect women in general, especially women of color to be of relevance.

• Laurence C

  
  Tyler Perry's first foray into serious dramatic filmmaking basically morphs what was a humanistic work of identity introspection into a preachy type-A ensemble melodrama, with all the surfeit redemptive crap that such a thing implies. If the first act may appear more than merely… More
  Tyler Perry's first foray into serious dramatic filmmaking basically morphs what was a humanistic work of identity introspection into a preachy type-A ensemble melodrama, with all the surfeit redemptive crap that such a thing implies. If the first act may appear more than merely bearable, the cloying reflexes eventually take hold of the narrative until there is nothing left but excruciating closeups of actresses bawling and bawling. Perry, who has approximately zero idea of what to do with these generous, vibrant actresses, decides to pile up their poetic monologues on top of one another during a single 30-minute dead patch to the point where all the pain and resentment becomes flat-out buffoonish instead of dramatic. It's a little bit spectacular to watch such an incompetent filmmaker completely drown in self-important artistry without knowing what the fuck he's doing, and therefore For Colored Girls is just a little less boring than one might have imagined, but all in all, it makes for a pretty poor delve into the black female psyche. Cast-wise, Kimberly Elise and Kerry Washington are head and shoulders above everyone else thanks to a whole lot of restraint during their respective emotional catharsis, saving all the spazzy overacting for Whoopi Goldberg and Thandie Newton.

Read all 14 featured audience ratings