DVD Reviews

The Family That Preys – DVD Review

By June L. Jan 20, 2009, 12:05 GMT

Wealthy socialite charlotte & her dear friend alice a working class woman of high ideals have enjoyed a lasting friendship throughout many years. Suddenly their lives become mired in turmoil as their adult childrens extramarital affairs & unethical business practices threaten to derail all their lives. ...more

Starting with a wedding, this film takes a different look at the lives and loves of its characters. Usually the wedding ends the film, but in The Family That Preys, the wedding of Andrea (Sanaa Lathan ) and Chris (Rockmond Dunbar) is just the beginning of a complicated blending of plots and characters.

Tyler Perry presents a story that mixes the good and bad in two families who have known each other for years. Alice (Alfre Woodard) and Charlotte (Kathy Bates) have seen the world from opposite ends of the financial ladder, but that has not kept them from being life long friends.

At Alice’s daughter Andrea’s wedding everyone seems to be forgetting problems and looking to the future, but how long can that last? Especially when there are so many troubles brewing.

Four years later at Alice’s Wing and a Prayer Diner, the two sisters Andrea and Pam (Taraji P. Henson) are still fighting. Andrea has a good job, and Pam still works in the diner with her Mom. Andrea doesn’t want her family to hamper her success in the business world, and has now become ashamed of her husband Chris who works with Pam’s husband Ben (Tyler Perry) in Charlotte’s construction firm. Pam thinks Andrea needs to be more grateful for her good fortune and also be more helpful to their mother.

Across town Charlotte’s son and his wife are fighting battles with Charlotte. She doesn’t want to turn the company over to her son, and he feels thwarted. As people are keeping secrets from each other, tensions are getting high.

Money has become a big issue in some of the families, while trust and fidelity are questioned in others. Will it be long before most of the relationships crumble and much lost beyond ever recovering. In the midst of all the trouble, Alice and Charlotte take a road trip that will never be forgotten.

The Family That Preys is presented on single disc in widescreen format. The running time is 109 minutes. There are a variety of special features included. “Two Families, Two Legends” looks at the characters of Charlotte and Alice as well as the actresses bringing them to the screen.

Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard have a great deal of respect for each other and it shows in their work. “Preying in the Big Easy” shows the importance of the scenes shot in New Orleans, which is Tyler Perry’s home.

Coming back to that city, and particularly to the French Quarter was exciting and memorable for everyone involved in the shoot. In “Casting the Family” Tyler Perry and the cast talk about their choices for the characters and the teamwork necessary to make it all work.

My favorite featurette is “Delving into the Diner” which describes and explores the diner set built especially for the movie. The exterior shots are from a location near Atlanta, but the interior has been built with meticulous attention to detail on a stage. Tyler Perry says he feels this is important as it make the Diner a special place, gives it an air of feeling special.

This production design as well as many others in Perry’s films was executed by Ina Mayhew. The diner has become so beloved by cast, crew and audiences, that it is being carefully de-constructed and plans are to rebuild it in the company’s permanent studio. It is likely that it will open as a functioning diner for employees and visitors.