A twisted story of love, deception, heartache and death unfolds in Tyler Perry’s “Why Did I Get Married Too?”. It begins as what looks like a film about family, marriage and communication but quickly turns for the worst when Janet Jackson’s character Patricia and her husband, Gavin, played by Malik Yoba, announce they will be getting a divorce on their trip to the Bahamas with their close friends. The story grows more complicated as each of the four couples experience problem after problem in their marriages, caused in part by unfaithfulness, lying and greed.

The plot first starts out like a comedy that will unfold with the many various, and sometimes hilarious, personalities of the characters. This group of friends is intermixed with a variety of intense and reserved personalities who play off of each other yet care one another. The plot takes the friends through boisterous laughter and intense anguish only to strengthen their relationships.

Janet Jackson has a masterful performance as a personally troubled best-selling author and psychologist. She starts out with what seems like a smaller role in the plot but as soon as her character announces her upcoming divorce, her role grows as she becomes violently emotional at her hurtful soon-to-be-ex-husband.

Tyler Perry, playing the role of Terry, also experiences heartbreak from the most unexpected source. Perry plays the role of a cautious husband and friend in an easily relatable way. He plays a stay-at-home father whose wife works as a lawyer and is assigned to the divorce case between Patricia and Gavin.

The movie also has a comedic element in the relationship between Angela, played by Tasha Smith, and Marcus, played by Michael Jai White. Angela is a hot-headed, loudmouthed woman whose outbursts has the cast running but the audience shouting hoots of laughter from their seats. Angela suspects her newly-famous husband of cheating and it seems as though their marriage won’t last through the credits. Marcus and Angela provide much needed comic relief in the sad plot with the rest of the three married couples and an ex-husband.

Sheila, played by Jill Scott, is a bravely tolerant woman who has survived domestic violence and heartbreak in her previous marriage with Mike, played by Richard T. Jones. Her new husband Troy, played by Lamman Rucker, rescues Sheila from her painful memories and they have a beautiful baby boy. When Mike comes back into the picture needing Sheila’s help and support, Sheila and Troy’s marriage is tested. All of these characters successfully show their complex characters with a relatable and heartbreaking display. 

The audience was brought to tears at many times throughout the twisted plot, only to be brought back to laughter by Angela and Marcus. This is no summer day comedy for the family, but rather a heartbreaking tragedy. A person looking for a complicated and twisted plot with actors and actresses who play characters out of their normal boundaries and whose friendships and personal sanities are tested will find all of it in Tyler Perry’s “Why Did I Get Married Too?”