TV Review - A Fall From Grace

It feels like Tyler Perry was inspired by David Fincher's Gone Girl (2014) in which Perry himself was an actor. If one has seen that Fincher thriller, then knowing that this movie is akin to Gone Girl probably is a bit of a spoiler. Yet, in a film with a few twists and turns, the final twist here is one that can be easily guessed. If one is a fan of Perry's TV show, The Haves and the Have Nots, then the final twist, as absurd as it is, can be predicted from miles away. One of the leading actresses here is from that show and Perry couldn't help but incorporate similar tactics and themes, which include men and women who have been wronged or perceived to have been wronged lashing out.

This idea of a wronged woman lashing out isn't new for Perry, particularly in his theatrical films. His TV show is a different beast, but, in his theatrical films, the idea of a wronged woman, especially a wronged black woman has been recurring over and over since his very first film, Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005). It's not an idea or theme in every film he does. His recent Nobody's Fool (2018) and Good Deeds (2012) are two such examples where Perry has taken different avenues. Yet, there are certain filmmakers like Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese that keep going back to the same ideas and themes over and over. For Perry, that idea is black women being used and abused by men. It makes sense, given what Perry has said about his mother and elder women in his life or women he has known. These films feel like they're reflections of them.

Crystal R. Fox (The Haves and the Have Nots) stars as Grace Anne Waters, an agent at a bank who is divorced and has an adult son. She presumably lives in some town or some suburb in Virginia. She owns her own house. She's still reeling from her husband cheating on her. She's perhaps a bit lonely. Her friend recommends that she goes to an art show. It's there that she meets a sexy photographer who sweeps her off her feet or charms her into a relationship. They have a bit of a whirlwind romance, which results in their quick marriage. Later, Grace is arrested and charged with his murder.

However, considering where the movie goes, a lot of it doesn't make sense. It's not the first twist of the movie, but the twist of Grace's murder charge is that there is no body. This is also the first clue that Perry is ripping off Gone Girl. That Fincher film was about a man who is accused of killing his wife despite there being no dead body. This film does the same thing but swaps the genders. Here, it's a woman who is accused of killing her husband despite there being no dead body. In Gone Girl, the man reports his wife missing, which is what triggers the police suspecting him. That would have happened eventually if he hadn't reported his wife missing, but that's not necessarily the case here.

Mehcad Brooks (Nobody's Fool and Supergirl) co-stars as Shannon DeLong, the aforementioned, sexy photographer who romances Grace. He proposes after a short amount of time and they get married. He's very charming and very enticing. Yet, Grace never asks about his friends or family. If they had a wedding, which we never see, what family or friends did he bring to the ceremony? He's very smart and his conversations with Grace are conversations that are interesting and engaging. Unfortunately, as in Tyler Perry's Acrimony (2018), the voice-over narration spoils the fact that Shannon is too good to be true. Yes, he's incredibly attractive, but there is a dark side, a shady side and a hurtful side that will be revealed, a perfect honey trap.

Shannon is the one who is presumed dead though, but it's his body that can't be found, which presents two possibilities that no one ever considers. This shows the flaws in Perry's writing that's meant to contribute to the mystery but only makes the whole thing more nonsense. Most of the stuff that we see between Grace and Shannon are done so in flashback. The film is framed as a legal drama where we're mainly following the lawyer who takes Grace's case.

Bresha Webb (Marlon and Love That Girl) plays Jasmine Bryant, a 26-year-old public defender. She's assigned to Grace's case. At first, she's reluctant to continue being a lawyer, but she decides that there's something about Grace that makes her want to dig deeper into the case. Yet, digging deeper still has her miss obvious things. Again, there are two possibilities about why there's no dead body that Jasmine should consider but there's never any exploration of those possibilities, which is contrived for the purpose of being a surprise at the end. Yet, it makes zero sense for any lawyer on a murder case no matter how overwhelmed they are to miss those things.

If there's no dead body, Jasmine should have asked one of two things. The first is, "Did someone remove the body?" The second is, "Was the person really dead?" If one is caught up on The Haves and the Have Nots, one knows that there have been plenty of recent examples of someone seeming dead but not really being dead and later getting up and surviving their serious, even brutal injuries. As we watch this film, Jasmine has no interest at all with answering the question of where the dead body is or what happened to him. Supposedly, Grace's son, Malcolm, played by Walter Fauntleroy (The Oval), went to the house after the murder, but at no point does Jasmine question him. It just makes the whole thing rather ridiculous.

Phylicia Rashad (For Colored Girls and Creed) plays Sarah Miller, the friend to Grace. Sarah encourages Grace to date Shannon. It's great to see Rashad in scenes with Crystal Fox because it just represents good acting and good actors with talent that are at Perry's disposal. Unfortunately, the material doesn't always rise to meet that talent.

Rated TV-MA.
Running Time: 2 hrs.

Available on Netflix.