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It’s that time of the year again for a disappointing thriller featuring a whole bunch of Black people of which one is really crazy. Which is what you get in Til Death Do Us Part.
Director: Chris Stokes
Summary
All Madison (Annie Ilonzeh) has wanted is a child. So, when her husband Michael (Stephen Bishop) asked her to quit her job and become a full-time wife, she figured a child would be the trade-off. However, he doesn’t want a child right now. In fact, he takes injections to make sure it doesn’t happen and doesn’t tell Madison. Something which makes her very upset and him mad too because she was snooping through his stuff.
However, bad turns to worse when he starts getting violent with her. From then on, their perfect relationship is never the same for with him stripping her of her autonomy, she is under the impression she is stuck. That is, until her best friend Chelsea (Robinne Lee) provides her an out. Not a necessarily flawless one, but an out nonetheless.
Problem is, this out isn’t far enough from Michael to truly get away. Thus leading to him reminding her that they got married “til death do us part.”
Highlights
The Soundtrack
I’m not sure what the first handful of songs were but they, for a moment, gave me hope. They set a good tone, got me vibing with what Stokes was shooting and made me think perhaps this wouldn’t be the token Black thriller of the year. The one that, unless you got people talking in the audience or a best friend who does so, it is almost excruciating to watch.
Criticism
Sadly, It’s That Movie
Since No Good Deed, maybe earlier, September to early October has had at least 1 thriller, featuring recognizable Black actors, but rarely those who have broken out, in cheesy thrillers. The kind where, more often than not, this guy is crazy for reasons you don’t fully understand, or the woman is, again, for reasons not that developed. Leading to usually the same plot over and over.
It begins with the crazy person seeming so nice, so charming, like the perfect person for whatever the lead needs in their life. However, something the lead says or does ends up triggering something. We are told flatly what it could be, but it isn’t built upon so you’re just left with the idea that this person is crazy because they are crazy. Maybe, if you’re lucky, their insanity, we’re told, stems from abuse.
But, thus far, there hasn’t been any real remix to the usual trajectory of a seemingly nice person going crazy, lead sort of gets away, if not goes into hiding, crazy person finds them, and our lead kills them in the end. Usually with a gun.
Something Just Doesn’t Seem Right Here
There are quite a few things in Til Death Do Us Part which really makes it seem to be one of the worst of the almost annual Black September/ October thrillers. One is the obsession it puts in Madison with the toilet seat being up. It is shown as something which bothers her and as a sign maybe Michael is in the house. With the right audience, it damn near will probably seem like a joke.
Following that, we have certain things which raise an eyebrow. One thing being, the baby that Madison has, are we looking at a lifelike doll or a real baby? Maybe it is just me but it seems the angles were all wrong for that and after a certain point, Stokes and his team said: “Screw It!”
The last thing I’m going to mention, because I could really pick this apart like it was hand sewn, is the money issue. Major spoiler: Madison fakes her death to get away from Michael. Chelsea is her beneficiary for her life insurance so she gets the money. Now, apparently, there is enough money for Madison to either buy or rent a house and then get a simple, run of the mill, waitress job. If that was the only time we saw Chelsea give Madison money, I could have accepted that. However, with her consistently giving Madison stacks of cash, I was left wondering where the hell all that money was coming from?
After all, Chelsea was presented as a nurse just like Madison. So unless she has more underhanded ongoings besides knowing how to fake a death, at least good enough to trick an insurance company, I’m confused where all this cash is coming from.
On The Fence
Ilonzeh as a Love Interest
I don’t know if I just am a sucker for love or my standards were low for this, but I got to say I thought Ilonzeh made a lovely love interest for both Michael and Taye Diggs’ character Alex. Maybe because she has that generic college sweetheart look. I’m tempted to say that maybe it was her acting but the cute awkward moments she has, like with Taye Diggs, sort of dance upon the border of being cringey.
Overall: Negative (Skip It)
We began September with the skip it label and end with it. Seems almost poetic. But, jokes aside, I’m really not sure who thinks this overdone formula, repeated year to year, still works. Am I not looking at enough box office receipts to notice these are actually money makers? Could it be, between Netflix and home video, these are underground hits? I have to be missing something, right?
Otherwise, why would Til Death Do Us Part exist? I like to jokingly say bad movies similar to this belong on Lifetime but it doesn’t even have that certain campy element, outside the toilet seat thing, to make it a Lifetime movie. It is one of those films which you know the actors will say “Support it to see more Black films!” Yet, it reminds you the reason the majority of accessible Black films are trash, accessible meaning not indie and requiring a trip to your local city, is because we support films like Til Death Do Us Part.
So please, save your money, save your bandwidth, and just don’t acknowledge this film exists. I certainly won’t by Tuesday.
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I don’t understand how she had her new boyfriend in birthing class and coming to the ultra sound but she’s never asked about the little girls mother til after those scenes happen. That just seemed weird to me. And how were they so sure that Michael would not wan to see her body after she died.
I tried to give it a chance but there were just to many inconsistencies. The woman on the phone calling about the hospital at no point thinks this is odd how does her husband not know she worked and thinks she’s dead..
And it was tooo much like know movie I almost expected her to swim away instead of the car accident. It was cringe..
Even though I wanted to support I had to turn it off
When they met up at the diner Madison was still pregnant. They were joking about the name Kate. Than Madison started explaining to Chelsea how she finally got a black piano. Chelsea asked how’s the baby (referring to the baby that was still inside her belly). Madison replied (HE) will be playing it too! Referring to the piano. That was early on actually. It was actually the next scene where she met Alex and Rachel Stone.
It was an ok movie in fact I’ve seen many ok movies with all black cast as well as all white cast. Most of the movies I watch I think are predictable and I’ve seen before. I gladly support black movies.
Chelsea left BEFORE Madison named the child. There were only Alex and the nurse with her.
Chelsea left BEFORE Madison named the child. When she chose his name, only Alex was in the room (with the nurse)
The reason why Chelsea was at the house was because Michael got a call from Madison’s job saying how she never went and picked up her final paycheck and he’s able to put pieces together and realized she’s not dead and there wasn’t a death certificate for her. He also realizes Chelsea was apart of the plan and he forced her at gunpoint to drive to Madison’s house. I’m not sure why she was on the stretcher or what happened to her because I gave up watching it after that.
Yes Chelsea was on the stretcher but why she is coming from the house I have no idea
Didn’t anyone notice that when Chelsea met up with Madison at the diner, Madison had the baby and told Chelsea it was a boy. That seemed to be news to her. EXCEPT Chelsea was in the hospital room when the baby was born. Help me! Nobody seems to be pointing out this massive flaw! It can’t just be bad continuity!!
I don’t think so – re-look at the ending – there is a person on a stretcher. I think that was Chelsea.
This movie was terrible. It copied Sleeping With the Enemy which starred Julia Roberts. From the fake death to the family member in a nursing home to fruit picking. Come on… be original
I agree almost everything was recognize able, but he killed Chelsea I’m asumming?
Til death do us apart was the black Sleeping With Enemy. Plot too similar! But it was okay.
Til Death do us part was “that” black thriller undoubtedly but even though it was as predictable as ever it was still an ok movie. The moments of suspense though predictable were in fact gripping and Michael’s character due to our uncertainty of his issue had a level of unpredictability. Many details of the plot were underdeveloped. Overall however, as an avid lifetime movie buff I would say that it was a good “black lifetime” movie. So without too much expectations it could be enjoyable.