Good Deeds

Good Deeds is like someone you desperately want to fall in love with, but when you finally go on a date you find a bunch of flaws and the person is never quite as attractive after that. The movie is about Wesley Deeds (Deeds! Get it?), played by writer/director Tyler Perry, who has lived a life of privilege, inheriting his dad’s business and fortune. But Deeds feels trapped in a life he didn’t choose for himself. Enter Lindsey Wakefield (Thandie Newton), a cash-strapped janitor whose troubles give Deeds an avenue for his kindness.

ClearPlay In Action!

ClearPlay edits a scene of implied intercourse, partial nudity, immodest dancers, and just under 40 mild profanities. Kids might be distraught over family members arguing and fighting in the movie, and an engaged man is unfaithful, but it’s mostly okay for all ages.

Does Mr. Deeds go to town?…

Good Deeds might be Perry’s reboot of Frank Capra’s You Can’t Take It With You, but without the wit, charm, and pathos. That leaves the idea — “what matters most is what we give of ourself” — which is a pretty doggone good idea, but the movie doesn’t quite live up to that tall order. It’s less of a caricature than Perry’s Madea movies, and it’s heart is in the right place. That counts for something. Call it Capra Lite.

Marty Nabhan—ClearPlay Do–Gooder

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, language, some violence and thematic material; 110 min; Directed by Tyler Perry