The Family That Preys (2008)

A working class black woman (Alfre Woodard) and a wealthy white woman (Kathy Bates) are best friends and have supported each other through the years. But their adult children didn't quite turn out the way they wanted and will bring heartbreak to them. Written and directed by Tyler Perry (who's also in the film), this is a surprisingly decent movie elevated by the key performances of Woodard and Bates, two of the best actresses in the business. Perry's script is a little too black and white (no, this is not a reference to race) when it could have used a little more gray. For example, the film's two "villains", Sanaa Lathan as Woodard's selfish corporate climbing daughter and Cole Hauser as Bates' two faced son are painted in very broad strokes with very little shading to makes their characters very interesting. They're stock villains set up for the fall by the movie's end. Perry's religious bent is front and center and feels shoehorned into the movie. But Woodard and Bates show what great actresses can do with routine material and through the sheer power of their acting talent make their characters human instead of caricatures. With Taraji P. Henson, Robin Givens, Rockmond Dunbar, KaDee Strickland and Sebastian Siegel.