Tyler Perry’s Doing Life – Netflix – 1 hour and 48 minutes

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Anika arrives at work, and a co-worker gives her a picture an inmate named Carousel drew of her. After the co-worker leaves, Anika admires the photo. Soon, she sees changes in the switchboard. Several cells open, and the prisoners riot. They storm into her room, and she begs them not to hurt her. She’s pregnant, but they don’t care. Before they can sexually assault her, someone fights them off. He pulls Anika into his cell, shuts the door, and barricades it with his mattress. Prisoners stab him as he holds the door. He screams for Anika’s help, but fear paralyzes her in the corner. The guards regain control, beat the man, and drag Anika to safety. The last thing Anika sees is the man who saved her on the floor, bleeding.

Months later, Anika gives birth to Nia, but the baby’s father, Randy, doesn’t want to be involved. Anika and her daughter live with her chronically ill mother, Cathy. She cares for Cathy while working at a gas station. Her sisters, Trina and Lisa, think she should work in Trina’s hair salon. However, Anika dreams of becoming a nurse but doesn’t have the $8,000 to enroll. She has no way to get that money and knows her sisters won’t help. Cathy hopes her workplace illness settlement money will help, but Cathy can’t contact her lawyer. Until then, Cathy needs assistance with the bills while she watches Nia. Cathy tells Anika to grab the bills and pick one to pay.

Anika flips through the letters on the bus and sees one from the correctional facility. It’s from Carousel. He wrote to 34 other Anikas, trying to find her because he worries about her every day. He wants to know if she made it out of the riot safely. She writes back with an update. Carousel beams with joy because she had a healthy baby. Soon, their letters turn to phone calls. They pick up Carousel’s spirit after guards raided his cell and removed his artwork. His voice brings Anika a much-needed release. Weeks later, Anika plays with Nia in the park when a man calls her name. It’s Carousel. He’s on parole, working in sanitation, and lives in a halfway house. He politely asks if they can experience their romance in the real world, at her speed. Anika agrees. She hopes this is her fairy-tale ending, but obligation, trauma, and money will test their love.

This romance film has a triggering setup with an emotional payoff. The leads’ chemistry feels believable because it develops through love letters and phone calls. This setup allows them to be honest and vulnerable, while the distance gives them a safety net. When they meet in person, it’s shocking but comforting. While Carousel has been in a physical prison, Anika’s trapped in an emotional one. Her family heavily relies on her and stunts her growth. Their lives parallel, strengthening their bond. The writer carefully crafts Anika’s storyline, but Carousel’s feels rushed. You want to know how he uncovered her family’s secret or fought his legal battle. Hopefully, part two can tell the story from his perspective or expand on what this film missed. Otherwise, this was a well-written love story about two troubled people who find safety in each other.

I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars

Not even for me – Carousel

It’s just a letter – Anika