Philly's Tommy Oliver says 'The Perfect Guy' is not just a black movie

West Oak Lane's Tommy Oliver doesn't want you to think of The Perfect Guy, the film he has produced and that opens in theaters Friday, as a "black movie."

"People oftentimes like to reduce things to sound bites," he said recently. "It's a black lead, so it must be a black movie. It's unfortunate. There are urban movies, but there are also movies that just happen to have black characters."

Instead, Oliver wants The Perfect Guy to thrill everyone. The movie follows lobbyist Leah Vaughn (Love and Basketball's Sanaa Lathan), who gets passionate with Carter (Michael Ealy, Think Like a Man, Too). Carter, however, is not as wonderful as he initially seems, as evidenced by some disturbing behavior. Things get ever more complicated for Leah when her ex-boyfriend (Morris Chestnut, The Best Man Holiday) enters the fray.

The Perfect Guy is Oliver's first movie after the critically acclaimed 1982, a semiautobiographical movie - shot in the West Oak Lane house where he grew up - about a father caring for his daughter after her drug-addicted mother relapses.

For the 31-year-old George Washington High grad, The Perfect Guy is a departure from the previous smaller family drama.

"It was the idea of doing a thriller in a smarter, slightly elevated manner," Oliver said in a phone interview. "But also here's a woman fighting for herself and fighting for her destiny. You have characters who are people first. It's not an urban movie, it's not a hood movie, but you have three black leads."

The thought of The Perfect Guy being pigeonholed frustrates Oliver. In recent years, movies starring black leads have been said to outperform box office expectations. (This summer's smash Straight Outta Compton is a perfect example.) But when these movies continue to outperform, when are they just performing?

"I grew up in Philly, in the hood, went to public school. For me, I've always done everything I can to put myself into a position where I can be proud," Oliver said. "Doing work that's reduced to the lowest common dominator or doesn't represent people, black or otherwise, is doing everyone a disservice.

"If we keep saying, 'Black movies don't travel,' or 'Black movies look like this,' people begin to believe that."

Oliver has several productions in the works, including a documentary he's making with his wife about black and interracial couples who have been together for more than 10 years.

Now in L.A., Oliver considers it important to return to Philly often and work with the community.

"Whatever I can do to help people from Philly and help them be the best version of themselves, I want to do," he said. "If I can do it, you can do it, too."

StartText

Directed by David M. Rosenthal. With Sanaa Lathan, Michael Ealy, Morris Chestnut. Distributed by Screen Gems.

Running time: 1 hour, 40 mins.

Parent's guide: PG-13 (violence, menace, sexuality, brief strong language).

Playing at: Area theaters.EndText

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