MovieChat Forums > Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005) Discussion > In real life...

In real life...

posted 16 years ago by wordartist1
9 replies | jump to latest

when he drags her out of the house and throws her outside, she could have just called the cops and reported him for domestic abuse. She had a witness (Orlando) to back up her story as well. He would have been arrested and there is no way in hell, prenup or no prenup, that he could just throw her outside after 18 years with no money or anything and move his new girlfriend in. It just wouldn't happen. If she had him arrested that first night, she could take him to the cleaners because of all the years of abuse she endured. She could say that because he was controlling and abusive he forced her to sign a ridiculous prenup that no woman in her right mind would sign. Because she signed under duress, it could be voided. I think overall this is not a bad film, but I have a huge problem with the unrealistic premise. No one can actually do that to a spouse of 18 years without consequences. She'd have options in real life. Charles may have been a lawyer, but there were other lawyers out there who would have been happy to take him on.

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[–] courtney_williams1 16 years ago

fact of the matter is...

there are plenty of men who do that (kick women out after however many years of marriage)

and there are plenty of women who don't do a damn thing about abuse (women who stay in abusive relationships for years.)

if helen could've called the police when he kicked her out that night, why wouldn't she have BEEN called the police on him for all the other abuse? b/c she had a witness all of a sudden? orlando didn't know her like that, yet. he coulda been like "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil".

you be realistic...

[–] wordartist1 16 years ago

I understand abused people feeling that they have few options. I'm just saying she could have done something other than just accept her fate. I know people who have taken abusive exes to the cleaners and won. Orlando may have feared Charles or just wanted to avoid getting involved, but I think that this was an extreme example and it is unlikely for someone to end up in such a dire situation if there was a legal marriage because they would have to go through the divorce process in court and she could have gotten a lawyer who would have fought hard to win because a win for Helen would have been a big payday for a lawyer. I can see this happening more if the couple were not actually married because then she'd have very little recourse, although in most states she still would have had some protection because after that amount of time, it would be a common law marriage. It seems she could have really done something to make his life miserable.

"My grandma drank all my pot."

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] dmoneys2 16 years ago

The point was she didn't know how to handle herself at first. She had to learn to be strong enough to stand up to him and stand on her own two feet. She seemed pretty helpless and unsure of herself and not thinking straight. Chalk it up to the rule of drama

[–] rosie8675 16 years ago

Wordartist, taking him to court would seem like the logical course of action in reality. Helen did come across as a weak character at the beginning, but I think that was the point. She needed to go through all that mess to become stronger. However, that scene where she was being dragged over the threshold out of the house did seem over the top to me, and it annoys me everytime I see the movie on TV.

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[–] texasangel0985 16 years ago

i would think with the adultry and the kids he had with the mistress the pre-nup would be null and void and in some states assets gained during the marriage are community property and would not fall under the pre-nup ...either way a judge wouldn't have just left her with nothing

[–] jennj_80 15 years ago

I know a woman that ended up with nothing in that same circumstance in real life. The husband knew people, and the wife walked away with nothing.

[–] cshep79406 15 years ago

She must have had a crappy lawyer.

[–] Dynamic_Star88 15 years ago

In real life even if there was a prenup, there would be some alternative to just walking away with nothing at all. But it all depends on the woman. Some women might find the time, energy and recourse to bring legal action against her husband. But then some women, like Helen, might know nothing about their legal rights and might not be strong enough and confident enough to go through a trial.

I think that was the message sent via Helen's character, that women have to learn about all the legal and financial aspects of life and marriage to insure that they can stand on their own two feet and fight their own battles should their marriage end in divorce.

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