Daddy's Little Girls

Idris Elba’s kickstarted his Hollywood film career as a mechanic trying to win back his kids’ custody, in this melodrama from black auteur Tyler Perry.

Idris Elba notoriously found fame in America before his homeland, and following his role in The Wire took a leading role in this romantic comedy-drama from Tyler Perry. He plays a mechanic Monty James, who’s trying to win back custody of his three kids from a spiteful ex-wife. Complications ensue when he becomes entangled with the lawyer representing his case.

Black auteur Tyler Perry, who’s cultivated something a reputation as a one-man film industry, here directs from an original script for the first time, rather than adapting one of his stage plays. And it’s a deliciously entertaining plotline, packed with melodrama, sensationalism and shocking revelations. Elba, meanwhile, proved just what British filmmakers were missing with a performance of class and charm.