Famed director/writer/actor Tyler Perry once again ventured out of the realm of comedy and his famed character Madea, to bring fans the erotic thriller, Mea Culpa.
The movie follows high-power defense attorney, Mea (Kelly Rowland) who is facing an uphill battle in her marriage when she meets prospective client Zyair (Trevante Rhodes). Zyair is a handsome and enticing artist, but is being charged with murdering his girlfriend.
Mea's husband Kal (Sean Sagar) is against Mea taking on Zyair as a client, as it would be a conflict of interest given his brother Ray (Nick Sagar), her brother-in-law, is the lead district attorney prosecuting the case. Ray and Azalia (Kerry O'Malley), Kal and Ray's mother, also don't want Mea to defend Zyair, as a victory for Ray could help launch his mayoral campaign. Plus, it's believed that Azalia is suffering from cancer, so no one wants Mea working for Zyair to upset the matriarch.
Despite the objections, Mea takes on Zyair as a client. Not for nothing, she and her husband could use the money given he recently found himself unemployed.
As Mea starts to dig deeper into the case with the help of her private investigator Jimmy (RonReaco Lee), she soon discovers there's a lot more to Zyair than meets the eye. He has a ferocious sexual appetite and a list of scorned exes. However, does that mean he's capable of murder?
Even as she learns more about Zyair's past, she can't ignore the undeniable chemistry that exists between them, which goes unchecked in the face of her marital problems. After Mea and Zyair throw caution to the win, she's still left with the question, is he guilty? Also, if Zyair didn't do it, then who?
With all that being said, here's what happens at the end of Mea Culpa. Warning, some SPOILERS lie ahead.
Is Zyair guilty?
After being summoned by Ray to his home, Mea and Kal arrive and Ray wastes no time calling his brother to stand over next to him. Ray then whispers in Kal's ear as Mea looks on, obviously telling his brother that his wife cheated with Zyair. As the lead prosecutor in Zyair's case, when Mea informed the judge that she was no longer Zyair's attorney due to an inappropriate relationship, the judge informed Ray. Kal is crushed by the news, and Azalia demands Mea leave.
Fast forward, Mea is in the Dominican Republic trying to regain some perspective now that her marriage is in shambles and her career is in limbo. As she goes around the island resort, she crosses paths with Zyair's alleged murder victim, very much alive and well.
When Mea confronts the woman, who is now working as an employee of the resort, she pretends not to know what Mea is talking about but then flees the scene. Mea runs after her, eventually catching up with her, but the woman panics and sprays a cleaning product in Mea's face and again runs away, this time taking Mea's phone in the process.
A determined Mea buys a new phone on the island and immediately calls Jimmy, who is ready to fly down to the Dominican Republic to assist her. Mea also calls Ray who tells her he'll have his team look into it and convinces her to fly back home as Kal is ready to see her and reconnect.
Arriving at Ray's home, it's an eerie scene as Kal is not present and Azalia, a woman who loathes Mea, is cooking her dinner. Mea then gets a phone call and email from Jimmy, which proves Azalia has been lying about her cancer diagnosis, she's not sick at all.
Mea thinks she's delivering news to Ray when she relays the message, but Ray and the mom have a laugh at Mea's expense. The mother/son duo planned the fake diagnosis hoping to get sympathy from voters as he announces his mayoral campaign, but Azalia claims Kal doesn't know. Furthermore, Ray and Azalia blast Mea for being just as stupid as Ray's wife Charlise (Shannon Thronton) to have an affair with Zyair. Naturally, Mea tries to leave, but Ray instructs Charlise to stab Mea.
Charlise turns her knife on Ray instead, but he gets the best of her and punches her in the face. Then chaos breaks out as Mea makes several attempts to leave the home, having to fight both Ray and Azalia. She's only able to escape as Charlise manages to get up and hit Ray with a frying pan, but the assist leads to Chalise's death who is stabbed by Azalia.
Once Mea is out of the house, she hops in a truck and eventually is able to fend off Ray to drive away. Azalia on the other hand holds onto the car until Mea crashes the truck into a tree, which sends the matriarch's body flying.
A disheveled Mea starts walking until she comes to a car passing by. It's Kal. She's relieved to see him and begs him to call the police, and he pretends to do so. However, when Mea gets in the car and the two are driving, he heads back towards his brother's house, puzzling Mea. Then he gets a phone call, again pretending to speak with emergency services, but Mea pairs his phone with the car and hears him talking to Ray.
Mea thinks it's all over, as it becomes clear Kal has actually been in cahoots with his mother and brother the entire time. She thankfully sees an oncoming tractor-trailer, unbuckles Kal's seatbelt, then grabs the wheel with enough force that the car swerves into the truck and Kal's body flies out of the car.
As it turns out, Zyair really is an innocent man who was framed by Ray as revenge for sleeping with his wife. Plus, prosecuting a high-profile murder case would have again helped him in his campaign.
Do Mea and Zyair end up together?
Given that her husband and his family are dangerous criminals and she did experience off-the-charts chemistry with Zyair, there are those who assumed Mea would wind up being with him. Unfortunately, there is no happily ever after with a “Prince Charming” for Mea in this story.
While her traumatic experience with her husband's family leads to Zyair being released from prison, she doesn't seem able to shake the fact that Zyair has fed the same romantic lines to her that he's fed to countless other women.
When he texts her upon his release from prison, she doesn't respond and throws her phone in the garbage.
What happens to Mea?
Once Mea throws her phone in the trash after receiving Zyair's text, she simply walks down the city block. Shortly thereafter, the end credits start to roll. Viewers are left wondering if she'll practice law again, if she'll stay in the city or if she and Jimmy will evolve their friendship into something a little more romantic.
Mea Culpa is now streaming on Netflix.
