Films about young people growing up in difficult situations are numerous. One of the reasons this "genre" is so popular is because of the way it crosses all sorts of boundaries: economic, social, racial, class, time period, etc. Anyway you look at it, young people have had problems, be it with family, drugs, school, friends, or depression. We've seen this from the beginning of movies: from "Rebel Without a Cause" to "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" to "Kids" and so on. And the most recent film with a whole mishmash of such problems would be "Precious", the multi-Oscar nominated film that stormed the ceremony, including Mo'Nique (rightfully so) winning Best Supporting Actress. The official title is "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" but I'll be referring to it as simply "Precious."
Clareece 'Precious' Jones (Gabourey Sidibe) is a black, overweight 16-year-old in 1987 Harlem. She's pregnant with her second child, lives with an abusive, self-absorbed mother, goes to a rough school, and is literally friendless. She has it bad, and that much is made evident in the first few minutes of the film, including her frequent fantasies of a handsome boyfriend who walks her down the red carpet at big events. Her daydreaming is clearly an escape for her, but it also shows her creativity and imagination, which has been throttled by the conditions she lives in.
On the recommendations of the principal, Precious ends up attending an alternative school with other wayward young women. Her life is transformed as a charismatic teacher, Blu Rain (Paula Patton), realizes her potential and helps her learn to read, write, and explore academia, something that has been forbidden by her mother, who is crazed at trying to continue to exploit the welfare system. Approximately a year of Precious' life is shown in this great, but sometimes depressing, film.
I've now seen eight of the 10 nominees for Best Picture (I'm missing "The Blind Side" and "An Education", both of which I plan on seeing), but this may have been my favorite (though it's tough to pick!). It's extremely real, and made more so by the fact that Sidibe had NO prior acting experience prior to her role as Precious, and she is phenomenal. As is her mother from hell, Mo'Nique, who blew me away with her performance as a heartless, demeaning woman who continually surprises with how low she will go. Small roles by musicians Mariah Carey as social worker Miss Weiss and Lenny Kravitz as nurse John McFadden are played brilliantly by both, and add a nice, small touch to the film. Most of the performances are pretty impressive, and the directing is well done too. This is a pretty basic film with a fairly basic premise, but one that works to its fullest extent. I highly recommend this film, but don't go in expecting a laugh fest by any means.
A first for me: 9 out of 10 stars
"Precious" is rated R for strong language, some violence, some sexual content and general mood of despair.
Here's the trailer:
