Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire

Starring: Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, Sherri Shepherd, Lenny Kravitz, Chyna Layne
Directed by: Lee Daniels
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
2009

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Troubled, overweight teen, Precious (Gabourey Sidibe) struggles through life- pregnant with her second child by her father, abused by her mother (Mo'Nique) and battles a very unhealthy body image. Things start to change when she enrolls in an alternative school and bonds with the teacher (Paula Patton).

Review:

Tim: I never really got this movie. I heard the heaps and heaps of critical acclaim this movie received. I saw the award wins, and I understood that most people really liked this movie. It just never appealed to me. Plus, I have to mention that I think this is one of the worst titles I have ever heard in my life. If this was called Precious- great, I love it. But, it is actually Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire, which is one of the most asinine, ridiculous titles I have ever heard. I don't care that it was based on a novel, what that novel was, or who wrote it. That is completely worthless, and I despise having to write the title out like that. So, suffice to say, this film had some challenges from the outset.

Sadly, it never really overcomes these challenges. I watched this movie with as open a mind as I could (I just called it Precious in my mind). While I acknowledge that there are some great moments, I think it ultimately falls short. I didn't like this movie. Much of my consternation comes from the direction of Lee Daniels. He puts in these fantasy sequences, which I didn't love. On one level, they work- they show the stark contrast between Precious' inner life and her real life. However, I thought they were often disruptive and made the film feel choppy.

I wholly admit that this movie is hard to watch. That speaks to the film's strengths- it is a challenging, difficult movie. An grossly overweight teen is hard enough to watch, but the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse she suffers is nearly unbearable. I thought Daniels mostly did a good job of portraying this aspect. Although, I have to admit the middle of the film felt ploddingly slow and that is when I lost interest. I enjoyed the first act, and the final one, but the middle was fairly weak. I believe Daniels has talent as a filmmaker, but this is only the second film he directed- if this had been his tenth, he would have done significantly better.

The cast is fairly good. I thought Gabourey Sidibe did a commendable job. For her acting debut, this was impressive. I am not sure I agree with the Academy Award nomination- although, I'm not completely opposed, either. I thought she was right on the cusp, so while I wouldn't have pushed her over, I understand why others did. I can live with this, as she does give an impressive, emotional performance.

I liked the rest of the cast, too, although I have to think they received some credit for "playing ugly." It is definitely an Oscar bait tactic- take a good-looking actor or actress, make them look uglier than normal, and people are automatically impressed. I thought Mo'Nique was fantastic in this movie- her performance is truly Oscar worthy. She was menacing, yet multilayered. She gives an emotional, hard performance that makes you hate her, yet pity her as well. She deserved the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress that she won. And yet, I can't get past the fact that playing ugly helped her. The same thing goes for Mariah Carey. Carey legitimately gives a good performance that possibly suggests she might have some acting talent buried in there somewhere. And yet, it was hard for me to concentrate on that because she was playing ugly. She's stripped of any glitter or glamor here. It was probably the right move, but I wish it wasn't presented in such a "Wow, look at Mariah Carey? Can you believe that's her?" manner. I thought Paula Patton gave one of the best performances of the film. I felt like she hit the right notes acting-wise, and in her appearance. I could just sit back and watch her work- and she is terrific. I wish she had been nominated for more awards. I also will briefly mention Lenny Kravitz, who gives a good performance while playing ugly.

I am not trying to say that I hated this movie. I liked and appreciated certain aspects of it. The beginning and the finale were very good. Sadly, the middle just bogs the movie down. There are some terrific performances, but they are hurt by the self-awareness of their own merit by the part of the film. Rather than rolling out organically, it felt like Daniels was trying to rub our faces in how different these actors looked in his film. I didn't appreciate this.

All in all, Precious is a decent movie that was vastly overhyped, and then people continued to buy into that hype. Mo'Nique deserved her Best Supporing Actress award, and I will concede that the Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award was not a major mistake (although I believe there were better choices). I thought this movie was fine, but I don't believe it is a very good movie, and it is not on my Top 10 list for the year. This is one of those times when I disagree with the majority.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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