Despite its laughably pretentious title, Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire is one of the most harrowing films of the year, with one of the most monstrous villains in recent memory (right up there with Anton Chigurh and The Joker). Yet it earns both a levity and a hope that somehow never feels out of place, an almost impossible balancing act to pull off. It is an indomitable movie about an indomitable human spirit.
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Not exactly the feel good movie of the year, eh? You might be surprised. This holiday release, weighted down with issues of incest, physical and emotional abuse, and AIDS is permeated with a surprising lightheartedness, striking a good balance between heaven and hell. While much of this comes from situational comedy -- especially Precious’ colorful new family composed of her equally imperiled classmates -- the majority is found in first-time director Lee Daniels’ visual style. In the midst of her most heinous assaults, Precious’ mind leaves her body, retreating to a safe and imaginary place where she is a paparazzi-plagued celebrity, a music diva, a model with boy toys, basically anyone than who she really is. These almost Amèlie-esque moments, like the film itself, are both amusing and heartbreaking -- as when Precious looks into the mirror and sees a beautiful, skinny white girl looking back -- and give us some clue into how Precious has survived a life of which most of us are incapable of conceiving.
A lot has been said about the performances. As I alluded to earlier, Mo’Nique was absolutely transformative. In fact, she should be given the Best Supporting Actress Oscar right now. Her portrayal as Precious’ abomination of a mother is simply colossal. You won’t see a better performance this year. The lead performance by Gabourey Sidibe, meanwhile, is -- well, problematic. The large, slow-moving first-time actress is not particularly expressive. Even more cruelly, the lighting (which is usually balanced for the far lighter-skinned Patton and Carey) throws Sidibe’s features into shadow, making her even less present. Then there’s the story itself (which contains all the subtlety of a sledgehammer). I won’t spoil it here, but there are some minor plot points that don’t need to be in there. It’s almost as if Daniels and company didn’t trust that the story they were telling would be memorable on its own merits -- they had to pile on even more downtrodden obstacles for Precious to overcome. Doing so makes one question the validity of the story, which is never a good thing.
That being said Precious is so traumatic that you shouldn’t be surprised if your emotions are too battered even to produce tears. The act of weeping may simply prove to be too much for your shell-shocked system to handle. And yet, this vibrantly honest and resoundingly hopeful film might just, against all odds, see you off with a smile and a glowing heart -- and for that, the film should be commended. I give this movie a...
Large Bag of Popcorn
