A few weeks ago, I went to go see a film titled Precious. Many of you may have never heard of it (I didn't until my cousin, who is a director/writer/general starving artist, told me I must see it), but it is a film that everyone SHOULD see. It was featured in the Sundance, Toronto, and Cannes Film Festivals and won numerous awards, similar to the novel Push that it's based on, so I decided it would be worth making the trip with some friends to see it in the city where it was on limited release. 

I didn't know what I expected from the movie. My cousin hadn't told me much about the film besides the fact that it would make me cry. And that it did. It told the tale of an abused, illiterate, and obese young woman in the most beautiful way. It's graphic in the subject matter, but visually it's not too bad. The director traded scenes of vivid abuse for something a little different: Precious Jones, the main character, took herself to a safe place, filled with happiness and fame and beauty, and the director put it on the screen. This method is rather effective. It portrays the hardships that Precious went through but still makes her a hopeful character. This is someone who wants more, who hasn't yet resigned to her misfortunes, which there are plenty of. First, Precious is sexually abused by BOTH of her parents. Second, she is illiterate, with her mother giving her no motivation to attend school. Third, she has been impregnated twice by her own father, the first child being born with down syndrome and the second pregnancy being played out during the course of the film. Lastly, her family is dead broke. When Precious is asked what her mother does, she accurately replies, "nothing." The mother, Mary Lee Johnston, chooses to live off of welfare, making her exploited daughter pretend that nothing is wrong so she can get her checks. 

The pivotal moment in the film is when Precious decides to attend an alternative school after being kicked out of the other one for being pregnant. She enters the building rather unsure of herself, as someone who has been kicked down far too many times to presume that this place will nurture her. She doesn't expect, but she still hopes. And after her first day of classes with girls just as damaged as she, it is obvious that her teacher, Ms. Blu Rain, is something different entirely. She is trying to teach Precious to read and write, but ends up giving her the confidence and bravery to confront her life and change it. While Ms. Blu Rain is an actual teacher, I think she is more representative of guides in general. Rather than showing us how to read, her character signifies the people in our own lives who help us step out of ourselves and teach us how to do something we may have never done before. These are the people that change lives. 

I highly recommend this film to anyone who is willing to bear the subject. The acting performances, given by Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey (yes, THE Mariah Carey), and Gabourey Sidibe are outstanding: not only believable, but inspiring. I have to admit, that I was skeptical at first of Mariah being the social worker that Precious spills all her hardships to after remembering what garbage Glitter was, but she definitely proved her worth to the audience, not simply resting on her fame, and was given high praise for her performance. Gabourey Sidibe, who plays Precious herself, makes her acting debut in this picture, but does not disappoint. She was untrained, but still performed as well as the acting veteran Mo'Nique, who plays her sadistic mother. The director, Lee Daniels, is definitely an artist with this film, painting pictures of words such as desperation, courage, inspiration, and hope that would not have a visual reference otherwise.