ScreenWize

The producers and distributors of Precious faced an Everest-sized obstacle in making such miserable subject matter palatable. The story of an obese, illiterate and unloved girl growing up in conditions of horrible abuse in Harlem, Precious is a hard sell for audiences. The character of Precious, pregnant at 16 with the second child to her father, living a virtual servant under the bitterly resentful eye of her mother, is that of a damaged psyche, a girl with no self esteem. She speaks, in the film, in monosyllable monotone, and escapes the wretched misery of her life into a serious of daydreams of a feted and glamorous life.

Since it came from nowhere to sweep the Sundance Film Festival last year (both the Jury and Audience awards), its marketing team has staged a slow and targeted campaign to build awareness, and despite its complete lack of eight foot CGI aliens, explosions or Meryl Streep, were rewarded with six Oscar nominations this week, though the credit is owed entirely to the skill of director Lee Daniels and his team. Nominated was Geoffrey Fletcher for his screenplay, adapted from the novel Push by Sapphire. The book is written in the first person in the character of Precious, in a stream-of-consciousness style. Fletcher drew on his own life experiences to flesh our Sapphire’s work, embellishing on characters that were mere mentions in the book, and his work is the solid frame on which the film’s astounding performances hang. Mariah Carey is unrecognizable is an understated performance as the guidance councilor, and Paula Patton is the warm centre of the film’s emotional wasteland as the uncompromising and empathetic Ms Rain. When Precious is noticed for her mathematical ability, she is offered a chance at a better life at an alternative school. This isn’t The Biggest Loser, where self-esteem is measures in kilos, but this is in fact a film about a teacher nurturing a young woman’s mind and soul, carrying the torch of films like To Sir With Love, Stand and Deliver, and Dangerous Minds. Sapphire taught in Harlem for a number of years, and she is the basis for the Ms Rain character, Precious being an amalgam of a few of her students from this time.

As precious, Gabourey Sidibe gives a primal performance. With barely any dialogue, she perfectly conveys to us the emotional space her character inhabits. Mo’Nique’s performance is nothing short of amazing, and I’ll put hard cash down on her taking the Supporting Actress Oscar this year. Precious is an important film, heart warming despite its subject matter, and entirely what filmmaking should be about.

CK

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Filed Under: Reviews by Simon