With sheer audacity and utter authenticity, director Lee Daniels tackles the movie “Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire” (not entitled, simply, because the movie “Push” was released February 2009), and creates an unforgettable film that sets a new standard for cinema of its kind.
Precious Jones (twenty-six year old obese newcomer Gabourey Sidibe, playing 16) is a high-school girl with nothing working in her favor. She is pregnant with her father’s child—for the second time (remind you of “The Color Purple?”).
She can’t read or write, and her schoolmates tease her for being morbidly obese.
Her home life is a horror, ruled by a mother (Mo’Nique) who keeps her imprisoned both emotionally and physically. Precious’s instincts tell her one thing: if she’s ever going to break from the chains of ignorance, she will have to dig deeply into her own resources.
Don’t be misled —”Precious” is not a film wallowing in the stillness of depression; instead, it vibrates with the kind of energy derived only from anger and hope. The entire cast are amazing; they carry out a firestorm of raw emotion. Lee Daniels, (the director of the fantastic Heath Ledger, Halle Berry, Billy Bob Thornton and Peter Boyle movie “Monster’s Ball”), has drawn from them inimitable performances that will rivet you to your seat and leave you too shocked to breathe. If you passed Precious on the street, you probably wouldn’t notice anything but her immense size.
But when her story is revealed, as Lee Daniels does in this courageous film, you are left with an indelible image of a young woman who—with creativity, humor, and ferocity—finds the strength to turn her life around.
The specialty box office roared to life as Lionsgate’s “Precious” opened to $1.8 million from 18 locations for a record breaking $100,000 per location average its first THREE DAYS in movie theaters. Go “Precious.”
