"Precious" - REVIEW

Though I would advise people to see Lee Daniels' "Precious" on the big screen so as to get the most out of it, I would also advise going at a time when there are likely to be few people in the audience. I'm being dead serious here. Never have I been so thoroughly appalled by an audience's childishness. That's not to say that the film shouldn't provoke any sort of reaction at all - there are some parts that are intentionally funny - but laughing at the stammering of a woman on the verge of a breakdown just because she makes an odd noise while holding back tears is nothing short of immature. Oh, and by the way, who the F*** thought it was a good idea to take KIDS to see this movie?

Now that we have THAT out of the way, let's move on to what this is supposed to be about: "Precious", Lee Daniels' acclaimed film that's been gathering Oscar buzz since it took Sundance by storm in January. Set in Harlem in 1987, the film tells the story of Clarice "Precious" Jones, an overweight, illiterate 16-year-old who is pregnant with her second child. After being kicked out of school, she is forwarded to an alternative school, where she takes a class taught by Ms. Rain (Paula Patton), who helps Precious make progress in her reading and writing, as well as her social life. Precious also fantasizes about being a big singing star, or being featured in "one of them BET videos". But of course, fantasies eventually have to end, and in Precious' case, she's always dragged back to reality by her absolute monster of a mother, played by comedian Mo'Nique.

And yet as much of a monster as she is, Mo'Nique's portrayal, like Daniels' film, does not jump to hyperbole or caricature. These characters do not exist for the sole purpose of hammering home a single point or emotion. Even Mariah Carey's social worker, who has two, maybe three scenes, has a sense of fullness and depth, instead of feeling like a stock character who only advances certain parts of the plot. And then there's Ms. Patton, who has received virtually no attention, which I don't understand at all. Yes, she's lovely to look at, but her performance is lovely too. She gives off a quiet confidence. She can be serious, she can laugh, she can cry, all without ever drawing unnecessary attention to her role in regards to the film's lead. It's a true "supporting" performance. She helps support the film's story and lead character/s(?) while literally supporting Precious, played by the final piece of the ensemble, newcomer Gabourey Sidibe (Gab-or-ay Sih-dih-bay). On the whole, Sidibe's part is a more restrained one than Mo'Nique's, but when it's time for her to shine, she doesn't disappoint. Her quiet smiles, laughs, or even expressions of indifference, mask a horrific past filled with pain, and her disturbing relationship with her mother (which is cleverly juxtaposed in a scene where mother and daughter watch "Two Women", a film built upon a mother and daughter going through tragedy together, instead of apart).

But the real surprise in "Precious" is actually in its humor. Yes, for all of the misery contained in the film, there are also laughs, which keep the film from becoming a constant downward spiral into hell. Some of it works, and some of it feels a little too out of place, but it does keep the film from devolving into "misery porn". Alas, the film is not without other missteps. Though it certainly has a different enough story that rises above what could have been a Lifetime Movie, Daniels and crew make some odd choices along the way. The early scenes are oddly patched together, and there are moments when Mr. Daniels looks like he's trying to use every transition effect in the book. There's also the color red (ok, I actually thought it was orange...) which is sort of used throughout the film but never has any real significance. In a film that is shot in a rather gritty way, the image of an orange scarf billowing in the wind feels oddly abstract and symbolic. And though Daniels does a great job directing his actors, his set up of scenes doesn't always come through. Scenes that should feel more intimate (in a good or bad way) sometimes feel too wide, too broad, to the point where I felt a slight disconnect from the story. The story itself is generally well told, but the ending, like "An Education", comes too soon, and too tidily, especially given the scene that comes before it. There's nothing wrong with ending a film so that it leaves some questions unanswered, but "Precious"'s ending leaves a full survey behind.

Powerful but not sentimental, horrifying but not over-the-top, "Precious" is superbly well-acted and certainly one of the better films to come out this year. However, it's narrative and stylistic missteps take a film that had all the ingredients to be great, but strangely came out as just 'good'. It's a shame Daniels couldn't have given the same effort in his handling of the adaptation, as he did with his cast.

Grade: B