Precious

Title: Precious
Year: 2009
Director: Lee Daniels
Lead: Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Paula Patton
Rated: Rated R for child abuse including sexual assault, and pervasive language.

A girl is born into an abusive home, where her father rapes her, and her mother physically and verbally abuses her. She aspires to make something of herself and get out.

I didn't like this movie. It does not deserve its hype, nor does it deserve its best picture nomination. Yes, it is sad, its too bad that the human race can be so scummy, and yes I do feel sorry, but I don't need a film like this to remind me of the terrible parts of society unless there is a point. In this case, there is no point. This movie feels unbearably long at 110 minutes, it seems to drag in many places. There were plenty of moments where Precious is seen walking around without any dialogue, the walking serves no purpose, and I found myself looking at what some of the extras in the shot were wearing, this, to me, is unnecessary. There were a few funny bits that gave some much needed comic relief from the language. The language is almost unnecessarily pervasive, yes it does serve a tiny purpose, that is to illustrate the verbal abuse that Precious was going through, but for it to continue and drag in multiple scenes is, in my opinion, also unnecessary. ("we don't need to see a heroin addict make the heroin then inject himself with the needle to understand that he is, indeed a drug addict" - my film teacher) There was never really any point to any of the scenes in this film, nothing really culminated, the story never really turned for the better or worse. I felt like Precious was probably going to end up just like her mom in the long run. I was not satisfied with this movie, and if it wins best picture, I will be sincerely disappointed with The Academy. Yes there was some great acting, but unfortunately it did not make up for the lack of distinction in this screenplay. Some things should not be put up on screen, and this, unfortunately for Lee Daniels and Oprah Winfrey, is one of those things. I saw this film at the three dollar theater, I paid with quarters, and I am still disappointed, and it seems like the more I write/talk about this film, the less I like it. Therefore, I will stop before my feelings turn to absolute hatred. Precious was nominated for an unbelievable 6 Academy Awards including Best Director in Lee Daniels, Best Editing, Best Actress in Gabourey Sidibe, Best Supporting Actress in Mo'Nique, Best Adapted Screenplay, and the REAL shocker, Best Picture. Don't waste your time, or money - 4 out of 10