Oscar® Winner for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Best Adapted Screenplay / Nominee for Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Actress in a Leading Role, and Best Film EditingPrecious
for child abuse including sexual assault, and pervasive language.
Reviewed by: Spencer Schumacher
CONTRIBUTOR
| Moral Rating: | Very Offensive |
| Moviemaking Quality: |
|
| Primary Audience: | Adults Teens |
| Genre: | Fiction Drama |
| Length: | 1 hr. 50 min. |
| Year of Release: | 2009 |
| USA Release: |
November 6, 2009 (18 theaters) November 13, 2009 (174 theaters) November 20, 2009 (wide—800+ to 1200+ theaters) DVD: March 9, 2010 |
I think I was sexually abused, but I’m not sure. What is sexual abuse, and what can I do to stop the trauma I am facing now? Answer
Does God feel our pain? Answer
Why does God allow innocent people to suffer? Answer
GAY—What’s wrong with being gay? Answer
Homosexual behavior versus the Bible: Are people born gay? Does homosexuality harm anyone? Is it anyone’s business? Are homosexual and heterosexual relationships equally valid?
What about gays needs to change? Answer
It may not be what you think.
What should be the attitude of the church toward homosexuals and homosexuality? Answer
Read stories about those who have struggled with homosexuality
| Featuring | Gabourey “Gabby” Sidibe (as Precious), Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, Sherri Shepherd, Lenny Kravitz, Stephanie Andujar, Chyna Layne, Amina Robinson, See all » |
| Director |
Lee Daniels |
| Producer |
Lee Daniels Entertainment Smokewood Entertainment Group Oprah Winfrey See all » |
| Distributor |
 Lionsgate (Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.) |
“Life is hard. Life is short. Life is painful. Life is rich. Life is… Precious.”
“Precious” is the story of Claireece Precious Jones, a Harlem teen who has been through more hardships than most people experience in a lifetime. Precious is an illiterate, overweight an unloved teen who is ignored by her peers and abused by those who are supposed to love and protect her. Her mother (Mo’Nique) continually abuses her, both mentally and physically. Instead of encouraging her, she tells her that she is worthless and will never amount to anything, encouraging her to apply for welfare rather than waste her time finishing school. She has also been raped by her father which leads her to being pregnant for the second time.
I think I was sexually abused, but I’m not sure. What is sexual abuse, and what can I do to stop the trauma I am facing now? Answer
In a last ditch effort to save her, she is referred to a program at an alternative school called ‘Each One, Teach One.’ Upon arriving at the new school she meets up with Ms. Rain, the first person that actually sees her as being ‘precious.’ Through her, Precious starts to learn how to find value in herself.
Offensive material
Let me quickly state that the film is filled with pervasive profane language, not as much as say a typical gangster movie, but the teenagers that form the nucleus of this story talk like typical teens and pepper their language with profanity. They utter every profane word in the book, multiple times.
Though this film is fictitious, the abuses and hardships that Precious endures are far too familiar to many—particularly African-American—teens in this country. The fact that this film bears witness of such events should be the matter that is truly offensive.
The film also contains the aforementioned rape scene which though it contains no nudity is very disturbing. There is a fight scene and persistent physical abuse inflicted upon Precious by her mother and others. There is also a scene of a child being breast fed. Some might find it offensive that one of the main characters in the story ends up being a lesbian.
As the overly long title crediting the book’s author indicates the movie is based upon a novel. And though the movie, and the book the movie is based upon, is fictional, the story of the abuses that Precious’ endures are far too familiar in our society.
Filmmaker Lee Daniels does a fine job in directing this rather troubling story. The performers are for the most part first-time actors or performers from other fields such as Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz.
Though many Christian audiences may have trouble with the content of the film, those that give “Precious” a chance will find themselves immersed in a powerful and tear-jerking story that may have the capacity to pull enough heart-strings to actually do something for the hundreds (if not thousands) of Precious’ in our society that go their similar struggles every day.
Editor’s note: According to this film’s director, it has a secondary agenda. According to Director Lee Daniels, “the movie is very gay-themed.” The openly Gay director explains, “I made this movie for my ‘family’ in the ghetto. I wanted them to see, three quarters of the way through the film, that the savior [the woman that helps Precious], that the goddess, that the sex vixen, was a lesbian.” [Source: Gregg Shapiro, “‘Precious’ moments: an interview with out director Lee Daniels,” Chicago Free Press, Vol. 10, No. 10 (Chicago: November 5, 2009).]
Violence: Heavy / Profanity: Extreme / Sex/Nudity: Heavy
See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.
none
Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 5
I disagree with the reviewer about the language, as I felt it was much worse than any gangster movie. In those movies, it is often bad people speaking badly of other bad people. In this movie, you hear the most atrocious words from a mother directed toward her own child. I really did not feel this was a totally “pro gay” movie, though there was that underlying theme. Overall, I would avoid this movie.
Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3
It is super dramatic, but you’ll have to put your head in the sand several times to make it to the end! Once you make it there, you won’t want to watch it ever again! A rental—if anything, DO NOT BUY—unless you are a hypocrite in some way or you want a coaster or a movie that you will burn someday! Consider yourself warned!
Seriously overweight Precious and her mother(Monique) live together in this extremely low-budget “penthouse”. Precious has been raped by her father and is about to have his second baby. The father is only referenced in the movie. Anyway, Monique blames Precious for “stealing” her man away and is insanely and criminally jealous of Precious! How jealous; well, she intentionally tosses things at her (like skillets) when Precious is not even looking! Precious is cussed at and talked about in a manner that is simply monstrous and vile! Precious imagines herself as queen of a Caucasian world—possibly to escape the war-like psychological and physical abuse from her Negro mother!
Precious can’t depend on her mother to even eat and has to cook for mother—who, once, orders her to cook food for her, then complains about the meal and forces Precious to eat it though she was overweight and not hungry! Despite the serious demonic abuse and a later HIV diagnosis, Precious eventually finds great friends at her new school, a lesbian teacher (either married or has a girlfriend) who becomes the heroine of the whole movie) helps Precious when her mother abuses the new baby and she needs somewhere to stay, and a guidance counselor (Mariah Carrey) who confronts Precious” mother about her evil and Precious finally confronts her, too.
Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 3
Gregg Shapiro (GS): What impact does being an openly gay filmmaker have on your choices for the films you want to direct or produce?
Lee Daniels (LD): I’m glad that you mentioned that, because I don’t get that question often. For me, I think the gay part is not an issue. But more the black gay part is a bigger issue. As a gay man, gay men, there so many of them in Hollywood and (they’re) decision makers and it’s a cult, I think. I don’t have to worry about prejudices right now, anymore. …It’s just so beautiful that people can accept me for me and being open.
GS: There’s not a lot of humor in the movie, but there is that scene where Precious goes to Ms. Rain’s house and realizes that Ms. Rain is, as Precious puts it, “a straight-up lesbian.”
LD: I love it (laughs). First of all, the movie is very gay-themed. If you really study the film. For me, lower economic socio-backgrounds really are not embracing of homosexuals. And in the book, Sapphire brilliantly executes it in a harder way. There’s so many subjects, lesbian, race, self-esteem issues, obesity, all these issues in the film, I could only like touch at it. Because I made this movie for my family in the ghetto. I wanted them to see, three quarters of the way through the film, that the savior, that the goddess, that the sex vixen, was a lesbian. [quoted from Chicago Free Press, Vol. 10, No. 10, November 5, 2009—a news publisher that “exists to serve the city´s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community”]
It is NOT a film for children. It is NOT a film for prudes. However, it is a film that most Christians should see. This is the real world, folks. This is the reality that many “Christian” films gloss over, or ignore entirely. This is a story of real pain and real hope. Most have criticized this film for being overly depressing. I didn’t find it to be so. I came out of the film not knowing what to say, but I felt joy for the main character in the film, and I was happy for her.
The performances in this film are amazing all around. Mo’Nique makes you believe in the darker side of humanity, and her performance is horrifying. Deserves many nominations come awards season. It is sad that most of the viewers on this site have chosen not to focus on the films positive content, but on the alleged “gay agenda” that the film promotes. This is hogwash, and couldn’t be farther from the truth. Yes, there are two lesbian characters. Get over it. Such is life. Gays and lesbians walk amongst us, and it is our job to show them the love of Christ and, as artists, reflect the truth of the world by giving them a part in the worlds that we create. …See the film. It may just change your life.
My Ratings: Moral rating: Extremely Offensive / Moviemaking quality: 5