Review of Precious

I sometimes question why I am usually really entertained by films focusing on depressing subjects. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that I like films that portray realistic events such as Schindler's List, Das Boot, and Munich, which all focus on historical, yet depressing topics. I think another reason why I tend to like dark-themed films such as Se7en, Zodiac, and Before the Devil Knows You're Dead is because depressing films are often shocking and succeed in putting the viewer on the edge of his/her seat. However, as much as I seem to like films covering depressing topics, it only works when the story has either a powerful message, is a realistic account of a historical event or is thrilling. Precious is at times shocking over how terrible a young, teenage African-American girl (Precious) is treated, yet I wish it focused more on how Precious is able to overcome the odds instead of concentrating on how the many hardships she must endure. By the end I simply felt sorry for Precious, instead of feeling like she overcame her horrific upbringing.

The film Precious is based on the book Push by Sapphire. From what I know about the book, the film follows it almost down to the last word. From the moment she was born, Precious was given almost no chance to succeed in life. Her father began sexually abusing her when she was just a young girl and by age twelve Precious was pregnant with her first child (her father's). Her mother does not have a job and spends her time sitting at home awaiting her welfare check. Even when Precious has an opportunity to attend a good school, her mother simply wants her to stay at home and cook. Despite all these setbacks, Precious eventually finds a mentor at an alternative school named Ms. Rain. With the help of her new teacher, Precious gains the courage to stand up to her abusive mother and takes control of her own life. Now even though Precious learns something about herself, there are certain points within the story that prevented me from believing that Precious was going to be okay in the long term. In short, I didn't feel hopeful for her future.

Overall, Precious is a powerful story about a young girl who learns that the only person she needs to listen to is herself. Unfortunately, I often felt the film tried to hard to push the personal difficulties that Precious had to go through. Still it succeeds at showing the life of a broken home in Harlem during the 1980s and how one mentor can affect the life of young adolescents.

RATING: 3.3/5.0

YouTube Trailer