PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE

"My name is Clareece "Precious" Jones. I wish I had a light-skinned boyfriend with real nice hair. And I wanna be on the cover of a magazine. But first I wanna be in one of them BET videos. Momma said I can't dance. Plus, she said who wants to see my big ass dancing, anyhow? "

There is so little I can say about this movie but not because it was bad or poorly acted. On the contrary, it was such a strong and powerful movie, so well acted you forget that it is indeed acting. This is the story of a young woman who has everything in the world going against her and yet she still finds a way to not only keep going, but to persevere. Gabourey Sidibe stars as our young heroine and her lack of acting ability gives a realistic portrayal of her character. She is obese, black and pregnant, not a cute Juno girl. This is not a cute movie.
Surprisingly, Mariah Carey glams-down as Precious' case worker and does a more than decent job in the small role. The real eye opener and all around award winner this season was Mo'Nique who not only breathed life into her character, but also breathed a vulnerability cloaked thickly in evil and hatred. She was much more terrifying than Jason, Freddy or Michael Myers combined. Very hard to watch, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Big bite: Outstanding acting and engrossing story makes for a harsh, but excellent movie.