A little late but better than never – I got round to watching this little gem and I was surprised that I thoroughly enjoyed it. Despite it being a sad film with dark underlying tones, it was strangely uplifting and inspiring at the same time.

With performances by Gabourey Sidibe, Mo’Nique, Paula Patton and even Mariah Carey without make-up (she was about 5 shades of scary).

The Plot

Set in 1987, Claireece “Precious” Jones played by Gabourey Sidibe is an obese, illiterate, black 16 year old who lives in Harlem with her dysfunctional family – consisting of her abusive mother and rapist father. Her father raped and impregnated her twice – her first child “Mongo” has Down’s Syndrome and Precious is currently carrying her second child.

When her school finds out that she is pregnant for the second time, she is suspended and referred to an alternative school which would hopefully alter her life direction. Precious finds ways to fight her traumatic experiences every day by imagining she is another person in another world very different to her own – one in which she is loved and appreciated.

Inspired by her new teacher, Ms Rain (Paula Patton), Precious begins to learn to read and make friends with her classmates – there she finds a community, one in which she is welcome and loved.

However, the abuse at home doesn’t stop, and her abusive mother reaches a crescendo once Precious’ second child is born and all hell breaks loose…

The Thoughts

A film full of life and love, realistic enough to be gritty but overpowered by compassion to strive for one’s dreams.

Powerful performances by the whole cast, every emotion conveyed was so real and believable and the plot was so cleverly composed in order to shed light on every character’s shortcomings and the reasons behind their actions steering the film clear of “characters abusing each other without apparent reason”.

Overall, it was a beautiful film about abuse, hardship and perseverance and thoroughly touched my heart.

If you just missed Precious in the cinemas, you can catch it on DVD and Blu-ray by March 9, 2010.

The Film Buzz Review Rating: 7/10

UK Cinema Release Date: 29 January 2010

DVD Release Date: 9 March 2010

Director: Lee Daniels

Writer: Geoffrey Fletcher(screenplay), Sapphire(novel)

Links: IMDB, Official Site