Synopsis and challenges the characters face
The movie is a tragic story about a sixteen year-old black girl in Harlem. It occurs in the 1980s when the AIDs epidemic was rife, and stark poverty was a harsh reality. The lead character –Precious Jones – is the object of many misfortunes. She bore two children from incestuous, paternal abuse.
As if this is not enough, she lives an isolated life with her mother who uses her child to get welfare and abuses her in the process. Precious must also deal with undesirability within her neighborhood and school. She gets pregnant by her father for the second time and joins an alternative school. It is at this institution where she meets a mentor who builds her confidence.
One challenge the lead character faced was living with a mother who made her feel valueless. She bravely endures physical abuse from her mother. Sometimes this causes her to behave dishonorably as was the case when she stole a bucket of chicken.
The long term effect of that domestic situation was that she believed what her mother told her. Another challenge that Precious encounters is living in a world where conventional standards of beauty differ from her appearance. She believes that the only way she would gain validation is if she were famous and had a light-skinned boyfriend.
Two characters
The first character that is quite impressive in the movie is the lead actor Gabourey Sidibe. Precious is an engaging character who convincingly displays the dynamics of her life. At some point, she steals a bucket of chicken from a local fast food restaurant. In another situation, she fights and engages with other people.
When she wanders off into fantasy land, one enjoys the experience together with her. Perhaps, her most moving experience occurs at the end of the movie when she summons the courage to leave her mother and take care of her children. She is ideal for the role both physically and emotionally.
The second convincing character in the movie was Monique who played Mary –Precious’s mother. She was a deeply flawed individual who lacked the moral and emotional qualities of a parent. It would have been easy to overdo these qualities and thus make the character relatable.
However, Monique avoids that trap by maintaining a fine balance between her personal inadequacies and her miserable past. The bewilderment in her eyes when she remembers her past convinces the audience that she is an ensnared and depressed woman. She becomes part of the system of abuse that put her in that position in the first place.
Precious and Mary seemed real in the movie because they looked and sounded just like what one would expect of persons in their role. One gets the authentic experience of poverty and lack through these women. Precious’ normalization of beauty and self worth are believable. In my life, I have met an educator like the alternative school teacher, who encouraged me to pursue my dreams regardless of my fears.
Why the movie was in the selection list
This movie addresses human sexuality in the context of marginalization, exploitation and poverty. It brings to bear the plight of victims who lose their free will in sexual encounters. Families that offer them nothing but pain trap them. Precious is also a film that highlights the intersection of race, inter-racial biases, physical attractiveness and life chances.
Because the main character possesses physically undesirable traits in her community, those around her perceive her as susceptible to anything. She is a victim of incest and no one is willing to protect her from it because they think she is less human. This movie uncovers the delicate relationship between race, physical attraction, sexual abuse and systemic disenfranchisement.
Some troubling gaps are evident in the film. First, director Lee Daniels perpetuates some of the same stereotypes that the film purports to challenge. Precious is about a black girl who struggles to develop self worth against all odds.
However, by casting all helpers; the social worker, the alternative school teacher and the male nurse, as light-skinned or white, the director portrayed dark-skinned people as inferior. Furthermore, the movie does little to address institutional race issues that lead to such extreme levels of parental failure. There is no mention of the failed welfare system of the 80s or the war on drugs. The director merely blames Precious’ mother for her failure.
Unfortunately, the outcome of the movie is unsatisfactory. While Precious finally summons the courage to leave her abusive and neglectful mother with her children, she must live with the harsh reality of her existence. Precious is now a single mother of two with little family support.
This does not end with her exit from the house. Furthermore, she is HIV positive at a time when management of the disease was difficult and underdeveloped. Precious is still living in the underclass environment of Harlem where poverty and deprivation surround her. It is unlikely that she will develop her passions because of marginalization of her community.
As a result, her life will still be far from ideal. Her villainous mother seems to get away with gross wickedness against her daughter. Precious gets no justice for years of physical, verbal and sexual abuse that her mother either instigated or allowed to happen. The ending thus makes it seem like no moral consequences exist for this villainous character.