Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire

You would think that the stereotypical African American welfare story has been done to bits, but, alas, Oprah Winfrey, and one of the producers of Monster's Ball have struck again. Precious, which is based on a controversial fictional 1996 book called... Full review

Just seeing the trailer for this movie, I was blown away by the striking realism of lead actress Gabourey Sidibe's performance. The entire trailer radiated PAIN. I thought this movie was going to be heavy, dramatic, and depressing - but it... Full review

Gabourey Sibide looks and sounds a lot like the late Hattie MacDaniel; if a biopic about MacDaniel is ever made, Sibide should star. Starting from this superficiality, it is clear that the character Sibide plays, an abused, obese late- 20th-century Harlem... Full review

10 minutes into this beautifully done film, the tears began to fall. The acting is Oscar worthy from every angle, and the story can bring anyone to the ambition of becoming an anti child abuse activist. The pain of the lead... Full review

I don't want to go into a long, drawn out synopsis of the film. Many reviewers have done that already. I will say that I am shocked at the leaping reviews - touting this film as "amazing". Quite frankly, it isn't.... Full review

This is a truly moving, patiently directed American movie the likes of which we rarely get treated to anymore. The word 'Precious' certainly does take on it's original meaning after seeing this story unfold. Just when I think 'the movies' have... Full review

I had the pleasure of getting to watch this movie at the Writers Guild Theatre with a Q&A after with Gabby Sidibe and Paula Patton present. Maria Carey couldn't make the Q&A because she got taken by Jay Leno that same... Full review

A fine film. An American urban working class drama, it manages to steer clear of almost every possible idiomatic pothole created by predecessors charging blithely down the same street. It seems real - only the controlled framing tells you that it's... Full review

I won't try to deny my slight bias while I was watching this movie. To be in a theater among many movie enthusiasts, and most importantly the director of the film (Lee Daniels) and the author of the novel (Sapphire) will... Full review

Just saw "Precious" at an advanced screening last night. Pretty impressive film. The lead, Gabby , gives a fantastic, honest performance of a societal reject who's esteem and self worth has been eradicated by her loathsome mother and the people around... Full review

This is an exceptional film, about nearly unendurable circumstances endured..... ... Full Review

At first glance there is little that seems precious about Precious, whose 330 pounds and constant scowl is cross-the-street intimidating.....Fortunately for us, Precious has a very rich and playful imagination.....At home, she's got a soul-destroying nightmare of a mother, played to fearless and godless perfection by Mo'Nique ..... ... Full Review

Precious' delivers a powerful promise....This is an exceptional film about nearly unendurable circumstances, endured.....Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire , are so intense....when we get to know a host of tough, smart characters on their own terms..... ... Full Review

Endorsed lately by Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry, it presents a dismal view of one girl's existence.....Whether that makes the film's harsh world bearable will depend on each viewer's threshold for onscreen brutality.....Mariah Carey is neatly understated as a social worker.....even on those terms his staging of the rape scenes is garish and heavy-handed.....this is a case where careful acting illuminates something about the people we see on screen to a greater degree than the writing or directing..... ... Full Review

And the film's great wonder is how Sidibe slowly reveals the playful, funny and intelligent girl behind her rock-hard mask.....its cast of mostly non-actors and the questionable history of its director (his first and only other film, a wretched mess, never made it to theaters), "Precious" is an undeniable long shot..... ... Full Review

Abuse victims approach her on the street to thank her, and Hollywood pundits predict she's a shoo-in contender for Oscar gold. But before 355-pound, Harlem-raised Gabourey Sidibe was plucked from obscurity to play the powerful title role of "Precious," she... ... Full Article

Precious is seriously obese, the mother of one infant with another due, thanks to her abusive father, and harassed by her lazy, selfish mother who calls her stupid and tells her to quit school and go on welfare. ... Full Article

Precious co-stars Paula Patton, left, and Gabourey Sidibe Gabourey Sidibe has reminded many interviewers in recent weeks: The actress isn't a Precious type of teenager -- a victim of abuse with little, if any, self-esteem. ... Full Article

"Precious" is fiction. Some children, however, are in fact abused by the parents who are supposed to love and protect them. That reality is not defined by race or poverty. ... Full Article

"Before I yell `Action!' with anybody, I have to get to know them intimately," says Lee Daniels, left, directing Gabourey Sidibe in 'Precious.' No, the embarrassment you feel on meeting the star of Precious: Based on the Novel Push by... ... Full Article

You couldn't find a more extreme opposite of the glossy teenagers of New Moon than the title character of Precious . And all those vampires and werewolves of the Twilight franchise don't know a fraction of the pain, rage and... ... Full Article