08/02/2013 00:00
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By Humphrey Carter

PALMA
THE multi-Oscar nominated film Precious will be added to the list of top movies showing in English in Palma this week when it opens at the Renoir complex on Friday night.

Precious, which has already taken a number of top film festivals by storm, was nominated for six Oscars this week including for Best Picture, Best Actress (Gabourey Sidibe), Best Supporting Actress (Mo'Nique), Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Film Editing (Klotz).

But, what is also important and worth noting is that the Best Picture nod makes this the first nominated film to be directed by an African American - Lee Daniels.

HARLEM
Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire (to give it its full title) is an adaptation by Geoffrey S. Fletcher of the award-winning 1996 novel “Push by Sapphire.” The film's mainly female cast features Gabourey Sidibe as the title character, with Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz in supporting roles.

The film marked the acting debut of Sidibe who has been nominated for Best Actress.
Set in Harlem in 1987, Claireece “Precious” Jones ( Gabourey Sidibe) is a 16-year-old African-American girl born into a life no one would want.
She is pregnant for the second time by her absent father; at home, she must wait hand and foot on her mother, a poisonously angry woman who abuses her emotionally and physically. School is a place of chaos, and Precious has reached the ninth grade with good marks and an awful secret: she can neither read nor write. Precious may sometimes be down, but she is never out.

Beneath her impassive expression is a watchful, curious young woman with an inchoate but unshakeable sense that other possibilities exist for her. Apart from numerous nominations, the film has also been well received by the critics.

The Los Angeles Times described the film as being a “rough-cut diamond... A rare blend of pure entertainment and dark social commentary, it is a shockingly raw, surprisingly irreverent and absolutely unforgettable story.” USA Today said that while there are “melodramatic moments” in the film, the cast gives “remarkable performances” to show the audiences the film's “inspiring message.” Peter Travers, of Rolling Stone called Mo'Nique “dynamite”, a performance that “tears at your heart.”