'Precious' a difficult but rewarding watch

Cert: 15

The much-talked about, and honoured, film finally reaches our screens and proves to be everything they said it would be … dark, depressing, harrowing, humane, uplifting and in every respect a wonderful, if challenging, drama.

Central to its success is most certainly the performance of Sidibe, a previously unknown young actress, who plays the teenage Clareece Precious Jones with a maturity and humanity beyond her years.

'Precious', based on a novel yet treated brilliantly by director Daniels as dark reality, is set in Harlem where the central character has a life you wouldn’t wish on anyone: an abusive mother (a fantastic performance from Mo’Nique), a father who rapes and impregnates her, she is grossly overweight and liberate, and she’s pregnant again.

But she wants to make something of herself, against such terrible odds, and enrols in a school where she finds a supportive teacher who offers hope and an escape from feeling like “black grease that needs to be wiped away”.

You won’t see a film like it for a long time and if Sidibe doesn’t get an Oscar nod then the game’s not straight.

A de-glammed Carey is also worthy of praise, turning in an impressive, understated performance as a social worker.

Star Rating: 5/5