Precious

Starring Gabourey Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Paula Patton. Directed by Lee Daniels. R16.

With a worse-case scenario that disturbingly could be more common than one might like to think, this Oscar-nominated drama, Precious, looks where others either neglect or choose not to see.

The main character – in this adaptation awkwardly subtitled Based on the novel Push by Sapphire – is Claireece "Precious" Jones, a 16-year-old, obese, poor, illiterate black teenager living with her angry, abusive mother in Harlem in 1987.

Precious is also pregnant with her second child, whose father – as was the case with her first child, born with Down Syndrome – is her own father and mother's boyfriend, who began sexually molesting her at age three.

Regularly physically and emotionally assaulted and made to feel worthless, Precious' only escape from her despairing life is in fantasies, such as dreams of being a famous, rich celebrity or imagining herself as white and beautiful.

Generally, however, Precious, who narrates the film, says looking up for her is only to see something about to fall on her head.

Her life, though, begins to change when she is sent to an alternative school and comes under the wing of a compassionate teacher (Paula Patton) as well as a caring social worker (Mariah Carey).

But just when you thought Precious' life couldn't get worse, it does.

Precious has been rewarded with five Oscar nominations, including best picture, adapted screenplay and film editing.

Its ensemble cast excels. As her loathsome mother, Mo'Nique gives a searing performance, culminating in an attempt to find reconciliation through explanation of her own plight. It will surely win the best supporting actress Oscar.

Others in the supporting cast perform admirably, including Patton and Carey as well as the actresses playing Precious' new classmates.

Meanwhile, men are mostly absent, with singer Lenny Kravitz as a male nurse, brief flashbacks of Precious' father raping her and males in Precious' escapist fantasies.

But it's Gabourey Sidibe who holds this unremittingly raw film together, meriting her best actress Oscar nomination.

In Precious' muted resilience there is a quiet steely strength, and gradually we watch the transformation of someone who has had to be a sponge soaking up cruelty and brutality eventually finding friendship and love to develop a sense of identity, self-worth and hope in her grim world.

- © Fairfax NZ News