BGG Reviews "Precious"

In theaters nationwide today.

After a failed attempt to see the much-hyped and buzzed-about movie, Precious: Based on the Novel 'PUSH' by Sapphire, last week, I was finally able to get my hands on tickets for the film on Wednesday. Not often do you see a movie that lives up to all of its critical acclaim, but thankfully Precious does. Based on the 1996 Sapphire novel entitled, "PUSH," Precious is a tale of a physically and sexually abused, illiterate overweight teenage mother named Precious, played by the charismatic Gabourey Sidibe who is subjected to more torture and condemnation than one could ever imagine.

Mo'Nique steps outside of her usual comedic character to bring to life Precious's monster of a mother who spews so much hate and wickedness that she is often hard to watch. Supporting cast members include Paula Patton who shows Precious hope and the importance of education. While songbird Mariah Carey leaves behind her powerful voice to portray a surprisingly believable dowdy social worker. The story of Precious is an intense, gritty, no-holds barred tale of a strong young girl who manages to survive despite unfathomable hardships.

If you haven't seen it already, I highly recommend it! For those of you who have seen and/or read the book, what are your thoughts? I'd love to hear from people who have read the book and watched the movie to see how the feature film stacks up to the written word. Please share!