"Precious," the story of a teenage girl who seems to have everything going against her, won the coveted Audience Award here Saturday at the Toronto International Film Festival. Toronto has no jury awards, but last January at Sundance, "Precious" swept both the jury award and the Audience Award. Both festivals invite audiences to vote as they leave after a screening, and use systems to correct for audience and theater sizes.
Gabby Sidibe as "Precious"
This could not be a better omen for the Oscar chances of "Precious;" it is all but certain to win a place on the expanded list of the Academy's 10 "best picture" nominees. Its star, Gabourey (Gabby) Sidibe, is also a real possibility for an acting nomination.
It is perhaps an omen that last year's Audience Award winner at Toronto was "Slumdog Millionaire," which went on to win the Oscar as Best Picture. That would be a storybook case of life following art. In the film, Sidibe plays a young African-American girl who is fat, illiterate, has painfully low self-esteem, has been abused and raped at home, and is pregnant with her second child. In school, she tries to appear invisible and is reluctant to speak. But in her fantasies she imagines herself as a glamorous fashion model and famous movie star.
I no longer do Red Carpet interviews before the Oscarcast, and what I will miss most next year will be the opportunity to talk with Sidibe on her way into the Kodak Pavilion. I talked with Gabby at Toronto, and found her quite unlike her screen image. She's a college graduate, articulate, quick to laugh, with good comic timing, and considerably more attractive than the sullen, fearful girl she plays in the film.
The official title of the movie is "Precious--Based on the novel Push by Sapphire." The book became a best-seller with its raw, painful but inspiring portrait of a girl who undergoes a frantic change because of the perception and sympathy of a teacher (Paula Patton) and a social worker (Mariah Carey, almost unrecognizable). It also benefits from a powerful performance by Mo'Nique as Precious's mother, and she, too, is an Oscar possibility.
The movie was directed by Lee Daniels, who already has an impressive track record. He produced "Monster's Ball" (2001) and "The Woodsman" (2004) and co-produced and directed "Shadowboxer" (2005).After its splash at Sundance, the film found two influential backers in Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry, who both signed on as executive producers. At Toronto, both said they could relate to elements in the story in their own childhoods; Winfrey said she teared up at the end when the dedication appeared on the screen: To precious girls everywhere.
This year's festival introduced two additional Audience Awards, for favorite documentary and the favorite entry in TIFF's popular Midnight Madness program. The top doc was Leanne Pooley's "The Topp Twins," about a New Zealand lesbian C&W singing duo, Sean Byrne's "The Loved Ones," from Australia, a horror comedy based about a teenage girl.
The award for best Canadian feature went to "Cairo Time," by Ruba Nadda. It stars Patricia Clarkson as the wife of a Canadian diplomat who finds herself waiting for him in Egypt, and is shown around by his old friend Tareq (Alexander Siddig). Certainly not intending to, they fall in love.
There was a special citation to Quebec director Bernard Émond for "La Donation" (The Legacy), about a Montréal doctor who is asked to take over the rural practice of a retiring colleague.
For a festival without an official jury, Toronto gives out a lot of prizes at its annual awards brunch. Other winners announced Saturday were:
Best Canadian short subject: "Danse Macabre," by Constant van Hoeven .
Best Canadian first feature: Alexandre Franchi's "The Wild Hunt."
The FIPRESCI Discovery Prize, voted by members of the International Federation of Film Critics, to Laxmikant Shetgaonkar of India for "The Man Beyond the Bridge."
The FIPRESCI Special Presentations Prize, to French director Bruno Dumont's "Hadewijch."
¶Trailer for "The Topp Girls," Audience Award winner for best documentary
¶Trailer for "Cairo Time," best Canadian feature
¶Trailer for "La Donation," which won a special citation for director Bernard Émond
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Oprah and Mariah on the "Precious" red carpet
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It's very heart-warming to hear your comments about Gabby Sidibe. I've seen a couple of her interviews from Sundance and, from what I can tell, she seems just as nice as you describe her.
It's a great thing to find an actor who can be anything on screen, but you always know that they are a great person when they are off-screen. I sometimes even find it easier to appreciate an actor's work if I know that they are truly great people at heart.
Precious is probably my most anticipated movie of the Awards season. I loved the book and I know the movie will be an incredible experience.
Mr. Ebert,
Personally, "Precious" seems like a melodramatic and sentimental hallmark movie. Then again, "The Wrestler" appeared to be the same way. Did "Precious" seem to be like this to you before you saw it?
Ebert: It's no Hallmark movie!
I’m certainly interested in ‘Precious’. Reading critical reactions to it I gather it’s at the very least good. With that said it’s becoming more apparent to me that there are a particularly large number of films I’m looking forward to. With all these movies crowding my cinematic peripheral vision (two Herzog pictures, A Single Man, Bellamy, The White Ribbon etc...) Precious seems to have involuntarily arrived on my cinematic back burner. Do you think that this year has a markedly gargantuan number of buzzed films or is this just my inner optimist lying to me?
Ebert: Your inner optimist may be correct.
I don't think Slumdog Millionaire played at Sundance last year. I believe The Wackness was the audience award winner and Frozen River won the jury prize.
Ebert: Of course. Brain cloud.
The first I heard of "Push", the book, was actually in the form of a hatchet-job book review. In fact, the book it appeared in was called "Hatchet Jobs", by Dale Peck, but maybe the material works better as a movie than it does as writing.
Hello, Mr. Ebert, My name is Bryan Angarita, I'm a big fan of your writing and your work, and this is my first time writing on one of your blogs so please excuse my formality. I forgot to mention I'm seventeen years old as well. I've been spending the past week and a half here in Toronto where my mom lives (I go to high school in Miami) and I bought a festival package 30 movies (I only got to around 25 of them) and I missed all of the prize winners (Push, Cairo Time, The Wild Hunt) I only got around to watching those which I thought I was vaguely familiar with (Bad Lieutenant, The Informant, Daybreakers, Capitalism), and I just wanted to know if you think that Push is a better film, or, if you personally liked Push better than Bad Lieutenant (which was my personal favorite from the festival)? But yeah, well any way, today I was reading your book Scorsese by Ebert in one of the Indigo stores at the Eaton Centre near Dundas and Yonge, and I admire your work and I think you're a cool guy and and I think it's great that Werner Herzog said in his Q&A after Bad Lieutenant that you are a soldier of cinema, I liked that a lot. But yeah, so excuse my awkwardness, it makes me sort of nervous and sort of excited and sort of strange knowing that perhaps you may or may not read this comment. Farewell, and take care.
Ebert: You got to 25 movies? Not at all bad. "Precious" (Push) is very good, but comparing it to "Bad Lieutenant" is certainly a matter of apple and oranges. "Informant!" is also terrific, eh?
He "dirtied" & directed "Shadowboxer", did he not? :)
P.S. I love reading your journal, but how do you get it set up so fast? And do you have some sort of text-to-speech program?
Ebert: That typo is a price I pay for writing, editing and posting the entries myself, including the artwork. In the case of the winners, I wanted to get it online as quickly as possible. Sometimes the automatic spelling corrections of Text get carried away, and I don't always catch everything.
For text-to-speech, I use the new Alex voice on my Mac's built-in Speech software.
If you are recommending "Precious" I will run, not walk, to see it. I'm lucky that I'm in the San Francisco Area where little known Indie films have a lot of venues. Keep alerting us to the films out there that aren't backed by millions of dollars, star Megan Fox, but have a lot of heart.
Hi, Roger! So glad to be reading your reports from TIFF this year; it's heartening to know that your enthusiasm for films of all kinds remains undiminished, and your sheer love of movies really comes out when you're reporting from the smorgasbord of offerings at Toronto. [Myself, I missed out on the TIFF for a 3rd straight year, but at least the Atlantic Film Festival here in Halifax this week is helping to soften the blow...btw, 'Amreeka' was quite nice, but I'm still not sure what to make of 'Antichrist'!] Anyway, 'Precious' seems to be generating the same kind of feverish award buzz that TIFF ignited for 'Slumdog Millionaire', 'Ray' and 'Juno'. In the case of those latter films, I found myself genuinely enjoying them yet felt the excessive hype tempered my appreciation somewhat (the curse of high expectations). Still, what I've been hearing about 'Precious' suggests this film might live up to all this buzz. Trying to compare it to those earlier "buzz" movies is clearly an apples-and-oranges thing, but in your esteemed opinion, how does 'Precious' measure up versus its growing hype? Do you ever find yourself underwhelmed by a movie because of excessive plugging?
Hello, Mr. Ebert. I hope you are well and in good spirits. I am very excited about seeing "Precious" and am very proud of Mo'Nique for what I hear is an absolute stunner of a performance. I am hoping she gets an Oscar nomination, even if she does not win, just nominating her, I think, will elevate her craft and provide her with the opportunity to continue to stretch herself as an actor. Could you give me some insight on the craft of her performance? What is it that she does that is making her performance one of the most talked about this year thus far. Thank you in advance!
Hi Roger,
I debated whether ten nominations for Academy Award for Best Film are a good idea and I'm starting to think it is. I've been working my way up to the films nominated for Best Film over the last couple of years. Often, towards the end of a film, I'm weepy and upset. I'm not complaining.
But hopefully, intelligent comedies would have a chance at an Oscar for Best Film, or at least be nominated for one. It broke my heart when "The Royal Tenenbaums," "In Bruges" and "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" did not even make it to the list.
Random idiotic comments, because they might show up on Roger Ebert's blog:
1) Just watched the second (third?) edition of "At the Movies," with the New York Times Guy and the Chicago Guy (I'm much too lazy to look up the spelling of their names). The good news -- they are cinema-wise, just like those two guys ... what were their names? ... the bald one and the heavy-set one. The bad news -- not much TV charisma. Unlike the bald one and the heavy-set one. Makes me wonder if this incarnation of the show will make a beeline for PBS ...
2) Thanks, Patrick Robbins. Your analysis of drunk Stephen King/sober Stephen King actually made sense to me.
3) Roger once wrote a scathing review of "I Spit on Your Grave," calling it (I forget all the nasty adjectives) a "vile" piece of something, something, something. So, of course, I had to get the DVD. On it, the director provides commentary attempting to defend himself against Roger's denunciations. Very amusing. I recommend it, at least for people who can get past the fact that Buster Keaton's descendant plays the degraded victim.
4) Film critics need to get past this "homer-ism" business. I lived in Dallas for 20 years, and the critics there (sorry, Phillip Wuntch) would give a half star more to any movie featuring Texans. In Minnesota, they do the same thing with Minnesotans (thank you, Colin Covert, for trashing "Jennifer's Body" today ... but that was an exception to the rule), like anything produced by the Pohlads, or directed by the Coens (that spelling doesn't look right; but, again, I'm much too lazy to look it up).
5) This is a wordy, wordy entry, with way too many parentheses. Who cares what I have to say? Time to grab a beer ....
You sent me Googling about the dirtying of Shadowboxer. There was no smut to be found.
I'm glad to hear from you about Precious. I meant to ask about it here after reading about it on Perry's blog some time back, but I didn't get around to it. I happened to find his blog it via a link at the time that he sent those kids to Disney World after that incident in PA. I've never seen one of his movies, but he does keep an interesting blog when he happens to post. I have never been drawn to his own products, but I am inclined to trust his judgment on this film based upon his blog commentary.
Ebert: "Dirtying" was in inexplicable typo for "producing." There is a difference. :)
Mr. Ebert,
I am curious about what you thought of Atom Egoyan's "Chloe." I am Armenian, like Egoyan, and love his work as a writer and director. I am especially curious to hear what you thought about the film, considering it is the first film he directed that he didn't also write. I didn't see your thoughts on the film - perhaps I missed it. Thank you.
Ebert: It's included here:
http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2009/09/tiff_7_it_was_a_very_good_day.html
I went to see a few (but apparently missed all the big ones) and the best of the festival for me was Jaume Balagueró & Paco Plaza's [REC]2 followed by A Serious Man from the Coen Brothers and possibly Up in the Air (but my favorable opinion of Jason Reitman makes it hard for me to be harsh on his good-looking movies).
I desperately want to see Precious, but because I live in a small city in Tennessee, I would have to take a multi-hour road trip to find a theater that will be showing it. Therefore I'm hoping the movie gets some great buzz and has great showings so that it might have a wide release; although the subject matter of the film makes me doubt that possibility.
I liked Ali Arakan's providing a "best of" TIFF list. He mentioned that 2009 was shaping up to be almost as remarkable as l972, 1977, 1999, and 2007 (I think?). Expanding on that theme would be all kinds of fun.
I'd look forward to Precious more if Oprah wasn't touting it. I've never been impressed with her book club picks ("Hallmark" books to go off of an earlier comment.) With such a mawkish celebrity yakking about it on the red carpet, the film seems to lose a lot of it's indie glimmer.
Ebert: The movie was finished before she was ever involved. Many of her viewers would find it moving. Some of her book club choices have been inspoired, such as A Fine Balance, by Rohinton Mistry.
Hi Roger Ebert,
This is also my first time on your blog. I just wanted to know if you agreed with "Precious" being the best film at the festival. "Precious" will probably get a best picture nom, especially now with 10 chances, but will this movie do what "Slumdog Millionaire" and "No Country for Old Men" did. In the last few years it seems that we know the winner months before the Oscars are handed out. This past year "Slumdog" was the unstoppable movie and nothing could stop it. It won everything before it came to the Oscars and ruined the suspense that used to exist at the Oscars. I long for a year when you look at the noms and say, I don't know who will win.
Ebert: With 10 nominations, yiou'll get more of a chance.
Precious sounds very interesting, and I'm looking forward to seeing it as soon as I can. Is it planned for a wide-release, or is it something I'll have to Netflix in the future?
Ebert: Wide, but they're debating getting there via a gradual platforming strategy.
I was one of the fortunate ones to get to see the free screening of Precious, the audience award winner at the Toronto International Film Festival.
They were giving out the free tickets during my viewing of Young Victoria and I left the theatre to run and get the tickets then returned to finish viewing Young Victoria. It was worth it. Of the the 14 films I saw Precious was the best. It was raw and felt incredibly real with passionate performances from the marvelously well-rounded cast. I totally agree with Roger's comments on the lead performances and want to add how excellent Paula Patton was as the teacher - so subdued, natural and caring. The students were also wonderful capturing snippets of personalities we have all encountered. An incredibly poignant and important story, showing the healing power of love and caring, beautifully filmed and directed. A very clear love for this film was evident by the audience's response throughout and especially at the end. Kudos to Lee Daniels and all involved.
I want to add that I was delighted that Young Victoria was as good as it was. The long-awaited second feature by the director of the amazing Canadian film C.R.A.Z.Y., Jean-Marc Vallée, it was quite historically accurate (not an automatic result in many biopics and most abused in films like A Beautiful Mind) with lush production values and excellent performances from Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany and Jim Broadbent. It was a joy to see the audience respond positively to specific scenes in the film and give it an extremely fine applause at the end. Thanks to Martin Scorsese and the other producers for allowing this fine French Canadian director to take on this British story about their royalty. Unfortunately at TIFF the opening and closing films are often not the best but this year I found Creation and Young Victoria very good indeed.
In their intros to both Precious and Young Victoria co-directors Piers Handling and Cameron Bailey seemed on cloud nine - very pleased with this the 34th installment of TIFF. They profusely thanked the audiences for their support and acknowledged the controversy involving their City to City programme (though they didn't specifically mention it by name). Not backing down though, they commented that TIFF will continue to bring in films with the purpose of opening a dialogue and that they welcomed that dialogue regardless of any ensuing controversy. Personally, I think they erred in featuring Tel Aviv in they way they did but I still completely support TIFF for continuing to provide probably the best truly international and public film festival.
Ebert: "Precious" shows the depths of acting talent in performers we've categorized too neatly. I truthfully didn't even recognize Mariah Carey.
When I heard that Mariah Carey had a good performance in the film, I watched the trailer about two or three more times to try and find her character and not once did I believe I saw her. That's how different she looks; it's remarkable.
This film blew me away. I saw it 3 x @ Sundance because I wanted to make sure I saw what I saw. The acting blows you away. MONIQUE goes 180 against her normal crazy comedic self and tears it up. And Ms. Sidibe is a gem and a true find. And the rest of the actors - PAULA PATTON, MARIAH (didn't even know it was her), SHERRY SHEPHERD, and LENNY KRAVITZ - they all brought their game to the table and you can feel it in this film. But, the girls that were in her class in the film were just as powerful. It was one of the rare moments where everything about the film worked together and added up to create a very moving experience.
I saw it again in Toronto last Sunday (that makes it 4x) and the audience was out of their seats at the end of the film. It was good to see it with a non-industry audience, as this is the true test of a good film.
Every time I see this film, I see something new in it and I love watching the first timers who take away the same experience that I have.
Am very happy for Lee Daniels - as you can feel his vision for this film throughout - from the opening credits with the graphics title treatments to the amazing amazing soundtrack. I was so moved at Sundance, that I came home and made a mixtape of songs that were in the film and songs that were inspired by the film. I guess you could say I am a fan? I have to be careful about my excitement of the film so that I don't ruin it for others (it was the same for SLUMDOG last year). They should experience it for themselves. We are already gathering people for opening night so that the film can stay in theatres being still an indie more or less. So far we have about 23 and growing. We are just waiting for the tix to go on sale.
Thank you Mr. Ebert for posting!
Ebert: I ran into Mariah Carey at a reception and she seemed pleased I hadn't recognized her. It took some courage for her to take that role.
I am glad to hear that this won. I am incredibly excited to see it based on your recommendation, and those lucky enough to see it in Toronto who voted it the winner. Bad Lieutenant is my most anticipated film (anything by Herzog), but I can't wait for this. It looks like they really "went there," with the film. Incredibly courageous film making.
Mr.Ebert, James Berardinelli claims TIFF 2009 to be one of the worst in history, your comments?
Ebert: There were, I believe, 261 films there. It all depends on which ones you saw.
Your TIFF coverage is so awesome now that it's in the blog format. I saw 50 films this year, and I agree wholeheartedly that "Push" deserved the audience prize. What's really amazing is that it won despite being a feel-good experience the way "Slumdog" was, which proves that the audience in Toronto really cares about all kinds of movies, even the ones that are "downers" that deal with despair and dark themes.
Today I'm eating three square meals for the first time in 11 days, since it seemed like all I was consuming for 10 days was bird seed, fruits, nuts and twigs, advil, and bottled water.
If I had to pick a top ten from TIFF of films I saw, "Push" would be way up there, along with "Up In The Air" with George Clooney, "Leaves of Grass" with Edward Norton (which could play on a double-bill with "Adaptation"), "Antichrist", which was probably the most difficult experience, "A Solitary Man" with Michael Douglas in what I think is his best performance since "Wonder Boys", "The Boys Are Back" with Clive Owen, "Life During Wartime", the new Todd Solondz, "The Day God Walked Away", a very powerful drama that follows the journey of a Rwandan woman during the genocide, "Bad Lieutenant", "Chloe", the new Atom Egoyan drama, and "Mother & Child" with Annette Benning and Naomi Watts.
About "Mother & Child": on my way out of the theatre, I guessed that two-thirds to three-quarters of the audience were women. There wasn't a dry eye in the house in several moments in the film, and I just felt it to be a superb drama in it's own right, with direction that was very sensitive about really listening to it's characters. However, I'm on my way out of the theatre, and I overheard a couple guys with their girlfriends/wives say "chick flick".
That bugged me. Why do you suppose it is no longer fashionable for straight men to see movies with really good and attractive female actors in them? Isn't it kind of ironic in some respect that straight guys are getting more, could it be said, "gay" about their preferences in movies with only big cars and big muscles?
Ebert: My God! Fifty movies! You must be the leader of the Trail Mix brigade.
You write: "... straight guys are getting more, could it be said, "gay" about their preferences in movies with only big cars and big muscles?"
Thought-provoking. Does that mean gays are getting more "straight" with their preference for sensitive, intelligent films?
Dogslurp:
What the f*** are you talking about? Your "random idiotic" comments seem to have absolutely no bearing on the topic. Go start your own blog if you want to drunkenly post things. Don't drink and type.
I saw an interview with Gabby Sidibe recently and she seems to have a wonderful personality. I haven't yet seen "Precious" (I intend to) but when I saw the trailer and the interview, something troubling came to mind: If this film makes a star out of Gabby Sidibe, her future in Hollywood most likely be playing The Best Friend or the wise black woman who dispenses advice when the star is in trouble. In this image-obsessed industry, she will never find herself at the center of a major film, she will have to settle for the sidelines. Perhaps if she stays in the realm of independant films, she will have a chance at more substancial work.
I was surprised by the poster who suggested that Oprah's book club is mawkish, I think they speak out of ignorance. Oprah's book club in the last 10 years has included most of works of Faulkner and Toni Morrison, as well works by Steinbeck, Tolstoy, Elie Wiesel and Cormac McCarthy..
Beloved, As I lay Dying, and Night... if those books are mawkish than you expect a world of technicolor evil.
Honestly, I recognized Mariah Carey immediately. I question whether or not simply giving her a Jenny Lewis haircut and taking away her make up would mask a case of fairly obvious stunt casting.
But I've not seen the movie, so I guess I'll have to see for myself whether or not Carey pulls it off. But Roger, haven't you questioned *why* the universe decided to stack the deck so heavily against the character of Precious? I question whether or not the film exists in any kind of social reality where every kind of bad thing conceivable could befall a single character.
Of course I'm not exactly being objective about this movie. The trailer rubbed me the wrong way. I think it tried far too hard to tug at my heartstrings, thus evoking a contrary response. Now the footage from Where the Wild Things Are has brought me close to tears. I'm sure that movie will have me bawling in the theater. But based on your thoughts alone, I think I'll give Precious a fair shot.
Ebert: I believe girls with experiences like hers are not uncommon.
If I ever had any desire to go to the Toronto Film Festival after reading this blog and watching these film clips that desire has been squelched forever. So perhaps a "thanks" is in order?
Ebert: What turned you off?
Ebert: The movie was finished before she was ever involved. Many of her viewers would find it moving. Some of her book club choices have been inspoired, such as A Fine Balance, by Rohinton Mistry.
That's the point Roger...she signed on AFTER it was finished as an executive producer. I've given some of her book club picks a try and have been dissapointed, so generally, if I see her stamp on a book, I've learned to look elsewhere. And I know I'm not the only one to feel that way. (I mean, authors have even felt that way, look at Jonathan Franzen with his book The Corrections.)
While many of her four o'clock followers might like it, there are plenty of others who would have seen it on their own terms without her interloping. It just seems unfortunate to me that a decent movie is now part of the Oprah publicity machine and will probably always be connected with it. The movie looks good enough to stand on its own weight without her involvement. But I guess she felt the movie couldn't do well enough without her, just as another Chicagoian I know didn't think school children could remember to well in school without personally addressing them.
My own biased opinion of course, but I think it's important to remember that the majority of people don't watch Oprah, and many people (myself included) outright dislike her constructed corporation of "kindness" which peddles poor journalism and misdirected empathy.
Maybe Dick Cheney really liked The Hurt Locker, but I don't think you'd be thrilled to run into him in Toronto profiteering off of it.
I was surprised by the poster who suggested that Oprah's book club is mawkish, I think they speak out of ignorance. Oprah's book club in the last 10 years has included most of works of Faulkner and Toni Morrison, as well works by Steinbeck, Tolstoy, Elie Wiesel and Cormac McCarthy..
Beloved, As I lay Dying, and Night... if those books are mawkish than you expect a world of technicolor evil.
Jodie:
Not really. "Most" does not qualify for 8 out of over 60 books. And of those 8, there are far more better books out there than the ones she selected.
Steinbeck's East of Eden isn't really up to par with The Grapes of Wrath. And McCarthy's The Road isn't as good as Blood Meridian. There are better Holocaust books out there than Night(This Way to the Gas Ladies and Gentlemen comes to mind.) Tolstoi and Faulkner are of course fine, but I've never really cared for Morrison, for the same reasons why I generally don't like any of Oprah's book picks. So generally, she might get a fluke good one in there, but most of her list's fanfare reminds me of the fanboys going crazy over Transformers II.
But of course there is no reason why she should pick books that I like, I'm just saying that myself and others generally groan and look the other way when we see her stamp on a book. So her esstenially doing the same thing to a movie brings the film down in my eyes.
It's not because I expect "a world of technicolor evil", I just dont run to embrace something just because it has a multi-million dollar logo on it. (In fact, upon reflection, I think our world is more evil because of that very idea.)
Roger, because of your blog I've been paring my lengthy Netflix queue of some movies that I had thought of as "enjoyably bad" and replacing them with independent films that I read about here. As I age, I become aware that there's a finite amount of time left for me to enjoy movies, and I don't want to waste it.
Ebert: If only we realized that when we were younger, and got a head start at not wasting time.
Roger,
After it being the first big festival winner of the year I was excited about (one day) seeing "Push", well after a fairly bad super power movie named "Push" came out a month later, it's not "Precious". Fine. Oprah cried!?! Imagine that! But to be serious, i'm so glad Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry have gotten behind this. It may be a bit disgusting that there are certain folks who can single (double) handedly pick out a film and make it a star, but i'm glad they chose a good one. I can't wait to see it. I'm sure it will be a bit too unadulteratedly sentimental for the cool filmgoers, maybe even some of the Academy. But I say all this and haven't seen it. It shouldn't be long now though.
Ebert: "Precious" is a better title than "Push" anyway. Lends itself to better headline puns.
If "Precious" wins Best Picture, which producers get to accept the award? And by that, I mean, it's not going to be Oprah and Tyler Perry, is it? It's great that they're championing this movie, but they had nothing to do with making it, see.
Ebert: No, they're "exec producers."
I can't wait to read your full review of "Precious". I've been looking forward to this film for a while.
Can I ask, did you tear-up at any point while watching it? Many folks I know almost cried watching the trailer.
Brian D.
I always just nod and smirk when men tell me that Toni Morrison's work is mawkish. "Whatever," I say in the lingo of my generation. It is one of the weaknesses of the education of many men that they feel it is okay to disregard female experience. I am glad that as a women I am still allowed to contend with Hemingway and don't have to disregard him as too testosterone driven. East of Eden is not Steinbeck's best book, but it is his most ambitious and it is lovely. If you have Beloved, East of Eden, and Night on your bedstand, read them all, and, then, rise up from your reading saying there is nothing here. Then I think the task of reading is pointless to you. It is just a way of puffing up your ego. How can you read someone's story of their own personal experience in the Holocaust and come a way with the judgement "there are better holocaust books." I am sorry. But, I find it all a bit absurd.
This sounds like a moving and great film. But here's the problem: Oprah has attached herself to it.
Ebert: And therefore will bring it greater attention.
Roger,
You may be right that girls like Precious are not uncommon, and perhaps it is due to my own good fortune and stable, loving upper middle class upbringing that I find such a story slightly unrealistic. However, when I first saw the trailer for Precious and then read the films synopsis, this is the first thing that came to mind:
http://www.hulu.com/watch/7707/american-dad-oscar-gold-trailer
Note: Before watching the video I think you should know that the character of "Oscar" in the fake trailer is played by an alien, who is a character on the show. That's why he looks odd.
I have a feeling this will end up like 'The Color Purple' which had many oscar nominations but ended up empty handed by the end of the night.
Roger,
Every time I see the preview (seen it in theaters also) of “Precious” I choke up accompanied with an unembarrassed glazed coating of tears on my eyes. I choke up because I always have a quite sensitive empathy for all females who are treated like trash and second class humans, WORLDWIDE. I hope this film is as gritty as I think it is (yes, I want the hope as well). Monique looks like she knocks this one out of the park. And I am hoping Mariah prove, as counter glamour persona, she knows what walking on linoleum tiles not marble is really like (I am sensing she nailed her performance in the film, as one of a tight ensemble).
I am not surprised that Oprah would be drawn to “Precious” because she herself have succeeded beyond measure from challenges against type (she was also abused, including sexually, as a child) to be one of a shining example of productive womanhood in America (no worries ladies, I value women who are stay at home mothers, for sure.) And Tyler Perry has been a humorous and romantic champion of Black American women
I have told a few people I know to watch out for “Precious,” but when I mentioned that Mariah Carey is in it they roll their eyes. I said they could be quite surprise, and they will hear a great buzz later this year.
This film is close to the top of my list for a must see movie this year.
I'm always interested in the response of people to films like Precious. There are always those who feel it's "overdone" and an obvious pull on heartstrings. There are those who see it as one more "teacher does good" story, part of an overworked storyline "done better" elsewhere. But I see it as the truth--because I have taught school in a variety of places...rural California, Christian schools in the Bible Belt, public schools in the Shenandoah Valley. It only takes once having a child tell you that she "doesn't mind it" when her brother does it to her but it really bothers her "when my father does it to me"; when a boy tells you he lost the ends of his fingers helping grind sausage to sell and describes banking wood fires at night in the fireplaces so there is heat in the morning; when a senior sobs that her grandfather molested her at age 10 and "I don't know why I can't forget it"; when you see the bruises across the back of a 14-year-old as her shirt rides up when she bends over; when panic rises in the eyes of a child caught cheating who tells you that "my father will beat me 'til I can't walk"; when you find out when a family lives in a 2 room shack up in the hills without running water or electricity; when a girl sees her father peeping at her as she undresses; when a girl apologizes for not having her homework because "the sheriff came and took me to a foster home because my dad was doing things to me." Thousands of children live the lives of Precious. I sometimes wonder if the fragile illusion of security from pain and difficulty that our society seems to cherish makes it impossible for people to believe that there are Preciouses everywhere, and that, yes, sometimes an adult, sometimes a teacher, can be the diference between growing up with dignity and purpose and simply being ground up into bits.
wow, the trailer looks amazing. I don't know why people care so much about Oprah being a producer. Without her this film might never have gotten picked up for distribution.
Somebody commented that they don't think it's realistic that this one girl has all these hardships. I'm from a white, upper middle class family, my parents were educated and married, we lived in a nice area with good public schools. Between eighth grade and graduation, two of my grandparents died, my dog died, my grandfather had severe health problems, my brother suddenly got a severe mental illness that completely flipped our lives upside-down. I'm not saying this to brag or anything, just to point out that everybody has troubles. After my brother was diagnosed, we were pretty open about it and so many people came out of the woodwork to tell us their stories with mental illness that we never knew about.
Yes, "Precious" is a better title than "Push" But isn't the official name of this film: "Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire"? That is one awful title.
Ebert: Yes, but I haven't seen anybody use it.
Hi Roger,
Just a comment to those who think that Precious is perhaps unrealistic because of the weight of misfortune heaped upon the protagonist.
My partner is a social worker and, unfortunately, I can testify that these sorts of situations are all too common. It is nice to believe otherwise but to do so is to deny reality. One example at the moment is a mother who refuses to leave the man who sexually abused her daughter for many year. The women is aware of the horrific sustained abuse to which her daughter was subjected and that the state will claim her daughter as a consequence of her not leaving the man. Incomprehensible as it is the mother only seems to be upset about people "constantly judging [her] for [her] choices". Meanwhile the daughter is being treated in a psych ward for a raft of physical and mental ailments and is certainly incapable of attending school. This is just the latest of multiple occasions my girlfriend has had to deal with a mother disowning an ill young daughter (or son) to stay with that child's abuser. I could go on all day. Sadly the world is full of horrible stories.
Jodie:
No, you've got it all wrong. I don't feel threatened by female authors. I think The Mouse and the Motorcycle is one of Beverly Cleary's best books, and I love nothing more than curling up with a good Judy Blume book on a frosty evening.
Of course I'm being facetious. I generally don't look at authors as male or female, just authors (a habit for better or worse) and a reader could do a lot worse than Morrison. She is, afterall, the last American to take home a Nobel for us back in '93. But generally, like I said, I find Oprah's picks, Morrison included, not to my liking, and yes, a bit mawkish. I don't think that makes me evil, sexist, uninformed, or a man "threatened by a female", but just a reader having an opinion. By coincidence, I was halfway through Sula (Oprah's pick) when Roger posted this blog, and while not bored, I wasn't feeling the kick I usually feel when I get a good book in my hands, so I wasn't just shooting "mawkish" off the cuff.
I personally believe John Updike to be the master of the latter 20th century, particulary his Rabbit series. Why Oprah utterly ignores him is beyond me, but I suspect it has something to do with a discomfort of his generally white and masculine paradigms. I'm glad you don't have any issue with Hemingway, but Oprah might, just as I would suspect she would with Updike, as she ignores both. Although I admit, The Road was a step in the right direction, even if it isn't McCarthy's best. Maybe she's turned a corner?
At anyrate, it's her club and she can choose the books she pleases. As a proponent of literacy, I have to give her some kudos. She gets people reading. And anyone who can get The Sound and the Fury and Anna Karenina to fly off the supermarket shelves with the latest Nicholos Sparks deserves credit. Maybe I'm naive, but I just hope that would cause people to strike out into their own literary interests instead of waiting for the latest lock and key Oprah book shipment.
Jodie:
Of course, while brushing my teeth, I just realized the double standard suggesting Oprah has issues with authors while I don't, so maybe I am being a bit of a snob. But to each his (or her) own. Happy reading.
Brian:
I do like Rabbit Run. I think that Beloved is the greater book... But, it is not inconsequential that two such important American books of the 20th century deal so directly with the question of filicide?
Yes, of course, you can have your taste. But, have you read Song of Solomon?
Dear Mr. Ebert:
Looking forward to PRECIOUS but, I hope it does not come across as a contrived drama. My concern is that I will end up watching a staged play. Yet some of the best no budget dramas provide the most raw realism captured on film (MYSTERIOUS SKIN comes to mind). So I will have to wait and see.
I must admit though, I'm looking forward to BAD LIEUTENANT. I'm a big fan of Cage (a pro at playing slightly off characters) and have a certain love/hate/jealousy over Hertzog. His films seem to be all about dramatic effect but not all have a good set up for it. With that said, the collaboration of the two is what makes the film alluring. No doubt though, I believe PRECIOUS will eclipse the talents mentioned.
I've always been an admirer of your critiques, including Gene Siskel's, and Joel Siegel's. The right film critics can open your eyes to better viewings. A film critic can be very helpful. I know this because I also make films and try to serve the content to the best of my ability without falling into cinematic pit falls.
All the best to you. Best of health. And thanks again for your always clear and well written critiques.
Sincerely,
Jim
Mr. Ebert:
Do you think 10 nominations for Best Picture is an overload. The Academy added five more slots so more films could get honored especially after last year when Wall-E and The Dark Knight were on the short end of the stick. But why 10? Why not 7? I think 7 is a much more appropriate number and wont lower the honor of being a Best Picture Nominee.
Ebert: I'm curious to see how it woks out.
Hmm, seems as though I'll have to defend myself here...
My two cents on the mental illness thing: I'm bipolar and ADHD with mild social anxiety disorder, so I knows me a thing or two about mental illness. ;)
Don't worry though, I'm on the proper medication and totally stable, happy, and functional. I had an incredibly dark period last year where I could not control my severe mood swings and got into some trouble, but that's not the point. My point is that in spite of the fact that I had a stable, loving, upper middle class up bringing I'm no stranger to emotional and mental trauma. So I'm not being naive about this. Also, I'm from Cherry Hill, New Jersey which is a suburb of Philadelphia that is very close to Camden. Because it is close to Camden many of the kids there attend public school here through various loopholes. I even tutored many of these kids in an after school program, and as such came to hear stories of abuse, drug addicted parents, and the like. Also, my cousin is a social worker, and I've heard many of her horror stories. I believe that such urban horror stories are an every day reality for all too many inner city youth. However, let me rattle off the synopsis for "Precious", if I may: "Claireece Precious Jones endures unimaginable hardships in her young life. Abused by her mother, raped by her drug addicted father (and pregnant with his second child) , she grows up poor, angry, illiterate, fat, bullied unloved and generally unnoticed". I have never, not even in my experience with inner city kids and my social worker cousin, heard of a young person who was dealt virtually every single bad hand that is possible for a human being to be dealt. Do I believe that there are girls like Precious out there, though? Sure. But if you look at that synopsis, it's a laundry list of horrors. The deck is so heavily stacked against poor Precious that the audience has no choice except to shed a tear for Precious and cheer her on to triumph. If you criticize this movie or its premise, you look like a horrible person because of the way the movie is designed. You'd have to be heartless not to shed a tear for Precious, which means the audience has virtually no choice in how they view the movie. That doesn't sit right with me.
Hmm, I just realized that admitting to being bipolar and having ADHD might paint a certain picture of me that could somehow devalue my future posts...ah well. I know I'm sane and stable, so social stigmas be damned.
Anyway Roger,
I've recently heard that the teacher character in the film isn't as one dimensional as most "inspirational teacher" characters tend to be in these movies. Is that true? If so, it might help change my feelings about the movie. Also, I'm beginning to hear good things about Mariah Carey which, I must say is pleasantly surprising. Also, do you happen to know a ballpark figure for the films budget? I'd be interested to know the scale of the production.
Ebert: No budget listed on IMDb. The teacher is very plausible.
Hello Sir,
I'm sorry you weren't able to make any of the public screenings I attended at TIFF. How many of the Midnight Madness movies did you see? I was so happy when THE LOVED ONES won the audience award for MM and the TOPP TWINS won for documentary. It looks like Australia may be the new "it" country. But how can this happen if no one is going to distribute?
Ebert: I don't go to MM screenings because...they're too late. I attend the 8:30 a.m. press screenings, so...
Mr. Ebert:
Do you think 10 nominations for Best Picture is an overload. The Academy added five more slots so more films could get honored especially after last year when Wall-E and The Dark Knight were on the short end of the stick. But why 10? Why not 7? I think 7 is a much more appropriate number and wont lower the honor of being a Best Picture Nominee.
Ebert: I'm curious to see how it works out.
Me: I'm curious to see how it is going to work on the morning that the nominations are announced. Will they have to add five more screens to display all ten nominees?
Ebert: Maybe just a list, like on Letterman...
Hey Ebert:
I'm a huge fan of your reviews as I have been following your insights and analysis on movies for a long time. I am also a huge fan of Mariah Carey and I was wondering what you thought of her performance in Precious? Is she at the caliber of being recognized by the Academy for her rendition of the social worker. I realize Mo'nique is receiving due praise for her performance and is being touted as a Best Supporting Actress. Wouldn't it make sense for her to be placed as a Best Actress? Could it be a possibility for Mariah to receive nominations under the Best Supporting Actress category? I have yet to see the film and am looking forward to your full review when it releases in November.
Hello Mr. Ebert,
My sister is a big fan of yours. She converted me. Anyways, I have a tendency to shy-away from films that generate so much early Oscar-buzz/hype. Precious seems like a great film, but was it really necessary for both Oprah and Tyler Perry to attach their names to the project? In the end, that may not prove to be a good thing. I’ve always loved Oprah, but good intentions can sometimes go awry.
These comments go out to Mr. Frank McDevitt who finds a film that sounds like the clarion cry for facing up to the way we allow the most vulnerable members of our society are mistreated to be some kind of manipulative anti-fairytale, rip-off of the Book of Job: sir, have you ever considered that what really bothers you is that a work of art can manipulate your emotions just like your bipolar illness manipulates your own moods against your will? Perhaps your incredulity at the list of misfortunes visited upon the heroine is a subconscious attempt on your part to protect your own psyche from experiencing the pathos intended by the author and filmmaker to open our eyes at the way our society values kids less than our personal possessions.
Don't pooh-pooh another's misfortune, real or imagined, just because it evokes overwhelming feeling in you as an observer. To do so is at best to die a little inside and at worst to condone the mistreatment of another. One this is constant about humans - we are always dreaming up and visiting new horrors upon each other, and without exception, reality always proves to be worse than fiction.
PS - Would everyone please lay off Mr. E's typos and spell check misses? How petty - he clearly thinks and writes rings around us all. If it bugs you SO much - read some other blog.
Ebert: I performed an experiment, and sure enough, auto-spell-check turned "directed" into "dirtied" when I typed it wrong.
I'm not sure about "leader" of the Trail-Mix Brigade, but over the course of the last 10 years attending film festivals in my city of Toronto and ones like Ebertfest in Champaign-Urbana, I've learned that grazing on snacks is invaluable if you're planning on actually staying awake and alert for 3, 4, or 5 films in one day. Meat and potatoes and big meals will leave you feeling like Al Bundy in "Married With Children": belt undone and drowsy 30 minutes into the picture. Almonds come highly recommended.
I've also learned that it's better to feel just a tad cold in a theatre than it is to be warm, since the warmer it is, the likelier it'll be that you'll find yourself taking a little nap during one of the movies.
Also: cut out caffeine, it sends you up and then it brings you right down into snoozeland. Stick with water and fruit juices.
Oh yes, and sit up straight! If you're planning on attending more than 3 screenings per day, strike a proper pose and you'll find that it eliminates the need to toss and turn every which way like a dying fish.
Ebert: Tales from the front from a veteran.
With all due respect MeiMei, spare me the pop psychology. I'm hardly your (stereo)typical bipolar case, in fact I only used the word bipolar because it registers with people more quickly than the vague description of a mood disorder that has been applied to me. It's like when I'm abroad I often simply say I'm from Philadelphia instead of Cherry Hill, New Jersey (a suburb of Philadelphia) because Philadelphia is more widely known and easier for people to identify. I knew I would be making myself vulnerable to pop psychology diagnosis from people on here (i.e. people whose only exposure to psychology comes from the self help books and the like), but I went ahead and "outed" (not that I was ever "closeted" about it but you get my meaning) myself anyway.
To insinuate that I'm "afraid" of films with deeply felt emotions, specifically that of profound sadness or despair is ludicrous. If I was, then why would I consider "The Sweet Hereafter", "Breaking the Waves", "The Passion of Joan of Arc", "Leaving Las Vegas", "The Color Purple" (although I slightly prefer the book), or "Wendy and Lucy" some of my favorite films? I have a deep admiration for films (or albums, or books, or photographs or paintings, etc.) that can fill me with a profound sadness that is earned, not manufactured. I raised my suspicions that the premise of "Precious" was unrealistic; perhaps I should rephrase that and state that I find the premise to be rather extreme. As I said before, you would have to be heartless not to find "Precious" very, very sad. It's designed that way. But what about those who will undoubtedly be critical of the film because they find that it's simply not very well made? I have stated that I can have no opinion on the quality, as I haven't seen the film yet, but I'm suspicious of the blatant celebrity stunt casting.
I'm also suspicious because Lee Daniels' previous film "Shadowboxer" was a godawful mess. I feel that is remarkably unfair to insinuate that I'm in some way emotionally stunted, psychologically traumatized (PUH-leeze!), naive or ignorant about life in the ghetto (my cousin is a social worker and I go to school in West Philly, I know the stories), or otherwise in the wrong from some sort of objective standpoint just for questioning the near universal hype surrounding this film. Perhaps I haven't articulated myself as clearly as I should have, or perhaps I should have known that what I had to say would strike a nerve with people who have already become emotionally attached to the film. But I don't regret anything I've said, and I don't feel the need to apologize for any of it, I haven't said anything particularly inflammatory or uncivil. I don't wish to play the part of troll or contrarian, I just feel as though there are things about this film that are worth calling in to question; isn't that the whole point of this blog?
To Frank McDevitt:
*rolls eyes* Blah, blah, blah...
Go see the movie first!
Hello everyone!
I would like to make a couple of comments here. The first is the decision, by the Academy, to raise the number of Best Picture nominees to ten. I'm confused: wouldn't it be easier to just add maybe only one or two more slots to that category, you know, just to make it a little more legitimate? I mean, if you think about it, only the best films should be nominated, purely based on the power and talent of the FILM, not the marketing or the influence of certain celebrities on the Academy's board. Which leads me to...
The stunning film everyone's been raving about, "Precious: Based on the novel Push by Sapphire" (a long-winded title for a movie if ever I saw one). Now, don't get me wrong, I can't wait until this movie comes out next month (November)but I feel, and I'm sure I'm one of few who do, that the extra marketing and star power that both Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry are providing this film is really unnecessary. Can't Precious garner this much attention on its own? It makes me wonder if the film won big at Sundance, Cannes and TIFF more so because of the hyping (or over hyping)from Perry and Winfrey. I truly understand their emotional connections, but I can't help but wonder if they are really emotionally vested in Precious, or is this yet another vehicle for Winfrey to finally attain the Oscar gold that has eluded her during the time of The Color Purple. I just hope I'm not seeing more in this situation than I am during this film season.
I have to thank you for all the blogs and reviews you post. I know it's your job, but it makes things to much easier for me. Having gotten laid off in the spring I feel a bit like Truffaut, where I'm choosing films over dinner, so it's nice to know what's worth seeing.
I agree that Precious was a good film, but there's just something holding me back from saying it's great. However, what it is, I just can't figure out. Good thing I'm not a reviewer. It certainly wasn't the acting though. Both Gabby Sidibe and Mo'Nique blew me away. They really packed an emotional punch. Mariah Carey was decent but I don't understand the hype. She played the role well but I didn't think there was much too it, but then again I recognized her right away. I found that more people didn't recognize Lenny Kravitz.
I think it holds an interesting place next to last year's "Slumdog Millionaire". In some respects they are similar. Young children caught in a world they didn't create but are expected to never escape - yet last year the film was a definite fairytale, and in this one even when good things happen you can't help but wonder what's going to happen the next day.
The film is lucky to have gotten such known and powerful executive producers, as far too many great films end up slipping under the radar.
I have to say, on the face of it, I find the intraracial politics of this film both disheartening and extremely off putting.
As a black woman , it's very difficult for me not to notice that all the primary dark skinned characters are to varying degrees and ways malformed or demonic, while all the light skinned ones appear to be angelic angels of mercy.
This, combined with several interviews I've read featuring Mr Daniels that I'm sad to say support my case (although I suspect you'd have to be black to recognize the subtext), clearly signal to me that he's what my grandparents would have referred to as "color struck"; that is, someone who believes that lighter skinned blacks are inherently better and more decent than darker ones.
On a purely emotional level, it pains me that so much praise and so many accolades are being heaped on this man, who from the pictures I've seen is about my complexion (ironically enough, blacks with darker skin can be some of the worst offenders when it comes to the color struck phenomenon)yet views me as 'less than'.
From what I've been able to tell, there's no way I could support this mans work by way of paying to see this film and keep my self respect at the same time.
Alas, after reading this months ago, I truly wanted to see "Precious". And now November is here and no theater in my area is playing it. Weird, for a film that got endorsement from Oprah. The closest theater that plays it is about an hour long drive from my house.