Running head: MOVIE REVIEW 2 1
Movie Review 2: Precious
Derrick L. Smith
Liberty University
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Movie Review 2:
The Review
Precious is the heart-wrenching story of a young woman who has been dealt a very bad
hand at life. Set in the heart of Harlem, New York, the 16-year-old Clareece Jones faces hardship
after hardship. The movie is an adaptation of the novel “Push” by Sapphire. Precious is plagued
with obesity, she is illiterate and has given birth to two children. The movie opens with Precious
introducing herself. She states, “My name is Clarice Precious Jones. I want to be on the cover of
a magazine. I wish I had a light-skinned boyfriend with good hair. But first I want to be in one of
those BET videos” (Daniels, 2010). This is the first glimpse the audience receives into the mind
of the young lady. The movie chronicles life in impoverished communities that primarily affect
African-American teen. Her world has come crashing down and she deals with physical and
sexual abuse at the hands of her mother Mary Lee Johnston. Precious finds herself in a fight for
survival as life constantly spins out of control.
She is eventually suspended from school for being pregnant and is referred to an
alternative school for girls attempting to earn their GED and her world begins to come together
again. She meets her teacher, Ms. Blu Rain, who says one of the most powerful lines in the film.
She says, “The longest journey begins with a single step” (Daniels, 2010). This statement would
prove to be the very motivation that Precious needs to make the decision to change her life.
Precious learns her inner strength as she sees her educational abilities begin to improve. Ms.
Rain begins to pour into her and she gains a small amount of confidence. She begins to see a
counselor in order to gain public assistance and ultimately fights off her mother during one of her
vicious attacks.
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Precious is the victim of sexual assault by her father who impregnates her while her mother
watches. It is later learned, that her mother had always known of her abuse at the hands of
her father. The movie has a lot of counseling implications and can be used as a model story
for abuse, abandonment, and healing. There are scenes that show her being bullied as well as
scenes of her bullying others. She is forced to take care of her mother as if she were the
parent. In one scene her mother is rushing her to cook dinner. As she finishes and brings her
mother a plate, her mother says to her,
You ain't cooked no collard greens with the f*cking pigs' feet? @Like, how am I supposed
to eat pigs' feet with no collard greens? And why in the f*ck does that pigs' feet have so
much hair in it? You eat it. You come eat this sh*t (Daniels, 2010)
Her mother then begins to berate her and make her eat, notwithstanding the fact that
Precious states she is not hungry. Her mother continuously turns up the heat until the movie
reaches its climax in a showdown between Precious and Mary that ends with Mary attempting to
drop a television set on her and her newborn child. This is reminiscent of the Bible’s admonition
to parents,
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger [do not exasperate them to the
point of resentment with demands that are trivial or unreasonable or humiliating or
abusive; nor by showing favoritism or indifference to any of them], but bring them up
[tenderly, with lovingkindness] in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Ephesians
6:3-5,@Amplified Bible)
Precious learns a harsh lesson about her mother during the movie. There is jealousy, hate,
malice, insecurity, and a myriad of other emotions penned up inside of her. This movie is not for
the faint at heart, as there are scenes that will jar the viewer and take you on an emotional roller
coaster as you journey through life from Precious’ viewpoint.
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Therapeutic Implication
I really don’t know where to begin with this section. This movie was so moving and
there are many different lessons to be learned. It is sad that children are supposed to be able to
trust those that care for them. Precious daydreams in an attempt to escape the harsh realities of
life. There is a scene in which she begins daydreaming and her mother swings a pot at her head,
narrowly missing her mark. This is indicative of an extreme case of abuse, but more so the
penned up rage that her mother is dealing with boils over into multiple attempts on Precious’ life.
What must be said here is that the home lacks communication and her mother does not
contribute to anything other than a well-rehearsed lie for the local officials who cut her welfare
check. Mary is an unfit mother who should seek counseling for herself. Precious learns how to
channel her emotions into her writing as her teacher (Ms. Rain) introduces her to journal writing.
Journal writing can be an extremely effective tool for communicating your feelings to a person.
In addition, journal writing can help a person come to terms with what is going on around them.
Journal writing is very therapeutic in that it allows for reflection and gives the patient the ability
to process what has happened to them. Walker (2006) writes,
Holmes stated that by recording and describing experiences, feelings, and thoughts,
students are able to recreate their experiences for additional exploration. A student who
had a difficult encounter with a student-athlete could write in the journal about the
situation and think about what happened. He or she could describe why decisions were
made and actions taken, along with feelings and future thoughts and directions (pg. 218).
Patients learn a lot about themselves during the journaling process. One of the main things they
learn is their ability to be strong and overcome obstacles.
One of the things that really stand out in this movie is Precious’ journey to self-
restoration. Precious overcomes many obstacles with the help of her teacher Ms. Rain and her
classmates. There are obvious trust issues and a wall built to protect herself from being hurt
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from others. This lends itself to other complications in the relationship building process.
Precious is unable to trust anyone due to what has happened to her. In an emotional scene,
Precious finally breaks down in class. In an unprecedented transparent moment, she tells Ms.
Rain, “Please don't lie to me, Ms. Rain! Love ain't done nothing for me... but beat me... rape
me... call me an animal! Make me feel worthless! Make me sick!” To which Ms. Rain replies,
“That wasn't love, Precious. Your baby loves you. I love you” (Daniels, 2010) This exchange is
the culmination of Ms. Rain’s work with Precious and Precious’ last ditch effort at lashing out in
defense.
It is hard for a child that has been abused to learn to trust anyone. Afterall, they have
been through such a horrible experience at the hands of the very ones who swore to love and
protect them. Precious’ story is no different and her story can inspire and promote healing in
other young girls dealing with the same or similar situations. Children facing traumatic
situations tend to store those memories, making it hard to reach them and get them to open up.
Buss et al write,
Young children exposed to traumatic events may avoid conversations, people, objects,
places or situations that remind them of the trauma (Coates & Gaensbauer, 2009). They
frequently have diminished interest in play or other activities, essentially withdrawing
from relationships. Other common symptoms include hyperarousal (e.g., temper
tantrums), increased irritability, disturbed sleep, a constant state of alertness, difficulty
concentrating, exaggerated startle responses, increased physical aggression and increased
activity levels (De Young et al., 2011) (p.228).
This can make it almost impossible for caregivers to find a path to healing for the child.
Precious also suffers from this as well. She is very withdrawn, guarded, and she does not speak
much. This can prove to be a challenge for caregivers. I would employ a strategy that includes
journaling, trust exercises, and positive affirmations taped on the client’s mirror. These
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affirmations would help to reestablish self-love and offer me as the counselor some talking
points that would get them to open up to me.
Personal Implications
This movie evokes many emotions for me. As a parent, I just cannot see how people can
treat their children in such a horrid fashion. I would give my own life in exchange for my son’s
life. The sexual abuse really makes me want to pay closer attention to what is happening when
my son is playing with others and visiting family. These are the situations in which suicidal
thoughts present themselves. In one narrative scene, Precious makes the statement, “Sometimes
I wish I was dead. I'll be okay, I guess, 'cause I'm lookin' up. Lookin' for something to fall, a
desk, a couch, TV... my mom, maybe” (Daniels, 2010). These are the signs of a person who
simply wants out, but the insertion of the word sometimes means there is still hope for her.
I have known children who were victims of abuse and my wife is actually a child
protective investigator, so she deals with this on a regular basis. The implications on families
and the emotional toll this takes on the children themselves cannot be underestimated. Children
build walls of imagination to protect them, much the way Precious did in the film. I can only
surmise that a patient of mine would be dealing with extreme emotional anguish. Learning to
circumvent the emotional barriers to trust will prove to be a challenge for me.
I cannot imagine having to counsel a child who has been impregnated by their father, or a
little boy who was molested by an uncle who as supposed to be taking him for ice cream. I
would have to learn to keep my own emotions in check when dealing with these cases. I would
have to take my fatherly outlook out of the equation. In order to reach the child, I see where my
Christian principles would come into play. I can see the Scripture, “Pleasant words are like a
honeycomb, Sweet@and@delightful to the soul and healing to the body” (Proverbs
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16:24@Amplified Bible). This Scripture would guide my practice and keep my emotions in
check.
I can remember seeing one of my cousins being beaten with a clothes hanger. I was
young and just thought that was the thing. I now know that there is a difference between
discipline and abuse. Personally, I agree with spanking (within reason), but there is a limit.
There is nothing wrong with using a bare hand on the bottom, but the things Precious had to
endure really breaks my heart. Precious made a determination of her worth based on how she
was treated by her mother and everyone else she with whom she made contact. Sadly, this is the
plight of many children; they are unable to ascertain our intentions, so they internalize our
actions.
What really bothered me about this movie is that the mother actually watched her being
sexually abused by her father (since birth) and instead of calling the police and pressing charges,
she becomes bitter and jealous. She literally believes that Precious slept with her boyfriend on
purpose in an attempt to break them up. Her mother could have cared less about her education
and encouraged her to become a product of welfare. This just blows me away, because I want
nothing but the best for my son. My wife and I are very involved in his education and any other
activities he may be involved in. Her mother did not even make the trip down to the hospital
when she went into labor with her second child. That was an awful moment for me in this
movie. What Precious needed was love and support in order for to flourish.
Professional Implications
When looking at the movie from a professional standpoint, one can plainly see that
Precious suffers from a form of dissociative identity disorder. This can be seen in one of the
scenes in which she envisions as a young Caucasian girl. This disorder is prevalent among
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children who have experienced some form of trauma. The trauma causes the child to create
alternate personalities or imagined lives; much the same as Precious has done in the movie. She
envisions herself as a famous actress and supermodel among other personas. It is not uncommon
for there to be many different personalities. Gillig (2009) writes,
Typically by the time they are adults, DID patients report up to 16 alters (adolescents
report about 24), but most of these will fade quickly once treatment is begun. There
generally is a reported history of childhood abuse, with the frequency of sexual abuse
being higher than the frequency of physical abuse (pg. 27)
Precious uses the alternate realities to escape her current situation, but returns to the harsh reality
that she is still the victim of the abuse once the daydream comes to an end.
Precious is a victim of her surroundings; she is living in impoverished conditions the
likes of which most never survive through. However, she has hope that she will one day be
rescued from her situation. Precious makes a bold and prophetic statement when she says, “I'm
gonna break through or somebody gonna break through to me” (Daniels, 2010). This opens a
door for me to begin to help her discover her inner strength and assist her in creating a strategy
that will allow her to break free of her surroundings and mental state.
With the information we have about Precious and her situation, it is safe to say that she
has anger issues as well as trust issues. One of the many challenges this presents is that we will
first have to break through the barrier of the lack of trust. Once this is established, we can begin
working towards healing. First, we must teach and coach her through the painful process of
forgiving her mother, father, and all others who have ever caused her harm. This will be the
hardest part of her journey, but it is also the most important. Leaning on the statement made by
her teacher regarding taking a single step, we can walk her through the process systematically.
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Precious also has to learn that it is not her fault! In this step, we will walk her through
the reflective stages of introspection and self-forgiveness. All of her successes to this point will
prove to be in vain if she does not forgive herself and give herself permission to move forward
with life. She must understand that she will only spew out the same toxic environment and
destructive treatment for her own children as did her mother. This is evident when we watch as
her mother Mary makes the statement to her own mother, “Don’t be shaking your head, you
didn’t do no better” (Daniels, 2010). This tells us that her mother was also raised in a bad
environment and only did to Precious what was done to her as a child.
The movie shows the horrors of life for children in today’s society. It also shows the
importance of having positive people in your life. The Each One Teach One program proves this
point. In professional practice, I would advise a client to seek out support groups dealing with
similar issues. It is near impossible to make it through situations like this on your own. Having
a circle of friends who have been through this and know what you are dealing with can make the
healing process that much easier. The important for clients to know, is that they are not in the
fight alone. Again, this was an excellent, albeit a tearjerker, but nevertheless an excellent film
and a shining example of trauma towards a child.
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References
Buss, K. E., Warren, J. M., & Horton, E. (March 01, 2015). Trauma and Treatment in Early
Childhood: A Review of the Historical and Emerging Literature for Counselors. The
Professional Counselor, 5, 2, 225-237.
Daniels, L., Magness, G., Siegel-Magness, S., Winfrey, O., Perry, T., Fletcher, G., Mo'Nique, ., ...
Lions Gate Entertainment (Firm). (2010).@Precious. Toronto: Maple Pictures.
Gillig P. M. (). Dissociative identity disorder: a controversial diagnosis.@Psychiatry (Edgmont
(Pa. : Township)),@6(3), 24–29.
Walker S. E. (2006). Journal writing as a teaching technique to promote reflection.@Journal of
athletic training,@41(2), 216–221.
