Precious

I knew i was in for a tear-jerker and what did i get, i got a gritty grim 80's harlem teenage abuse story which among other things did manage to elicit a few tear drops. Was it like "Requim for a dream" ? no not at all there was nothing film noirish about it. The claustrophobic household, the nauseous food and all that sweat, abuse and human dirt was so real that i could smell all of it right out of the screen.

I am not qualified to draw comparisons with the book by Sapphire as i have not read it for starters. But the movie is embellished with minor details which shakes the very core of the viewer. There is this one scene in Precious Jones's class where she is told that she has been a victim of incest and she is trying to fathom what the new word means and says "Insect??" the closest word that comes to her mind.

What startled me was not the abuse itself but the way a human being can be forced into a state of dyslexia by her mother. The way her mother's taunts as to how she would be yet another dumb person hinders her learning was positively disturbing.

However, it is Mo'Nique that gives the film's most earth shattering performance minutes before the end of the film. I don't know what emotional reservoir she is tapping into, but she nails the counselor at the welfare with a fury so startling and realistic that it's impossible to trivialize the source of her villainy.

While this movie lacks the rags to riches transition, the never say die attitude of the girl in face of all adversity was something i cheered for in my mind's eye. This rite of passage from a abused teenager to a mother wanting to be someone her mother never was , makes way for a magnificient and disturbing movie.

Guest appearances by Lenny kravitz and Mariah Carey doing what was required of them was a nice touch.

Memorable Quotes
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Some folks has a lot of things around them that shines for other peoples. I think that maybe some of them was in tunnels. And in that tunnel, the only light they had, was inside of them. And then long after they escape that tunnel, they sitll be shining for everybody else.

Verdict
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A must-see biography of an abused colored harlem teenager.

An Education

Carey Mulligan shines and how :-)

*** Spoilers ahead ***

An Education is a simple, well made movie shouldered brilliantly by Oscar nominee (well deserved) Carey Mulligan. Playing Jenny, she conveys teen angst, playfulness, excitement, rebellion, hurt, confusion, happiness in a supremely delicious subtle manner. Bravo girl!!!
Looking like a young Katie Holmes (well atleast when she played Joey Potter from Dawson Creek, and looked less Mrs.Beckham lol), cute-as-a-button Carey pulls off the character convincingly. Peeling back layers in her character - young, wide eyed, giggly teen, whose only act of defiance was stealing a smoke with her gal pals, going dizzy with all the luxuries her heart longed for, compromising on her morals, ending up heartbroken but wiser - Carey turns in a pitch perfect performance.

The plot revolves around a young girl who has everything going for her, atleast not counting Latin translation, a constant reminder that she has to make it to Oxford (which she would anyway!!!) and ofcourse BOREDOM - what happens when she meets with an older man, David (played convincingly by Peter Sarsgaard), and is seduced into loving him and his lifestyle. David is not your regular sleazy old man lusting after PYTs, he is quite charming, proof being he has not only Jenny but also her parents eating out of his hands. He has impeccable taste and the means to indulge in the best.

I would suggest sit out patiently and wait, everything is answered in time and in a simple, crisp manner. No discourses here.... after all neither the audience nor 17 yr old Jenny have the patience do they??? The supporting cast rally well. I am not aware of the nitty gritties of the period (the movie is set in 1961 in the UK), but I think they manage well to create the mood and the setting.

But I reiterate, the star here is Carrey Mulligan, doing complete justice to her part and making the movie eminently watchable.