Precious, the movie

I've done some book reviews, but I don't think I've done many movie reviews on this blog. Here's one. Tonight I went to see the movie "Precious." I had read a lot of the reviews and hype, and knew the basic storyline, but nothing prepared me for how intense the movie would be. It is one thing to hear that a movie deals with incest, physical and emotional abuse, illiteracy, poverty, and teen pregnancy. It is quite another to watch it so graphically and realistically displayed.

I wondered while watching it if I could ever show it in class. In some ways it is a great movie for an intro to sociology class. It makes very real the struggles faced by those in poverty and those who suffer from neglect and abuse. But it is pretty graphic, both in language and in visual scenes. I worry that it would upset some students, both those for whom the story is all too real, and those for whom the story is unlike anything they could imagine. I wonder if the impact of the story would overtake the underlying sociological point I would want to make.

There is also controversy about the film's depiction of African American life. Some feel that it perpetuates an image of poverty and abuse. Others feel that it shows a story that needs to be heard. I can see both sides of that argument. I guess part of the problem is that there are so few images of African American life to use as a frame of reference, so many other stories that we could use to balance against this one. I know when we were in Europe we were always correcting stereotypes based on movies, and they were innocuous, like did all parents drive their kids to school. Imagine having your whole life interpreted as seen in movies.

So, see the movie.