In retrospect, Precious: Based On The Novel Push by Sapphire feels like a cross between Dangerous Minds, the film that pitted Michelle Pfeiffer against a class of ghetto kids, and Juno, which dealt with the issue of teenage pregnancy. The main difference, however, is that within 10 minutes of Precious beginning, we find out that the eponymous protagonist (Gabourey Sidibe) is not only pregnant with her second child, but that both children are the products of incestual rape.

You’ll have to trust me, then, when I say that Precious is an uplifting film with a central theme of hope.

When we first meet her, Clareece ‘Precious’ Jones’ life is grim. Her mother (Mo’Nique) is a violent benefit fraudster who keeps Clareece in servitude, and Clareece is regularly targeted at school and in the neighbourhood for her size. All that keeps Clareece going are daydreams: she retreats into colourful fantasies where she is the centre of attention: from her teacher and the boys that bully her.

Life begins to look up for Clareece when she begins to attend classes run by Blu Rain (Paula Patton), a philanthropic special-needs teacher. Gradually, Clareece begins to break free of her mother’s influence and take control of her life... despite the curveballs that life continues to throw at her.

It is almost impossible to watch Precious without flinching at the harshness of Clareece’s world. Sidibe plays the obese teen to perfection, stony-faced and mute and vulnerable to the harsh world around her. She outperforms the rest of the cast, despite a strong, frightening performance from Mo’Nique and a surprisingly robust turn from Mariah Carey as a stern but kind social security officer.

The success of Precious does not lie in its original storytelling. While Clareece’s new classmates are personable enough, they suffer by conforming to ghetto stereotypes. Patton’s Ms Rain channels Michelle Pfeiffer in Dangerous Minds, which is not a bad thing but hardly makes for the most original of characters.

No: the success of Precious lies with its ability to make the audience smile. While certainly not a comedy, Precious is undoubtedly a funny film, albeit with a humour that is occasionally bleak and black. It is a testament to the acting abilities of Sidibe that she is able to instil a sense of fun into a character that speaks in a monosyllabic drawl for the first half of the film.

Precious might not be an obvious film to watch as a pick-me-up, but it is difficult not to be infected by its enthusiasm and playfulness. Definitely a worthwhile watch.

Lee Daniels Geoffrey Fletcher, Sapphire Lisa Cortes, Lee Daniels, Tom Heller, Asger Hussain, Gary Magness, Mark G. Mathis, Tyler Perry, Simone Sheffield, Sarah Siegel-Magness, Bergen Swanson, Oprah Winfrey

Starring

Gabourey 'Gabby' Sidibe, Mo'Nique, Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, Sherri Shepherd, Lenny Kravitz, Stephanie Andujar, Chyna Layne, Amina Robinson, Xosha Roquemore, Angelic Zambrana, Aunt Dot, Nealla Gordon, Grace Hightower, Barret Helms, Kimberly Russell, Bill Sage, Susan Taylor, Kendall Toombs, Alexander Toombs, Cory Davis, Rochelle McNaughton, Roy Anthony Tarell Harvey, Abigail Savage, Rodney 'Bear' Jackson, Sapphire, Linda Watson, Emani Reid, Dashawn Robinson, Dashawn Robinson, Ashley Livingston, Maurizio Arseni, Mugga, Chazz Menendez, Roy T. Anderson, Quishay Powell, Vivien Eng, Silje Vallevik, Matthew Bralow, Shayla Stewart, Erica Watson, Ephraim Benton, Shortee Red, Timothy Allen, Nigel Joaquin, Esley Tate