Sullen and brooding, grossly overweight 16 year old Clareece Precious Jones (Gabourey Sidibe) has buried herself inside a dark tunnel for years but finds a way to survive and emerge by the end of Lee Daniels' raw rendition of Precious: Based on the Novel by Sapphire. Clareece rarely looks up, hardly ever speaks, and is virtually illiterate. Real life offers nothing but a world of hurt as she endures taunts from classmates at school and return to her Harlem home of even worse horrors. Constantly cursed and abused by her mother and now pregnant for the second time by her natural father, the only glimmer of hope comes from within—Precious dreams of being rescued by a light skinned caring man.

Instead two ladies assist. One is alternative school teacher Ms. Rain (Paula Patton) and the other is social worker Ms. Weiss (Mariah Carey), who both have worked with a number of troubled girls before but perhaps never one so acutely in pain or so encased in such a tough, silent exterior.

A simple story that could self impale on sentimentality, instead the film absolutely soars because of the incredible ensemble acting that begins with Sidibe's debut performance and is highlighted by comedian Mo'Nique's stunning transformation into Precious' chain-smoking couch potato welfare queen mother Mary. So realistic are Mary's scenes where she treats her teen daughter like an abused slave while cursing and chucking objects at her head that it's easy to forget that the film is based on a fictional narrative. And when Precious trudges up the stairs to present her newborn son, you'll find your heart pounding when her mother asks to hold the baby.

Despite the horrific way that Mary treats Precious, we eventually discover that she herself is a victim who has never found a way to surface from the horrific blows that Life has dealt her. Kudos to the screenwriter for treading such a thin line and to Monique for delivering the goods to provide a shred of humanity to her villainous character.

I'm not sure if the studio promotional department is going to push for Monique as Best Actress or Best Supporting Actress, but it'll be an absolute crime if she is overlooked in whatever category they select. She should be a shoe-in to win Supporting gold since her screen time is relatively small; it just seems longer due to her intensity. The other three women also deserve nominations as well for transforming what could have been a Hollywood formula flick into one of the most powerful and realistic films of the season. Daniels deserves great credit for casting both unknown actors and performers not known for acting and creating such a realistic tone to the film—one that is graphically violent without being explicit. This is The Color Purple without Spielberg's saccharin sensibility.

Despite its gritty subject matter and realism, Precious isn't a movie downer. The protagonist is a survivor, so you can walk out of the theater in a positive frame. You just might not look at the “underclass” in quite the same way after experiencing this lifestyle for 109 minutes.