CEU Cinema - Watch and Learn for CEUS

When I saw Precious at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and heard the buzz, one question on everyone’s lips was, “Is America ready for this film? Are they ready for this story, this character?” Precious was thought to be a long-shot. Its victory of the Audience Award at Sundance was no surprise – film festival audiences are known to have more catholic tastes. But would the film get a theatre run and, beyond that, have commercial success?

Precious has done both, and this tells us something: America is, in fact ready for a story about an obese African American teen who was sexually abused by her parents. Didn’t think I would be saying that sentence in my lifetime. But that’s the phenomenon of Precious (which we are trying to capture at CEU Cinema).

Anyone who works in mental health knows that sexual abuse is, unfortunately, a common occurrence. Precious is a great thing for America because now we can think about sexual abuse – and talk about it – as a society. As if that weren’t enough, we also have Mo’nique to thank for a brilliant performance that will enlighten all of us who work with sexual abuse as to what underlies the horrible behavior.

Mo’nique’s poignant portrayal of Mary Jones, Precious’ mother, cannot leave you thinking that the abuser is a total monster. You see the vulnerability and loneliness that makes her desperate enough to hurt her daughter. If you are a mental health professional, you will see the attachment wound, gaping and raw, and you may be angry, but you will also feel compassion or some cousin of compassion (pity? sympathy?) in the face of Mary Jones’ direct humanity.

Violence in families is system-wide. Mo’nique’s acting (for which she received a much-deserved Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role) will help everyone treat the members of the system with more understanding than ever before about the roots of family violence. If the mental health profession gave out awards, she should get one. You’ve heard of an Emmy? You’ve heard of a Grammy? Mo’nique gets a Healthy. Not that she was healthy, but that her performance will help those of us who treat people who are trying to get healthy. Her category? “Most Impact by an Actor in a Film”,

Precious could so easily have turned into the grim depiction of a life with no hope or a slick tale of personal gumption and happy endings. This film is neither. It is realistic and sad without being despairing, and optimistic without being too-good-to-be-true. And it will change the way America talks about abuse in families. Society is ready for the story, and the story will help society deal with domestic violence in a more complete and honest way (when used for education and discussion).

- by Sheira Kahn, MFT