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Following The Script
The Reel Geezers -- those reliable indicators of smart retirement-age Academy sentiments about current films -- are back in action on Indiewire. And as you might expect, they've totally rolled over for Precious. Like cocker spaniel puppies with their tongues and tails wagging. The screenplay is "superb," says Marcia Nasatir, and Lorenzo Semple, Jr. agrees. (God!) This is why Precious is going to be Best Picture nominated -- i.e., people and opinions like these.
"Not the usual 'hood movie, no men in it...no violence," says Semple. What? Precious is one of the most emotionally violent films I've ever seen -- that anyone's ever seen. For me, what happens between Mo'Nique and Gabby in that film is the emotional equivalent of that baseball-bat execution scene in Casino.
"The two social workers and a teacher are almost too good," Semple continues. "How do you pronounce Mariah Carey's name? And then there's the brilliant, brilliant Mo'Nique...not since Joan Crawford ...she is a bad mom."
"A monster mom," Nasatir echoes. "And then comes the scene when she explains herself, and I found myself literally gasping at this information."
Gasping at what exactly? At the notion that director Lee Daniels may be expecting audiences to extend a measure of sympathy to Mo'Nique's character because of her pathetic "what about me?" explanation? Or that there are actually mothers out there who are capable of treating their daughters this way?
There are two questions that the Geezers never raise or answer. Would they go to see Precious a second time? And if so, why?
Nasatir then says, "They also show a clip from Two Women, the marvellous Anna Magnani movie." She's confusing Two Women, a 1960 Vittorio DeSica film, with Rossellini's Open City ('45). Two Women costarred Sophia Loren, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Eleonora Brown and Raf Vallone.
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on November 24, 2009 at 6:46 AM
comment #1
Sean
says ...
Semple gets a lot of credit from me for having written THE PARALLAX VIEW and THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR as well as, you know, the BATMAN TV show. But: PRECIOUS? Really?
Posted by Sean
at November 24, 2009 7:35 AM
comment #2
coxcable
says ...
Good to see these two back after almost a year. These two have sat in more movie theaters than 99% of other critics... and it shows in their good taste, smart observations and snark-less humor.
They're were on the money about The Dark Knight.
Posted by coxcable
at November 24, 2009 7:44 AM
comment #3
coxcable
says ...
Dam, my grammar sux.
Posted by coxcable
at November 24, 2009 7:46 AM
comment #4
Chase Kahn
says ...
"The two social workers and a teacher are almost too good,"
Paula Patton is awful in "Precious" -- saintly and artificial.
Posted by Chase Kahn
at November 24, 2009 7:59 AM
comment #5
Floyd Thursby
says ...
Semple's name may be on Three Days, but David Rayfiel wrote the final screenplay, as he did for many of Pollack's films. Semple did, however, write the wonder Pretty Poison.
Posted by Floyd Thursby
at November 24, 2009 8:31 AM
comment #6
Jeffrey Wells
says ...
Rayfiel doesn't rewrite screenplays, or he didn't under Sydney Pollack. He added emotional flavoring, poetic nuance. He would give certain scenes the once-over so they'd play just so in an emotional sense. Pollack used to say he could tell Rayfiel that he wanted certain scenes in a script to have a mauve shading -- a certain mauve emotionalism, if you will -- and that Rayfiel would take the script and come back a week or two later and these scenes would be exactly that -- mauve.
Posted by Jeffrey Wells
at November 24, 2009 9:42 AM
comment #7
THE MovieBob
says ...
Finally saw.
http://moviebob.blogspot.com/2009/11/precious-based-on-watching-of-movie.html
The acting is AMAZING... even from Patton which is something such her character is such a one-note stock cliche.
The filmmaking... not amazing. Terrible, in spots. The "fantasy" scenes are awful (who in hell thought the "Two Women" skit was a good idea?) the symbolism is on-the-nose to the point of absurdity (I'm talking about the mirror and the ghastly "Precious is learning" montage) and the big "final battle" between Precious and Mary is every bit as bad as the "Oher single-handedly manhandles a roomful of armed dealers" nonsense from "Blind Side." It's an overdirected Lifetime movie with three great performances.
Posted by THE MovieBob
at November 24, 2009 12:06 PM
comment #8
Gabe@ThePlaylist
says ...
"Black people are scaaaary! Unless they're magical! Two thumbs up!"
Posted by Gabe@ThePlaylist
at November 24, 2009 12:11 PM
comment #9
cinefan
says ...
"For me, what happens between Mo'Nique and Gabby in that film is the emotional equivalent of that baseball-bat execution scene in Casino."
I remember Scorsese saying once that he felt the Age of Innocence was his most violent film because of the emotional violence the characters inflict upon one another. I myself think it's kind of intriguing to compare the emotional violence of Precious to, say, what you would find in an Edith Wharton or Henry James novel or film adaptation (the horror of emotional violence not being something race specific but universal and a prominent theme in great films and literature).
Posted by cinefan
at November 24, 2009 7:59 PM
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