Precious (2009) Black pain and rampant dysfunction makes for great Hollywood cinema, it seems. Push, the 1996 novel by the writer Sapphire, told the story of a morbidly obese and illiterate teen who’s a victim of both horrific physical abuse and incest, the latter resulting in two pregnancies and an HIV diagnosis. On page and on screen it’s a harrowing story to digest, but feature career-making performances from Mo’Nique, who won an Oscar, Mariah Carery and newcomer Gabourey Sidibe.
