Quote:
Originally Posted by DrPhil
But Precious is the kind of movie that will always resonate with white folks, especially white film critics like Roger Ebert and the film festival crowd who have raved about it. Because, in the end, they want to believe we're "strong" enough to transcend the most horrific of circumstances like Precious, and that on some level they played some part in the triumph. Just look at the casting. Daniels has been lauded as a genius for his quirky casting choices in Precious, and yet the overt colorism only adds to what makes this movie ultimately unwatchable for me. The only people who showed Precious any kindness, any cover, any hope -- Paula Patton, Mariah Carey, Lenny Kravitz -- are all light-skinned. The din of depravity she suffers her entire life, of course, comes at the hands of dark-skinned Blacks. Hmmm....
I hear what she's saying but it's way too easy to pick the most obvious things and scream "Eureka!" I'm so tired of hearing about what white folks might think and colorisms (or, more accurately, biracialisms). I was more interested by your buddy's assessment of the pathology and so forth.
|
The light-skinned vs. dark-skinned motif is something the casting directors carried over from the novel. It's a reflection of Precious's own feelings about beauty and how she views the world around her. So there's no one to blame but Sapphire for creating the character to feel that way.
I loved the book. I read it in my women's studies class my freshman year of college and cried my eyes out. I've been hearing about this movie, Precious, on Twitter and whatnot, but I haven't seen any trailers--up until I read this thread tonight I had no idea they were the same story. I'd like to see how they translate the story to film.