at the suggestion of my friend jenny, i read this review of the movie precious. i'm not claiming to be an expert on anything but i am merely responding based on my point of view and basic knowledge of the film industry.
When Push Comes to Shove
david edelstein, amongst other things, found her appearance to be "shocking" and compared its use to a john waters film (he did the original hairspray.) commentators attacked edelstein's critique prompting him to engage in a defensive tit for tat with some of his attackers. some responses called him insensitive or ignorant, other responses touched on issues of race and class, and responders began responding to each other in what turned into a debate about the film and ultimately blacks in hollywood. the only thing that is clear to me at this point is that this film provokes a lot in people.
some people commented that the character looks exactly how she is described in the book and therefore that is why the particular actress was chosen. as if this was supposed to mute arguments about the weight and skin tone of the actress/character. not true. since when is the film industry known for accurately adapting anything? they could have easily gone with brandy, who supposedly was considered for this role years ago. but the filmmakers made a deliberate choice.
what exactly the film makers are trying to evoke with the appearance of the main character, i can't truly determine (for myself) until i see the movie. everyone will react differently based on their personal background, experiences, point of view, etc. but all people who think we are just supposed to ignore what she looks like and to focus on the "beauty within" are just fooling themselves.
putting race aside, hollywood loves to use "fat"/"ugly" people to show the beauty within. why? because these are motion pictures, they have to show us these people are the underdogs. and what better way to illustrate the idea by making them "ugly" or "fat". then these "underdogs" are supposed to push us to think that it doesn't matter what you look like, it's all about who you are.
still not convinced? go look at any movie with a makeover/choosing an important outfit montage: miss. congeniality, princess diaries, devil wears prada, bridget jones' diary, my big fat greek wedding, clueless, etc. look at television shows such as ugly betty or drop dead diva. even though the characters try to change how they look, we still love them for who they are and they learn how awesome they were pre-makeover, etc, etc, etc.
thoughts? am i being too cynical?
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