On paper, the new movie “Precious” doesn’t sound like much fun: It’s the story of a 350-pound, illiterate black teenager impregnated for the second time by her dad and physically and verbally abused by her mom. It’s enough to send a girl galloping into the next showing of lighter fare like “Couples Retreat”! But the film industry buzz for “Precious”—from the illustrious Cannes Film Festival to this week’s cover of The New York Times Magazine—says the film is not to be missed. There’s even buzz about an Oscar for Mo’Nique, who stars as Precious’ monstrous mother, as well as accolades for the rest of the cast, including Mariah Carey, Paula Patton, Gabby Sidibe, and Lenny Kravitz.

“[The media] try to paint the picture that I was this downtrodden, ugly girl who was unpopular in school and in life, and then I got this role and now I’m awesome. But the truth is that I’ve been awesome, and then I got this role.”

—”Precious” star Gabby Sidibe in New York magazine [via Feministing]