PRECIOUS, A HUMAN HIPPOPOTAMUS IS NOT SO COOL?

Now that the circus surrounding the lead-character in the movie 'Precious' is over with the Oscar award lost and won, it is time for a reality check for this human-hippopotamus. Except there is something medically wrong with her which caused the over-weight, in which case this story is without prejudice; a character who literally lived herself (weight-wise) instead of acting, in a role that was wrongly pushed for an award during the last Oscars, then Icheoku frowns at the 'sight-disturbia' female version of the Michellin-tire Man for thinking and pretending that it is cool to be excessively over-weight.

How can any human being love food so much as to balloon into such a human boar-conscriptor or wild boar at just 26 years of age and still have the temerity to punish our psyche parading herself on the red carpet pretending that she is the it? By so doing, she tried albeit strangely though, to rubbish medical studies of so many years which finds that being over-weight is not healthy. Why does Precious want to negate the health hazards of such an over inflated body and consequently sabotage First Lady Michelle Obama's anti-obesity campaign in American children? Icheoku makes no apology to state categorically that Gabourey 'Precious' Sidibe is zoo-heavy and needs to immediately check herself into a health farm or better still, apply for a slot in the 'Biggest Loser' television show, the only true reality show with actual real time result. Another way out of her situation might be a gastronomical by-pass surgery to doctor her great obsession with food to protect her from eating herself to a sudden death by organ failure, heart attack, diabetes-related, or such other obese related death that may be concomitant to such an overweight body?

She and her managers must end the circus and realise that she is just being used for her human caricature of a morbidly obese person who provide gawkers with plenty of flesh to satiate their curiosity. Queen Latifah, Mo'Nique and even Oprah were once that bloated but have since wised up and gotten a handle on their previously super-sized anatomies. Gabourey must wake up and smell the coffee that she is just a mere 'beast' in a circus used solely for entertainment, and urgently end her exploitation as a side-show which provides some human-beings some laughter and not admiration.

Ordinarily, people gain weight to play roles in movies, the reason it is called acting; but when someone like Precious is engaged in a somewhat natural thing as exhibiting her overweight body, then it is no longer acting but becomes a reality television show? Will Smith once gained weight while portraying Mohammed Ali in 'Ali'; and body-suits are sometimes worn to depict obesity like Martin Lawrence did in Big Momma's House'. But to see Gabourey act her weight out sends a wrong message to American kids and children as well as adults world-wide that it is ok to be very obese. The message is not what doctor-health ordered and therefore is unacceptable; being a mere laughter at the obese humanity. Actresses and actors influence public opinion and Precious should not be an exception; she must realise that her weight is troubling and that it has the propensity to send a wrong message that it is ok to be death-heavy? Acting is different from reality television since it is all a make-believe, scripted story-telling; while the later is living-out the life; simply put it, acting is art imitating life and not the other way round. A movie is rated most times for its close depiction of a real life situation which is being brought to screen; but Icheoku wonders how in the world anyone in Hollywood would have glamorised the anomaly of an over-weight glutton, who loved food so much that she ate herself into an '800lbs gorilla'.

This writer must confess that he refused to see 'Precious the movie' to protest Gabourey's outrageous size; but is conversant with the story. The 'Push' by Sapphire inspired story of the triumph or effort thereof of the obese, illiterate, African American 16-year-old Claireece Precious Jones, an abused and used teenage mother of two by her incestuous father in their Harlem run-down Section 8 apartment, and how she escaped from their home, determined to turn things around assisted by her teacher/counselor? And the rest of the story goes on........! It is a good story but our objection is in giving that role to a natural since it removed the acting that is the hallmark of movies. Any other person would have been brought in to portray the obsessed victimised girl or are the Oprahs and her cliques of Hollywood telling us that it is ok to bring prostitutes, armed robbers, drug runners or even real soldiers and astronauts to actually live their lives out on our large screens? Or better still may be Lady Hurt Locker would have instead of going to Jordan to bring to our screens the lives of our brave men facing EIDS in Iraq, would have gone to the streets of Baghdad and with her cameramen, shoot real soldiers doing their thing? But how can anyone then judge such documentary or mistake it for a movie?

Icheoku says the worst thing that can happen to Gabourey Sidibe is to go on pretending that it is ok to be a human-walrus or default into a denial mode or just give in to what is. There is nothing really fine with the body of any morbidly obsessed person as it is not only a sore-sight for the eyes; but its associated health risks? Gabourey needs to dial the hot-line for the 'Biggest Loser' reality television show immediately; that will make a great television show with millions more people tuned in to see how their 'Precious' transformed into the biggest loser! It is a 911 time for GS. Icheoku calls on Gabourey to as a matter of utmost immediacy get hold of her weight, take control and do something to knock off some pounds. That way she will be cooler, sexier and healthier but not to remain as she presently is. It is the best thing to do and she should do it for herself as well as her fans all over the world; and as a testimony that reasonable body-weight is it!