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The film
Push: Based on the Novel by Sapphire starring Mo'Nique,
Lenny Kravitz, Mariah Carey, Sherri Shepherd and newcomer Gabourey Sidibe premiered
at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival on Friday, January 16. Mariah arrived at
Park City, Utah with husband Nick Cannon whose film
The Killing
Room is also playing at the festival.
Push, which
tells the story of Precious Jones, a young girl in Harlem struggling to
overcome tremendous obstacles and discover her own voice, is one of the 16
films competing in the festival’s prestigious U.S. Dramatic Competition.
Mariah attended the premiere with the film’s director Lee Daniels (producer of
Tennessee), author Sapphire, and several cast members such
as Mo’Nique, Gabourey Sidibie, Paula Patton and Kimberly Russell. Actor
Robert De Niro and singer Robin Thicke also attended the premiere.
IndieWIRE reports that the film was greeted with a
standing ovation.
Reviewer John Anderson for
Variety calls the film “courageous and
uncompromising, a shaken cocktail of debasement and elation, despair and hope.
[… ]
Among the many delightful surprises in the film is Mariah Carey,
who is pitch-perfect as a welfare counselor and serves as this demi-tragedy's
Greek chorus. It's possible that many viewers won't recognize her until the
final credits, but like so many things about "Push," the performance
is disarming.
Evany Thomas, a blogger for the official Sundance Film Festival
website reviewed the film and Mariah’s performance
in it: “The star of the film, Gabourney Sidibe, is amazing and so cute in her
strapless satin premiere finery. But I’m especially shattered by Mo’Nique and
Mariah Carey, both of whom give performances so transformative that they’re
basically unrecognizable. I really don’t know how director Lee Daniels managed
it.â€
Gabourey Sidibe told the
press that "Mariah is really good in this
movie. Both Mariah and Mo'Nique are wonderful, so it was awesome for me to work
with them. I learned a lot from Mariah."
In the film, Mariah plays Mrs. Weiss, a welfare case worker who takes care of Precious Jones.
Reuters: With her stringy hair and no nonsense attitude, Mrs. Weiss is far from the glamorous role Carey took in 2001's "Glitter".
In a
recent interview, director Lee Daniels said about
Mariah: “People think Mariah Carey can't be funny, and that's why I think I
love her. Because she's a consummate professional . I think people think she
wakes up and she's glam. She's a hard-ass worker! She works pretty hardcore.
She can handle anything that comes, and I was really surprised.â€
Daniels added that he cast Mariah in
Push after seeing the
great work she did on
Tennessee: “I was so pleased with her
work and her work ethic and our friendship has blossomed and our trust has
blossomed. I went against the grain and cast her in something that was
completely different for her with
Push. That was like
departure of the century for Mariah Carey.â€
Videos of Mariah interviewed in Sundance:MTVAccess HollywoodExtra TV (includes footage from the film!)
Below are photos from the film’s luncheon and photo call, red carpet premiere
and Q&A, the after party for the film (January 16) and the
Push press conference (January 17) at the 2009 Sundance Film
Festival.
