iloveblackmovies
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“The Help,” based on Kathryn Stockett’s bestselling novel,
is a quintessential, scrumptious, homemade peach cobbler
of a film that dishes out a heaping helping of good, old
fashioned Southern-style racism.
Staged in 1960s Jackson, Mississippi, during the civil rights
movement, director Tate Taylor’s movie illuminates the dark
episodes of our history as viewers will be tugged back and
forth between memorable moments of unbridled laughter
and heartwarming tears.
Led by the exceptional Viola Davis and Emma Stone, the
predominant female cast takes us on an emotional journey
through a rebellious period when Whites treated Blacks
with the raw sensitivity of bovine animals.
The intricate story begins with Ole Miss grad Skeeter
(Stone), a young white woman who returns home to find her
friends striking up an initiative to build outdoor bathrooms
for “The Help.”
She then decides to launch her journalism career with an
unprecedented, meticulous editorial based on the secretive
testimony of Aibileen (Davis), the subservient veteran
housekeeper.
For Skeeter, a prize in the form of a lucrative publishing
career awaits. For Aibileen, it’s simply a rare chance to
reveal a myriad of uncomfortable truths and secrets about
her lifelong profession.
Keep in mind, in ’60s Mississippi, freedom of speech is
anything but free. And the perilous sin of popping off at the
mouth carries a minimum penalty of instant unemployment,
if not the fatal loss of life itself.
In other words, both sides are literally laying it out on the
line.
In describing her hidden frustrations, Aibileen shared with
Skeeter the many imperfections of her employer, before
describing every indecent act tied to poor parenting and
child neglect. Upon learning Aibileen’s story alone wouldn’t
suffice, Skeeter is forced to recruit a dozen or so other
maids to appease the publishing company.
Aibileen’s best friend, the often resistant Minny Jackson
(Octavia Spencer), who was fired for inexplicably sitting on
her boss Hilly Holbrook’s toilet seat, was the first maid to
join the gossip coalition. Soon, every housekeeper in town
would offer her two cents.
As her former employer proceeded to black-ball her from
the local job market, Minny told the rather incendiary story of
how she gained sweet revenge by serving the insolent Hilly
a chocolate pie with her feces being the main ingredient.
Yep, Hilly was given a dookie pie. And she ate it.
UGHHHHH…. How disgusting?
“What did you put in this thing to make it taste so good?”
asked Hilly as she chewed on her chocolaty dessert at the
dinner table.
After several bites were swallowed, an animated Minny
boldly replied: “Eat my sh*t!”
And the rivalry was officially on.
Fortunately for Minny, the poop pie incident didn’t get her
killed. She eventually lucked up on a housekeeping gig
when blonde beauty Celia Foote (Jessica Chastain) hired
her on sight. Both parties were crackhead desperate for
each other’s services. So the union proved to be a match
made in Heaven.
Celia, who made a bad habit of burning fried chicken,
couldn’t boil water without incident. Her landscaping was
atrocious. And her house wreaked of deferred maintenance
stemming from poor care. Minny, who forced her teenage
daughter to drop out of school and join the maid service,
was simply elated to be back in the work force.
Like I said, the partnership worked out; albeit in a very
comical manner.
When all is said and done, everyone is forced to render a
crucial decision.
After learning the truth behind the mysterious absence of
her childhood nanny Constantine, Skeeter must decide
whether to go through with the publication; even if it
alienates everyone she’s close to.
For the maids of Jackson, it comes down to making the
sacrifices necessary to claim redemption.
Racial stereotypes aside, “The Help” is a wonderful
production that’s well worth the price of admission
regardless of sex, age or gender.
is a quintessential, scrumptious, homemade peach cobbler
of a film that dishes out a heaping helping of good, old
fashioned Southern-style racism.
Staged in 1960s Jackson, Mississippi, during the civil rights
movement, director Tate Taylor’s movie illuminates the dark
episodes of our history as viewers will be tugged back and
forth between memorable moments of unbridled laughter
and heartwarming tears.
Led by the exceptional Viola Davis and Emma Stone, the
predominant female cast takes us on an emotional journey
through a rebellious period when Whites treated Blacks
with the raw sensitivity of bovine animals.
The intricate story begins with Ole Miss grad Skeeter
(Stone), a young white woman who returns home to find her
friends striking up an initiative to build outdoor bathrooms
for “The Help.”
She then decides to launch her journalism career with an
unprecedented, meticulous editorial based on the secretive
testimony of Aibileen (Davis), the subservient veteran
housekeeper.
For Skeeter, a prize in the form of a lucrative publishing
career awaits. For Aibileen, it’s simply a rare chance to
reveal a myriad of uncomfortable truths and secrets about
her lifelong profession.
Keep in mind, in ’60s Mississippi, freedom of speech is
anything but free. And the perilous sin of popping off at the
mouth carries a minimum penalty of instant unemployment,
if not the fatal loss of life itself.
In other words, both sides are literally laying it out on the
line.
In describing her hidden frustrations, Aibileen shared with
Skeeter the many imperfections of her employer, before
describing every indecent act tied to poor parenting and
child neglect. Upon learning Aibileen’s story alone wouldn’t
suffice, Skeeter is forced to recruit a dozen or so other
maids to appease the publishing company.
Aibileen’s best friend, the often resistant Minny Jackson
(Octavia Spencer), who was fired for inexplicably sitting on
her boss Hilly Holbrook’s toilet seat, was the first maid to
join the gossip coalition. Soon, every housekeeper in town
would offer her two cents.
As her former employer proceeded to black-ball her from
the local job market, Minny told the rather incendiary story of
how she gained sweet revenge by serving the insolent Hilly
a chocolate pie with her feces being the main ingredient.
Yep, Hilly was given a dookie pie. And she ate it.
UGHHHHH…. How disgusting?
“What did you put in this thing to make it taste so good?”
asked Hilly as she chewed on her chocolaty dessert at the
dinner table.
After several bites were swallowed, an animated Minny
boldly replied: “Eat my sh*t!”
And the rivalry was officially on.
Fortunately for Minny, the poop pie incident didn’t get her
killed. She eventually lucked up on a housekeeping gig
when blonde beauty Celia Foote (Jessica Chastain) hired
her on sight. Both parties were crackhead desperate for
each other’s services. So the union proved to be a match
made in Heaven.
Celia, who made a bad habit of burning fried chicken,
couldn’t boil water without incident. Her landscaping was
atrocious. And her house wreaked of deferred maintenance
stemming from poor care. Minny, who forced her teenage
daughter to drop out of school and join the maid service,
was simply elated to be back in the work force.
Like I said, the partnership worked out; albeit in a very
comical manner.
When all is said and done, everyone is forced to render a
crucial decision.
After learning the truth behind the mysterious absence of
her childhood nanny Constantine, Skeeter must decide
whether to go through with the publication; even if it
alienates everyone she’s close to.
For the maids of Jackson, it comes down to making the
sacrifices necessary to claim redemption.
Racial stereotypes aside, “The Help” is a wonderful
production that’s well worth the price of admission
regardless of sex, age or gender.
The Help
Octavia Spencer, Viola Davis, Emma Stone
“The Help” is an outstanding movie. The reason why “The Help”
is so good is because it takes you back into the middle of the
Civil Rights Era and makes you completely understand the
struggle of the movement. And the reason why you understand
the plight of a group of housekeepers is because the cast does a
good job of drawing your emotion into their situation. The deal is,
a group of black maids have been treated poorly and decide that
it’s time for a change.
The plot is very strong but the best part of the movie is the
performances. The performances were best delivered through
the manipulation of emotions. Your attention will immediately be
hooked when you realize the favoritism towards particular
characters begins to form. You will see a whirlpool of sadness,
anger, happiness, and frustration from the beginning of the movie
to the end. Each character struggles with a related obstacle: that
of acceptance. The most engaging is Emma Stone (“Easy A”),
who plays Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan, and her struggle to reach
her mother’s high standards. True interpretations of a young girl
whose mother-made insecurities make her strive to break the
rules.
“The Help” focuses on a world where the Southern white women
trusted their black maids with raising their children but not with
particular household chores. Adapted from the best-selling novel
by author Kathryn Stockett (who grew up in Mississippi) the movie
portrays the oppressive relationship white women had over their
black maids. With the help of Skeeter and her aspirations to
become a big time journalist, this college graduate remains
focused on her career rather than getting hitched. In doing so,
Skeeter admittedly writes a story that could have mass
consequences by asking two black maids Aibileen Clark (Viola
Davis) and Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer) to share their life
stories.
Emma Stone’s most recent memorable performance in “Easy A”
can’t touch the outstanding dramatic performance that she
delivers in “The Help.” Stone more than proves that she’s more
than just a comedic actress. Equally as good is Viola Davis and
Octavia Spencer who both deserve Oscar nominations for their
solid but controversial performances. They may both play maids
but they do a phenomenal job of it by humanizing their characters.
Although “The Help” is an overall excellent movie, it does have its
flaws. The relationship between Skeeter and Stuart Whitworth
played by Chris Lowell (“Up in the Air”) was thrown into the mix
targeting the desires of helpless romantics; this was an un-
needed and rushed romance. Their storyline felt forced and to
make matters worse it included cheesy dialogue which almost
killed the flow of a near perfect movie. However, the overall movie
still contained a powerful message that will help you realize how
far we have come as a society and people. The ending wasn’t
depressing or all smiles, simply an idealistic view of what 1960’s
Mississippi was like.
is so good is because it takes you back into the middle of the
Civil Rights Era and makes you completely understand the
struggle of the movement. And the reason why you understand
the plight of a group of housekeepers is because the cast does a
good job of drawing your emotion into their situation. The deal is,
a group of black maids have been treated poorly and decide that
it’s time for a change.
The plot is very strong but the best part of the movie is the
performances. The performances were best delivered through
the manipulation of emotions. Your attention will immediately be
hooked when you realize the favoritism towards particular
characters begins to form. You will see a whirlpool of sadness,
anger, happiness, and frustration from the beginning of the movie
to the end. Each character struggles with a related obstacle: that
of acceptance. The most engaging is Emma Stone (“Easy A”),
who plays Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan, and her struggle to reach
her mother’s high standards. True interpretations of a young girl
whose mother-made insecurities make her strive to break the
rules.
“The Help” focuses on a world where the Southern white women
trusted their black maids with raising their children but not with
particular household chores. Adapted from the best-selling novel
by author Kathryn Stockett (who grew up in Mississippi) the movie
portrays the oppressive relationship white women had over their
black maids. With the help of Skeeter and her aspirations to
become a big time journalist, this college graduate remains
focused on her career rather than getting hitched. In doing so,
Skeeter admittedly writes a story that could have mass
consequences by asking two black maids Aibileen Clark (Viola
Davis) and Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer) to share their life
stories.
Emma Stone’s most recent memorable performance in “Easy A”
can’t touch the outstanding dramatic performance that she
delivers in “The Help.” Stone more than proves that she’s more
than just a comedic actress. Equally as good is Viola Davis and
Octavia Spencer who both deserve Oscar nominations for their
solid but controversial performances. They may both play maids
but they do a phenomenal job of it by humanizing their characters.
Although “The Help” is an overall excellent movie, it does have its
flaws. The relationship between Skeeter and Stuart Whitworth
played by Chris Lowell (“Up in the Air”) was thrown into the mix
targeting the desires of helpless romantics; this was an un-
needed and rushed romance. Their storyline felt forced and to
make matters worse it included cheesy dialogue which almost
killed the flow of a near perfect movie. However, the overall movie
still contained a powerful message that will help you realize how
far we have come as a society and people. The ending wasn’t
depressing or all smiles, simply an idealistic view of what 1960’s
Mississippi was like.
5 OUT OF 5 POPCORN BAGS
WAYNE HODGES SAYS:
WAYNE HODGES SAYS:
4 OUT OF 5 POPCORN BAGS
JESSICA YOUNT SAYS:
JESSICA YOUNT SAYS:
Cicely Tyson
Sissy Spacek
MOVIE/DVD REVIEWS
Read the complete review for movies that are currently
showing in a theater near you. Or if you want to find out what
our iloveblackmovies critics had to say about a movie that is
no longer showing in theaters, visit the movie archive.
showing in a theater near you. Or if you want to find out what
our iloveblackmovies critics had to say about a movie that is
no longer showing in theaters, visit the movie archive.
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