The Help [Review by Parsi]

The Help is a tender and well-loved film, at times rather beautiful and engaging.  The film comes together with its attention to detail and the strength of the acting.

The Help is not a film that delves into all of the horrors of life before the success of the Civil Rights movement.  It does not paint with broad strokes in an attempt to cover the entirety of a struggle that took too long to come to pass (and in many ways has yet to pass).  The goal is not grandiose.

Instead, The Help is the story of a group of women in Jackson, Mississippi.  It is a moment in time as experienced by a set of characters.  Some may demand more from a film that deals with such a heavy time and subject.  But, I do not think that is the point of the film or the book that inspired it.

The White characters in this film are not monstrous racists.  They do not brandish guns or nooses or white hoods.  They are far more insidious, they appear kind and civic-minded, but they are racist to the core.  Beneath their social graces, they are hateful creatures.  This, is the reality of the -isms.  Monsters are hurtful.  But those who appear to be kind and lovely and normal, may also be just as terrible and destructive as those who wear their hatred on their sleeve.  The Help is about this other form of racism.

Of course, the film does not ignore the greater horrors of the era.  In one particularly poignant scene a bus load of people is informed of the killing of a Black man (later revealed as Civil Rights leader Medgar Evers) in Jackson.  We see the fear in Aibileen (Viola Davis) as she runs home.  With few words we are gripped by the terror of the period.

The Help also conveys the story wrapped in the arms of a humor-peppered feel-good chick flick.  While some may be left with the feeling that the genre takes lightly the seriousness of the message, I hope it is a sign of the emergence of a more conscientious movement in the often denigrated genre.

Even if people disagree about the focus and impact of the film or the book.  It at least gets people talking about these issues.  That, in and of itself, is worthwhile.

But, the true success of the film is the outstanding acting.  The performances of Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis were particularly strong.

Spencer plays Minny Jackson.  She warns her daughter to not sass-mouth because she possess a rather sassy mouth herself.  Spencer beautifully captures the ups and downs of her character.  She carries her attitude on her expressive face in a way that is impossible not to admire.  She is exquisite and easily handles transitioning from comedic to tragic scenes.  She is a star.

Davis is impressive in the lead role of Aibileen Clark.  In the opening scene of the film she explains that she had no choice but to be a maid because her mother had been a maid and her grandmother had been a house slave.  She had no choice and she carries her burden with a palpable heaviness.  She treats the characters with an evident tenderness.  The subtlety in her performance is strong.  When overhearing statements of utter intolerance her facial reactions are more than words could ever express.

Jessica Chastain also does a remarkable turn as Cecelia Foote, an ostracised woman from the wrong part of Mississippi.  The irreverence and spunk of her character are matched well with her sincerity.  She dances across the film.

The whole cast does a great job, the one disappointment is Emma Stone as Skeeter.  Her performance was a bit muted for my taste, which was surprising because Stone is often a dynamic performer.

The period elements bring the film together.  Great attention is paid to make the period feel right.  Writer/Director Tate Taylor did a great job.  He holds moments well and does an admirable job of bringing the book to the screen.

There are some things I was not a huge fan of.  The film drags at times, after the opening scene the story takes a while to get into.  The central story also seems like a moving target with focus shifting between Aibileen and Skeeter as the film’s central character.  I also thought some elements of the film felt like throw aways, like Skeeter’s relationship.

The film is not a grandiose, morose film about the horrors of the Jim Crow South.  But it is not intended to be.  It is successful at its goal of highlighting one aspect of life in the South during this period and a more insidious aspect of racism.  The film is charming and emotionally gripping.  It is a well told story by actresses in command performances.

PARSI VERDICT:  Strong acting and a well told story make this a worthwhile film that will hopefully inspire further discussion.

See what the other half thinks: Haus’s view.