The Help

By Ken Whitney III

 

Octavia Spencer & Viola Davis

We are in limited supply of quality female talent in Hollywood. And to voice another qualm: There aren’t enough well-written female-driven films nowadays. That being said; say hello to ‘The Help’.

The story of an aspiring writer, Eugenia ‘Skeeter’ Phelan (Emma Stone) who, to get a dream job writing, must prove herself to a top-tier publishing company by writing a piece on what challenges or disturbs her. Living in Mississippi in the 1960’s, Skeeter gets more than she bargains for when she decides to pen the minds and opinions of the African American working class woman; more specifically, that of Aibileen Clark (played with powerful restraint by Viola Davis) and Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer in all her sassy glory).

 

THE PROS: A period piece like this runs the risk of feeling repetitive. Or even plagiarizing other films before it such as ‘The Color Purple’ and countless other films portraying racial injustice and the civil rights era. What it does is incredibly simple and yet- impressively right.The script makes it about the women. In every way (written from the novel of the same name by Kathryn Stockett). From our couragous maids to our growing young writer; from the aging, bigoted past generation to the now young, ignorant and hateful one that attempts to cling to it’s hateful comforts, The film keeps our gaze on the here and now of one little town and the women that make it what it is. Viola Davis is simply incredible. With the lack of diverse talent that resides in this type of business, Davis continually triumphs over the rest in never conceding that she needs to stick to what is expected of her from role to role. Turning heads in her small but astounding role in ‘Doubt’ (which earned her her first Oscar nomination) to taking powerful female roles like the District Attorney in ‘Law Abiding Citizen’,  Davis is finally given a chance to take front and center in a film and takes a character so humble that it can easily be forgotten. But I assure you, you will not forget Aibileen Clark. Octavia Spencer should not be overlooked either. With enough attitude to make anyone stand in attention and intimidation, Spencer’s Minny is coarse, rude, no-nonsense and with good reason. In a time where the black community is treated (as the Constitution defends) as 2/3 of a person in almost every way, A man couldn’t eat in the same building as a white man, the working class couldn’t earn minimum wage and African Americans weren’t even allowed to use the same restroom for fear of the white community contracting diseases. And when a person, no matter the color of their skin, is pushed so far, would you expect any less?

And what gives these women a reason to voice their pain and civil liberties to expose the truth? Enter Bryce Dallas Howard’s Hilly Holbrook. A Mississippi woman born and bread; Hilly personifies the white opinion in the south so well. Her racism is actually masked and coated in an ignorant form of reality that can easily be argued as her form of truth. From her subtle mistreatment of the maids that work in her home to the attempts at seeking to be perceived as righteous by throwing a benefit to feed the poor African youth, you cannot convince Hilly that she is wrong (in any way). As her mother Missus Walters (played with charm by Sissy Spacek) says, like her upbringing, ‘your father ruined you’.

THE CONS:  The character of Skeeter, bright eyed, energetic & hard-nosed, becomes uneven and unimportant as the story progresses. The novel is a 3-level story told from multiple perspectives; from Skeeter, to Aibileen down to Minny. And though, appropriately, Aibileen and Minny’s stories were focused on, Skeeter’s was sadly minimized almost to the point of unnecessary; only serving to move the plot forward (and only from time to time). Directed by Tate Taylor (in his first major studio film), his helming behind the camera helps portray characters and relationships nicely but sometimes tries too hard to be creative and takes you out of the moment in certain scenes.

Emma Stone

THE BOTTOM LINE: As stories go, ‘The Help’ doesn’t tell us anything we don’t already know. Only fifty years ago, the gap between classes extended further than just financially but also racially and we have, whether some may disagree, come incredibly far to open our arms and minds to those different from us. Thankfully we now have another rare gem of a film that tells the story from the eyes of strong women overcoming odds that were never thought to be challenged and give us a reason to believe that classic cinema is not dead. I hope the Academy does not overlook characters and performances this honest and real when awards season comes around next year. The performances of Davis, Howard & Spencer are ones that should not be overlooked and I wouldn’t be surprised if these three women were given the recognition they rightfully deserve. Let’s hope this revival isn’t a needle in a haystack, but a pearl in the ocean- only waiting to be found and brought to the surface.

GRADE: A