Film Reviews

The Help

• Rating:
• Director: Tate Taylor
• Starring: Allison Janney
• Details: US/TBC 137mins

One of the biggest hits of the year in America, The Help is a well acted and surprisingly sincere film that tackles the subject of race equality in America when it was still an ambiguous issue - especially in the south. Emma Stone is ostensibly the lead, but this is very much an ensemble film, and pretty much all of the cast are given a chance shine.
Stone plays Skeeter, a smart and intelligent young woman in small town 1960s Mississippi, who despite achieving the qualifications, can't be taken seriously as a writer or journalist. Coming home one day to find that the woman who raised her, Constantine, has "quit," she finds out that her Mother had in fact fired her. Disgusted, she sets about gathering other stories from "the help," and what they've gone through in order to write a book on their experiences.
One of the main issues for some with stories like The Help is that there always seems to be a (white) knight in shining armour that comes to the rescue of the downtrodden coloured folk. The best thing that this film does right is not tell the story from the point of view of Skeeter. Instead, the story is told through the eyes of Viola Davis's character, Aibileen - who Skeeter really wants to be part of the book. It's a smart move and the film stands out from the pack because of it.
It has a strong story, some characters you'll genuinely care about and some you'll hate. But it's far from perfect and has the common book adaptation problem of trying to squeeze in all of the characters and their subplots. Out of these Stone's is actually the weakest; she's the type of actress who can elevate a scene with just her presence and she brings more to Sketter than most could - but she's basically an observer.
Jessica Chastain shines as the unfairly ousted, newest citizen of Jackson, Mississippi and has already seen her stock rise significantly since the release of this film. She manages to evoke empathy and laughs - not easy in any production. But this is really a showcase for Davis and Octavia Spencer and both actresses grasp the opportunity with both hands. Spencer in particular delivers a great line towards the end.
That rare beast that most members of the family can enjoy together, it could've done with some shaving (it is over two hours long), but is still worth checking out.

Review by Mike Sheridan