“You is kind. You is smart. You is important,” are a few kind words from the film The Help directed by Tate Taylor. The story takes place in Jackson, MS in the early 1960’s, a time of racial tension full of hate crimes and segregation.
The film opens with Aibileen Clark, (Viola Davis), a black maid working for the Leefolt family, being interviewed by Eugenia, ‘Skeeter’ Phelan, (Emma Stone). Skeeter is a young 23-year-old girl aspiring to become a serious writer.
Just returning home from college, Skeeter is unlike her friends, and does not see skin color like they do.
Inspired by a rejection letter for a job at the famous publishing company, Harper and Row of New York City, she is determined to do whatever it takes to write a novel on the point of view from “the help.”
During this time period in the south, black women were hired as maids to basically raise the children of white families. When their children became adults, then those maids would raise their children and so on.
The Help is surely a dynamic movie containing many different themes. The film focuses on overcoming adversity in a variety of ways, equality for all, the idea of being true to yourself, and breaking the status quo.
When I sat down in the theater to see this film, I didn’t quite know if it was going to be a comedy, a tearjerker, or just a plain, boring film. Throughout this movie though, I doubled over laughing, I cried even after the movie ended, and I smiled to myself often from being able to relate to some of the characters.
Minny, (Octavia Spencer), was no doubt my favorite character. She had so much sass within her and I could definitely relate.
Along with a wonderful storyline, the cast of this movie was incredible. Emma Stone did an absolutely astonishing job of playing the role of Skeeter. As a young actress, she truly surprised me. Viola Davis did such a fine job in her role as Aibileen Clark that she frequently made me cry in many of her scenes.
This film is certainly not a chick-flick, and even though I was in the theater surrounded by middle-aged women, I would unquestionably recommend this movie to teen audiences and those older as well.
