The Help
Director: Tate Taylor
Cast: Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Cicely Tyson, Emma Stone, Sissy Spacek, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jessica Chastain,
In 1960s Mississippi, Southern society girl Skeeter (Emma Stone) returns from college with dreams of being a writer. She turns her small town on its ear by choosing to interview the Black women who have spent their lives taking care of prominent white families. Only Aibileen (Viola Davis), the housekeeper of Skeeter's best friend, will talk at first. But as the pair continue the collaboration, more women decide to come forward, and as it turns out, they have quite a lot to say.
Courage is a powerful theme in this film and nowhere is it illustrated more beautifully, than in the character of Skeeter and her desire to share the stories of the maids in her hometown of Jackson Mississippi.
One of the most powerful lines in the film is “Courage is not just about being brave…but rather, courage is daring to do what is right, despite the weakness of our flesh. Skeeter’s dream is to be a writer, but she wants to write the truth as she sees it…particularly the truth about how the women of color are treated in Jackson. Skeeter decides to bring this truth to light by writing a book, titled The Help, that tells the story of how these women are treated from the perspective of the maids, themselves. And while at first, Ms. Aibileen is very reluctant to share her story with Skeeter, she finds the courage to speak from her heart and tell Skeeter the truth of what her life has been like, as a woman of color, raising white babies and serving a white family. Abileen’s story is soon followed by Minnie’s story, and when the bigotry and hatred in their small town reaches a brutal climax, Skeeter sees that many other women have come together, all wanting to share their stories as well.
Love is also a powerful theme in this film, and it is illustrated beautifully in the bonds between the women of color and the people they care for. When Ms. Minnie (Octavia Spencer) meets Ms. Celia, there are many times throughout the story that she shows the flighty young woman love. She teaches Celia how to cook properly for her husband. When she finds Ms. Celia in her bathroom having a miscarriage, rather than going home, as she is told to do, Minnie comforts Celia and puts her to bed. Her love for Celia is returned when Celia takes care of Minnie after she is brutally beaten and Johnny show Minnie the grand dinner party they have prepared in her honor, and they tell Minnie that they want her to stay with them forever. Their love for Minnie is what gives her the courage to leave her abusive husband and save herself and her children from a life of pain and fear.
For Ms. Aibileen, who is the nanny for Ms. Leefolt’s daughter, Mae Mobley, she shows her love to the child by telling Mae Mobley every day that she is smart, she is beautiful, and she is kind. Since she has raised 17 white children, Aibileen believes that children are shaped by the world around them. Since Mae’s mother only addresses her daughter to scold her, Aibileen wanted to show the child that there is love and kindness in the world too…not just hate. Aibileen loves Mae and it is this same love that gave Aibileen the strength to tell her story.
The greatest illustration of love may be seen in Ms. Skeeter, herself. She wants to tell the story of these women and their lives, and although she is initially met with fierce resistance (because the women live in fear of being killed for their words) her kindness to Aibileen and Minnie inspires the other maids to share their stories with her as well. Her final story is woven from Ms. Skeeter’s memories of growing up with her own nanny, Constantine. When Skeeter is hiding because no one invited her to the dance, Constantine comforts her. Constantine gave Skeeter a wise and beautiful role model to look up to and it is clear, from the age marks we see on Constantine’s wall, that her love for the child was just as strong.
Although this film has a blatant attitude of bigotry and segregation that is wrapped in a pretty, sugar-coated package of Southern charm and hospitality, it has, at its core, a deeply emotional and well-told story of how love and the truth are able break down the walls of hatred to create a bridge for love, hope and forgiveness. The casting for this film is stellar, particularly for Emma Stone who portrays Ms. Skeeter and Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis who brought their stories to light on the page. I would highly recommend this film.
© 2021 Keriane Kellogg. All rights reserved.
Director: Tate Taylor
Cast: Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Cicely Tyson, Emma Stone, Sissy Spacek, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jessica Chastain,
In 1960s Mississippi, Southern society girl Skeeter (Emma Stone) returns from college with dreams of being a writer. She turns her small town on its ear by choosing to interview the Black women who have spent their lives taking care of prominent white families. Only Aibileen (Viola Davis), the housekeeper of Skeeter's best friend, will talk at first. But as the pair continue the collaboration, more women decide to come forward, and as it turns out, they have quite a lot to say.
Courage is a powerful theme in this film and nowhere is it illustrated more beautifully, than in the character of Skeeter and her desire to share the stories of the maids in her hometown of Jackson Mississippi.
One of the most powerful lines in the film is “Courage is not just about being brave…but rather, courage is daring to do what is right, despite the weakness of our flesh. Skeeter’s dream is to be a writer, but she wants to write the truth as she sees it…particularly the truth about how the women of color are treated in Jackson. Skeeter decides to bring this truth to light by writing a book, titled The Help, that tells the story of how these women are treated from the perspective of the maids, themselves. And while at first, Ms. Aibileen is very reluctant to share her story with Skeeter, she finds the courage to speak from her heart and tell Skeeter the truth of what her life has been like, as a woman of color, raising white babies and serving a white family. Abileen’s story is soon followed by Minnie’s story, and when the bigotry and hatred in their small town reaches a brutal climax, Skeeter sees that many other women have come together, all wanting to share their stories as well.
Love is also a powerful theme in this film, and it is illustrated beautifully in the bonds between the women of color and the people they care for. When Ms. Minnie (Octavia Spencer) meets Ms. Celia, there are many times throughout the story that she shows the flighty young woman love. She teaches Celia how to cook properly for her husband. When she finds Ms. Celia in her bathroom having a miscarriage, rather than going home, as she is told to do, Minnie comforts Celia and puts her to bed. Her love for Celia is returned when Celia takes care of Minnie after she is brutally beaten and Johnny show Minnie the grand dinner party they have prepared in her honor, and they tell Minnie that they want her to stay with them forever. Their love for Minnie is what gives her the courage to leave her abusive husband and save herself and her children from a life of pain and fear.
For Ms. Aibileen, who is the nanny for Ms. Leefolt’s daughter, Mae Mobley, she shows her love to the child by telling Mae Mobley every day that she is smart, she is beautiful, and she is kind. Since she has raised 17 white children, Aibileen believes that children are shaped by the world around them. Since Mae’s mother only addresses her daughter to scold her, Aibileen wanted to show the child that there is love and kindness in the world too…not just hate. Aibileen loves Mae and it is this same love that gave Aibileen the strength to tell her story.
The greatest illustration of love may be seen in Ms. Skeeter, herself. She wants to tell the story of these women and their lives, and although she is initially met with fierce resistance (because the women live in fear of being killed for their words) her kindness to Aibileen and Minnie inspires the other maids to share their stories with her as well. Her final story is woven from Ms. Skeeter’s memories of growing up with her own nanny, Constantine. When Skeeter is hiding because no one invited her to the dance, Constantine comforts her. Constantine gave Skeeter a wise and beautiful role model to look up to and it is clear, from the age marks we see on Constantine’s wall, that her love for the child was just as strong.
Although this film has a blatant attitude of bigotry and segregation that is wrapped in a pretty, sugar-coated package of Southern charm and hospitality, it has, at its core, a deeply emotional and well-told story of how love and the truth are able break down the walls of hatred to create a bridge for love, hope and forgiveness. The casting for this film is stellar, particularly for Emma Stone who portrays Ms. Skeeter and Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis who brought their stories to light on the page. I would highly recommend this film.
© 2021 Keriane Kellogg. All rights reserved.