From time to time, I find myself drifting from having no interest in a film, to hesitantly checking it out for one reason or another. No factor forces my hand more than awards season (Thanks again for THE BLIND SIDE Oscar voters), so it was with trepidation I sat down to take in THE HELP.

My expectations might have worked in THE HELP’s favour – namely, they were low (I find that I’m often wary of movies based on pulp bestsellers). Happily, my low expectations were exceeded, not only by how handsome this film looks (Is Jackson, MS really that pretty lookin?), but also by the commanding performances put in by Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer. They play their parts as two women who live and work rather differently, but share a deep-rooted kinship that has been forged through the intolerance they continually face.

While THE HELP wanders over the obvious line a few times through the course of the story, it does a lot of things very right. Not the least of these right decisions, is the way in which it ducks the cliche of “White person helps black person overcome hardship”. The story structures itself in a way that has Skeeter striking the match, but ultimately relies on Aibeleen and Minny to stoke and tend to the fire. They and the other maids are the ones taking the risk and telling the tale, Skeeter is mostly there to document and spread the word.

While I enjoyed what Emma Stone brought to this movie, I was left scratching my head at the way the film tried to hand her status as “odd duck”. You know how most teen movies try to disguise the pretty girl by giving her overalls and a ponytail? In THE HELP, the filmmakers have tried to separate Stone from the heard by giving her an odd head of curls which never looks right. Stone gives Skeeter the perfect amount of pluck – she didn’t need ringlets to help her achieve that.

The film is not without flaw – or obviousness now and then – but perhaps what works against it the most is its runtime. THE HELP is a rather unnecessary two hours and twenty minutes, and I cant hep but believe that the film could have trimmed off twenty minutes of white people.

The film is a showpiece for some of the best actresses working in film (watch for a firecracker performance by Jessica Chastain), and unexpectedly snaps beautifully on blu-ray. It’s proof that Viola Davis is one of the very best actresses in Hollywood, and that stories of social justice can come with a lot of dignity and grace.

So that’s the thing about awards season – it can point you towards some unexpected cinematic beauty. For some it might be smaller indie films that make for unexpected beauty; for me, it’s mainstream films that offer more than their poster promises.

13 Replies to “THE HELP”

  1. I thought it was a nice film, and Davis, Spencer and Chastain gave really good performances, but I do not get the Oscar buzz the film itself is getting. If they have to go small, there are films like MMMM out there.

    1. Actors’ showcase, based on a huge best-selling novel, highly profitable, speaks to Hollywood’s liberal side – not hard to get the Oscar buzz at all, I think.

        1. I’m not entirely sure of this film’s Oscar chances for Best Picture, but I’d wager that you’ll see at least two of the women land nominations for their performances- which you must admit, would be well-deserved.

  2. Acting-wise, Emma Stone was the weak link in ‘The Help,’ I thought. She wasn’t bad – being surrounded by so much superior talent would’ve made it difficult for any young actress to keep up – but her accent kept coming and going, which kinda bugged me. Still, I wanna see this film get the SAG Ensemble win.

    1. Actually I enjoyed Stone much more than Bryce Dallas Howard in this film – but I know precisely what you mean: By and large, Stone is overmatched. A SAG Ensemble win would certainly be well deserved!

  3. I feel a bit bad for The Help, because I think were it not such a commercially successful film the backlash would not have been as harsh – it has issues, just like some indies have issues. And, I think it’s a fairly good films with some interesting performance. For me, though, the standout is Jessica Chastain – who shall, perhaps, not be remembered in this large ensemble and the the slew of films she has out this year.

    1. Is there a backlash? I think if this film is suffering from a backlash, it’s the same sort of backlash films of its ilk always run into. I mean, it might not be a movie that’s meant for me…but that doesn’t make it a bad film per se.

  4. I thought this film was awesome, mainly because I saw it just after reading the book and it did a pretty good job of bringing it to the screen. And I cried like, five times during the film, haha.

    I hope that Jessica Chastain gets an Oscar nom for her performance, as this one seems the most likely of hers to snag a nomination. I think that Davis and Spencer will definitely get in. They were just as I’d hoped they would be from reading the book. But Celia was always my favourite character, and Chastain did such a great job, so of course I’m rooting for her the most.

    1. Quite a few people told me they loved it as much as you did. I’m somewhat curious to read the book, but might feel a bit embarassed to do so in public given its reputation for being a bit fluffy.

      Chastian has had an amazing year, and while I preferred her work in TAKE SHELTER just *that* much more, I’d certainly like to see her get some kudos. Of course, if she did, it’d likely cost Spencer any chance she has at taking home the prize.

  5. It happens to me too — the awards season makes me want to catch those movies I didn’t have intention to watch originally. As for The Help, it was my anticipated film of the year for I loved the trailer and I love stories like this no matter how non-original they are. Glad that you changed yor opinion on it.

    1. I was glad to finally catch up with it, and I wager there will be a few more of these in the coming weeks. Have you ever read the book this is based on – I hear it’s pretty good.

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