The Help (Tate Taylor, 2011): US

Reviewed by Natanya Maskart. Viewed at the Metro 4 Theatre, Santa Barbara.

It was a beautiful sunny Friday morning when I waited in line at the Metro 4 theatre in downtown Santa Barbara, anxiously awaiting to see The Help. My anxiousness came not from having a lot of knowledge about the film, but mostly because of the great reviews it had gotten which you could tell was true based on the huge crowd that showed up to see it. As I entered the theatre and sat down the show began to start. When the movie first started I didn’t know exactly what to expect. As I sat there with my open mind I was entertained by the first ten minutes.

The acting in this film was so incredible and I was so happy to see one of my favorite actors Emma stone be one of the main characters named Skeeter. Along side with Emma Stone was Octavia Spencer playing Minnie Jackson and Aibileen Clark played by award winner Viola Davis who I had the opportunity to hear her speak while accepting a virtuous award. As the film continued on we as an audience and viewer really got to see the emotional roller coaster African American women faced on a day to day basis just trying to survive in the world and make ends meet. At some points in the film their was comedy and laughter and at others I felt very sad and emotional to see how some would treat their help, like building a bathroom outside of their home because they didn’t want people of color using their personal toilets. The racism that I saw in this film is a portrayal of how it was in the south for African Americans and the different hardships they faced, but the movie gave off a theme, or a message, that speaks to many generations, not just those living in the time era of the film.

Before I saw the film, I was very excited, but mainly I just thought it would be a good film that would keep me entertained for an hour and a half or so and then I would go home and carry on with my day. However, after seeing this film, I left with a different feeling than I had ever anticipated. It made me happy to see a movie about someone who was dedicated to a cause, like Skeeter was, and was willing to risk her entire reputation in a time where reputation was everything, for the greater good of human rights. However, at the same time it made me feel ashamed that our nation even went through such a negative time, full of hatred and discrimination towards African Americans. Yet it also raised thoughts in my head about the status of our country today, and while it is not nearly as bad as it was 60 years ago, we still have prejudice and discrimination happening around us every day. Although it may not be simply a black vs. white issue today, we still deal with issues regarding gender, race and sexual orientation all around us. This film helped to shed light on the inequalities that were happening in our country half a century ago, but also shed light on the fact that we must still fight for equality today, and that we should all be equal, whether rich, poor, black, white, gay, lesbian, man or woman. I think that is a must see film for everyone to see.