There are male viewers who will enjoy The Help, but Mississippi native Tate Taylor aims his adaptation squarely at the female readers who made Kathryn Stockett's novel a bestseller. If the multi-character narrative revolve... more »s around race relations in the Kennedy-era South, the perspective belongs to the women. Veteran maid Aibileen (Doubt's Viola Davis in an Oscar-worthy performance) provides the heartfelt narration that brackets the story. A widow devastated by the death of her son, she takes pride in the 17 children she has helped to raise, but she's hardly fulfilled. That changes when Skeeter (Easy A's Emma Stone) returns home after college. Unlike her peers, Skeeter wants to work, so she gets a job as a newspaper columnist. But she really longs to write about Jackson's domestics, so she meets with Aibileen in secret--after much cajoling and the promise of anonymity. When Aibileen's smart-mouthed friend Minny (breakout star Octavia Spencer) breaches her uptight employer's protocol, Hilly (Bryce Dallas Howard) gives her the boot, and she ends up in the employ of local outcast Celia (Jessica Chastain, hilarious and heartbreaking), who can't catch a break due to her dirt-poor origins. After the murder of Medgar Evers, even more maids, Minny among them, bring their stories to Skeeter, leading to a book that scandalizes the town--in a good way. Not since Steel Magnolias has Hollywood produced a Southern woman's picture more likely to produce buckets of tears (and almost as many laughs). --Kathleen C. Fennessy« less
Sharon F. (Shar) from AVON PARK, FL Reviewed on 10/3/2022...
This should become a classic and needs to be seen by the younger generation. It's a bit of history given to you in the form of a great movie. In this day and age, it's almost hard for the younger generation to believe that people of color were treated like that. I lived through it and so happy that we've come a long way, Baby!
1 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.
Jennifer D. (jennicat) from ST AUGUSTINE, FL Reviewed on 12/30/2014...
Loved the movie but it made me uncomfortable at times.
1 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.
Mary-Jo W. (mjowest) from SHELBYVILLE, MI Reviewed on 6/12/2014...
I had to wait years to see this movie, until I could find it at a sale! Worth every moment- one of my favorite all time movies. Unbelievable to know that this is how life once was. Great cast, great story. I loved it.
2 of 5 member(s) found this review helpful.
Pat E. (missionary) from BARBERTON, OH Reviewed on 12/10/2011...
This is the movie of the year. It's a roller coaster ride that doesn't let up for a moment. One minute you're crying, the next laughing till your stomach hurts, then wanting to scream your anger at the screen. It's one of the few movies that, at the end, the theater exploded with applause. Worth seeing many times.