Actual grade: 8/10
(For a full explanation of my grading system, check out this post.)
Anticipating the release of the film adaptation of the wildly popular novel THE HELP, there have been several articles published discussing the movie/book's "appropriateness." Millions of people love it, as evidenced by its many weeks on the Best Seller list. Some, on the other hand, have found it (specifically the book) problematic. Much of it is written in first-person narrative from the point of view of black maids in Jackson, Mississippi during the Civil Rights movement, including exaggerated dialect. This in itself is not the problem. The problem, they say, is that the novel was written by Kathryn Stockett -- a modern-day white woman. I have followed these critiques with interest. However, as I am neither a Civil Rights historian nor someone who grew up during that time period, I don't feel like I can contribute anything extraordinarily meaningful to the conversation. I will therefore be critiquing the film on its own merits as a moviegoer, and will leave the debate on the "appropriateness" to others.
I personally thoroughly enjoyed the novel -- I found it both informative and moving -- and I love just about everyone in the cast. I therefore went in expecting a great film. What I got just about met those expectations. I say "just about" and wavered in what Actual Grade to give the film because while some parts soared and exceeded my expectations, other parts I found slightly underwhelming, though not to the point of dampening my experience.
This film is anchored by a tour-de-force performance by Viola Davis as Aibileen, the maid who first sets out to help Skeeter Phelan (Emma Stone) write a novel from the point of view of the "help." Aibileen was a wonderful character in the novel. As brought to life by Ms. Davis, she is a force. Her expressions and words manage to capture the deeply rooted pain of her past, the fear of her present, and the cautious optimism of her future -- all at the same time. This is acting at its most masterful. Ms. Davis is reason enough alone to see this film.
The rest of the large supporting cast delivers finely-tuned performances as well, though they all reside in Ms. Davis' shadow. Octavia Spencer is hilarious as Minny, Aibileen's large and sass-mouthed friend. Allison Janney is wonderfully frustrating as Mrs. Phelan, who wavers believably between rigid Southern mother and loving, proud parent. Jessica Chastain is adorably flustered as the oblivious Celia Foote. Sissy Spacek is fun as an increasingly senile old woman. Oh, and there's a delightfully surprising cameo for fans of HBO's True Blood. I won't spoil it here or it wouldn't be surprising.
The best supporting performance goes to Bryce Dallas Howard, who is given the thankless job of playing the villain -- in this film's case Hilly Holbrook, a truly revolting Southern housewife who believes that every maid should have her own outdoor toilet to avoid the spread of disease. It was impossible not to scoff as she warned Skeeter, "There are real racists in this town." It is a mark of her skill, however, that I did not simply hate her. I did hate her, but I also felt sorry for her, as Ms. Howard managed to let her character's vulnerabilities and insecurities surface just enough beneath the veneer of her polished racism to make Hilly human.
Emma Stone is charmingly wonderful (as is to be expected) as the passionate Skeeter. However, her character is the most "problematic" to me. She starts off as an inexplicably progressive young woman the first time we meet her. Sure, she went to college and none of the other women of the town did, so she's more worldly-wise. But it was Ole Miss, not NYU. And sure, she loved Constantine, the maid who raised her. But all the women were raised by their own maids. None of this really explains why Skeeter is so much more open-minded than anybody else. And then at the end she is pretty much the same -- still the most open-minded person in town. She verges on being more of a plot device than a character. I can see how some people were rankled by the idea that the black maids needed a white woman to "save" them, although I don't entirely agree that that's what the story is about. (I said I wasn't going to talk about the "appropriateness" and I did. Good job, Jefferson.) Anyway, none of this is the fault of Ms. Stone, a delightful actress who does her best with what she's given.
The aspect in which I felt the film failed to deliver quite as masterfully as the acting was the directing. The film is a very faithful, literal adaptation of the novel, which most fans will appreciate. However, I wish the director, Tate Taylor had put more personal style into the film than mere translation -- it felt like he was afraid of taking any liberties for fear of angering fans of the book. This may also be due to the fact that he is childhood friends with Ms. Stockett, the author. Being such a close friend with her, perhaps he felt like he couldn't mess with her work. Most directors obviously don't have that problem, as they continually butcher scripts written by people they don't know from Adam. Just like best friends don't always make the best roommates, maybe it's not always to your advantage to be so close to the person whose novel you're turning into a major motion picture that will be reviewed by every amateur with a laptop (yep, that's me). Talk about pressure.
Mr. Taylor also seemed relentlessly determined to make this film upbeat. And while the novel was definitely optimistic and hopeful, it was also very dark and sad at times. Reading it, I felt I understood the real sense of danger these maids faced in sharing their stories with Skeeter, since the consequences were made very clear, as was the violence happening all around them. Mr. Tate attempts to gloss over these dangers (the only instances of actual physical violence all occur off-screen), I feel to the film's detriment. How much more courageous would these women seem if we really understood the risk they were taking? There is a scene where the preacher at Aibileen's church gives a sermon about courage. It's supposed to be what convinces Aibileen to share her story with Skeeter. He says, "Courage isn't just about being brave. It's about overcoming fear and daring to do what is right for your fellow man." A fine sentiment, but without providing the audience a firm grasp on the "fear" these people are faced with, they are just words.
If I could judge this film on the performances alone, I wouldn't hesitate to give it a 9/10. However, the slightly underwhelming direction required me to lower the score a tad. But it still sits at a very respectable 8/10. There is very little changed between the novel and the film, so those who found the novel problematic will undoubtedly find the film the same. Those who loved the book are bound to love the film, as I did. And if you are one of the few who hasn't read the book, I urge you to go see THE HELP with an open mind. It is hysterical, it is sad, it is infuriating, it is uplifting. My whole audience was alternately rolling in the aisles at Minny's antics with a chocolate pie, gasping at the unbelievable ignorance of Hilly, and then of course crying quietly (or not so quietly) at the devastating honesty of Ms. Davis' performance. I will admit that my own eyes were not entirely dry as the credits started rolling. And that means THE HELP has the distinction of being the only movie this summer that has made me cry -- a feat even the final chapter of Harry Potter didn't accomplish. And that's saying something.
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