The Help 2011

     This film is based on a book written by Kathryn Stockett.  It’s the 1960's in Jacksonville Mississippi, everything in the town is divided between black and white.  The black women are maids in the houses of the white women and it's been this way for a long time.  There are published laws regarding the interaction and separation of the two races.  Skeeter Phelan is a southern society girl, a part of this white society but she sees things differently and she wants to be a writer.  She starts talking to Albileen Clark about what it is really like to be a maid.  Skeeter and Abileen encourage the other maids to begin to tell their stories.

    This is very good, it's a story that most of us don't know anything about.  Raising white children but not raising their own children.  Not being able to use the same bathroom used by their employer.   Cooking, cleaning and doing everything.  Facing the possibility every day of being fired for very little reason.  This film is emotionally intense and isn’t likely to appeal to young children.  It’s a historically relevant drama that mature tweens and teens can watch with their parents.  It teaches about segregation and the importance of racial equality.  It also shows that oppressed people have important stories to tell.  The language is tame for a PG-13 movie.  African Americans are referred to as negro and an adult restaurant worker is called boy by white patrons.  A character is obviously physical abused by her husband and a woman has a miscarriage.  Almost everyone in the 60’s smokes cigarettes and drinks.  4 1/2* (I really liked this movie)
 
146 min, Drama directed and written by Tate Taylor and Kathryn Stockett with Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, Jessica Chastain, Ahna O'Reilly, Allison Janney, Anna Camp, Chris Lowell, Sissy Spacek, Eleanor and Emma Henry, Cicely Tyson, Mike Vogel, Brian Kerwin.

Note:  Imdb 8.1 out of 10 with 412,170 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 76% with 226 critics 89% audience with 107,739 reviews, Roger Ebert 3*, RollingStone 3 1/2* Peter Travers, The Guardian 3* out of 5* Xan Brooks, Letterboxd 3.8* out of 5* with 703 fans, Metacritic 62 out of 100 with 41critic reviews (positive 24, mixed 15, negative 2), 7.9 out of 10 with 477 user ratings (62 positive, 15 mixed, 2 negative), Amazon 4.8* out of 5*, Common Sense Media Sandie Angulo Chen, age 12+, positive messages 3*, role models 4*, violence 2*, sex 1*, language 2*, consumerism 1*, drinking drugs & smoking 3*, dove.org 2* sex 5* language, 2* violence, 2* drugs, 2* nudity 2*, 2* vomiting, attitudes of disrespect and racism.

Special Note:  The book was rejected 60 times before it was eventually published.  Civil rights activist Medgar Evers was assassinated in Jacksonville Mississippi in 1963.  Real-life national news headlines of this event are used in this film.  Director Tate Taylor and Kathryn Stockett were childhood friends in Jacksonville Mississippi.  Skeeter’s real name is Eugenia, she has this nickname because when she was born, her leggy appearance caused her older brother to remark that she looked like a skeeter (mosquito).  Jessica Chastain is a vegan and she ate soy ice cream melted in a microwave to gain weight for the role of Celia Foote.