Directed by:
Tate TaylorScreenplay:
Tate TaylorCinematography:
Stephen GoldblattComposer:
Thomas NewmanCast:
Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, Jessica Chastain, Ahna O'Reilly, Allison Janney, Anna Camp, Christopher Lowell, Cicely Tyson (more)Plots(1)
Based on one of the most talked about books in years and a #1 New York Times best-selling phenomenon, “The Help” stars Emma Stone as Skeeter, Viola Davis as Aibileen and Octavia Spencer as Minny — three very different, extraordinary women in Mississippi during the 1960s, who build an unlikely friendship around a secret writing project that breaks societal rules and puts them all at risk. From their improbable alliance a remarkable sisterhood emerges, instilling all of them with the courage to transcend the lines that define them, and the realization that sometimes those lines are made to be crossed — even if it means bringing everyone in town face-to-face with the changing times. (official distributor synopsis)
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An above-average soap opera that, through a sequence of lightweight episodes (not a single scene fully conveys how serious the situation in the South really was), capitalises on the myth of progressive young people who made the United States a better country in the 1960s. The story with a big heart is stuffed into a hermetically sealed bubble conveying the contemporary socio-political context to the trapped characters only through television and radio. The film refuses to take into account what happened in the real world, just as the white ladies refused to acknowledge their servants’ status as human beings enjoying full rights. The Help is even more consistent in denying the existence of bad, bad things than the similarly simplified Precious, unlike which The Help offers a likable white protagonist for the white audience to identify with. I welcome the effort to make a women’s film, though melodramatic only in moments and not in its overall structure, and I respect the need for a purgative spectacle that turns a humiliating defeat into a proud victory, but to accept the simplification of a serious historical subject into almost family entertainment with all of the ideological perversity concentrated into a single ultra-bitch strikes me as supremely conformist. 55%
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When I watched the movie "Black and White World," I wondered how Americans perceive it. I am sure they see it as a drama that depicts a story, but do they realize that this is about their parents, or maybe even themselves? Are they capable of acknowledging that in their relentless freedom they were actually quite nasty and despicable? A nation that is so proud of itself understood equality 40 years ago, yet in some states, they still reject it. But to reassure us that they are progressive, they elect a black - pardon, African American - president, who is still, however, a mixed race. Sometimes I think how great it would be to live in America, but sometimes this idea deeply repulses me. Everything has its merits, but the story of the black women, who are no worse than any of us - and perhaps even better - is truly a powerful testimony that manages not to get lost in the swamp of pathos. The outstanding performances of the actors were rightfully awarded an Oscar or at least a nomination. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2012/04/diar-milovnika-filmu-c-0003-eastwood.html
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Almost a full rating. The Help is a film with a very strong story and a premise that has played a significant and unsavoury role in the history of the United States, yet I think it could have been executed in a much stronger and more cinematically imaginative way than Taylor did. It has everything, from brilliant actors to Newman's harmonious music, and great sets, yet it’s somehow dull and for a good part of its 140 minutes it pretends to be a gripping human drama rather than actually being one. I felt a bit as if the director was thinking more about the members of the Academy than the ordinary audience and followed a fixed and very popular template in Hollywood. But on the other hand, it works beautifully, and in tandem with all the wonderful actresses, his efforts to move and impress with the serious premise are almost 100% effective, or at least I was perfectly at home with his narrative after the slower start, when the characters begin to emerge beautifully. Unfortunately, the expected climax was somewhat disappointing, and the rush of classical sentimentality and excessive naive moralising made me groan unhappily. But in spite of its flaws and weaker moments, this was another unforgettable film that can make even lumberjacks cry just by looking at the face of the main character...Too bad. 4.5*
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A must-see feel-good movie about racial issues in upper middle-class USA in the 1960s. Paradoxically, the most black and white is the dosage of emotions, which is sometimes too simplistic and for effect – the vast majority of whites are superficial scumbags and the vast majority of blacks are good and model workers. But if you overlook this creative vice of pigeonholing characters in an otherwise interesting story, you get a number of scenes with a huge range of emotions that can grab you by the heart and move you appropriately. An intense viewing experience, a stimulating Oscar-winning film with a stellar cast and deservedly positive reviews.
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It's not as unequivocally great as, say, Spielberg's The Color Purple, but it's more than good enough. And not black and white at all. The script artfully mixes poignant stories with sensitive humor and doesn't need to show violence and other atrocities (which it certainly could have shown) to tell us what it wants to tell us. Moreover, it is not only about the theme of different skin colors, but also a pretty good critique of interpersonal and family relationships... You almost get the feeling that this film has everything. Including the somewhat bitter ending, which is even harsher in the book (and should have been in the film, see the omitted scenes on the DVD). Both of the main black actresses were amazing, and I really liked Emma Stone too, but I was absolutely thrilled with Jessica Chastain! The story of her uniquely acted character, about whom I didn't know what to think at first, ended up impressing me the most. Two hours and twenty minutes passed by like an hour and a half.
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