# 266 – The Help

Emma Stone is having an amazing year, she is the newest upcoming A-list actress who is not only funny but seems absolutely adorable as a person as well. There is no reason not to like her and that is why I love her! I have liked all her characters and her takes on roles pretty much the last two and a half years. Crazy Stupid Love DVD just happens to be next to my computer right now – oh, joy! Since I have been a little slow with the posts (so sorry) I am finally going to write about The Help.

The story itself is based on a novel written about black women working as maids to these white women who are very mean. It was the time where skin color was a problem and it is shown in this movie pretty clearly but at the same time it shows two white women caring for these women like friends. As the movie progresses there are things that start to evolve from it all – one maid is a talented cook, the other a great nanny for this woman who herself is not really the mom-type. Although the movie tackles a lot of racial issues and parental matters, thinking back to this movie now, I can’t really recall the point to this whole story. I understand that it was to show a point of view of the black woman working at that time but I think the problem for me is the fact where the story originated. While I don’t doubt the fact that the author had some knowledge of the matter (born in the end of the 60’s and raised in Jackson, Mississippi – same place the story is happening) I still feel like her view is a bit crooked. As a kind of a proof to my argument I read that there was some issues with the way the typical black woman was portrayed – especially the life at their homes.

I am no expert on the matter, since I have absolutely no real idea what that time represents for the black women or the children raised by them – since Emma Stone portrayed a writer who had strong feelings towards her own maid/nanny – I am not gonna comment further with this criticism. Though looking past the racial issues that seem to hover over this movie a lot, I think it still has a great entertainment effect to it. It has cuts and vitality, the women in the movie are all strong in their own way and despite their skin color all equal as well. Chastain’s character was probably the most appealing cause she was so friendly and perky (there is no better way to describe her personality) but still everybody hated her and you can not help to feel sorry for her. So it does have a lot of appeal and friendliness to it – a nice weekend treat for the movie friends.

And as far as the casting goes, nice decisions were made since Octavia Spencer received a Golden Globe for her role and Jessica Chastain also got a nomination. Since I started with Emma Stone it is only fair if I end the post with her as well but sadly, as much as I love her, I liked Chastain’s character a bit more than Stone’s. Maybe the reason is hidden in Stone’s southern accent she took on for this role – I believed it but I did not love it. Anyway, Chastain was brilliant and Spencer as well, I mean she won the Golden Globe! But over all the movie gets about 3 out of 5 from me cause now after I have had the time to think about it I like it a bit less. Still love you though, Emma, so no worries!