United States in the 1960s and the civil rights movement is alive - but not in Jackson, Mississippi. The Help introduces us into the life of the people living there. To the rich, good-looking, young but married, white housewives, their families...and their African-American maids. While the housewives, who all have exceptionally annoying high-pitched voices, spend their days playing bridge, gossiping and organising charity events. Their maids are living hard lives, raising their employers' children and leaving their own children to themselves. Nobody cares about them - it's the way it has always been and always will be. Nobody, but Skeeter, a young, aspiring journalist and writer. She's friends with the gossip-posse but she is the only one with a job, a normal voice and the only one with a brain, or so it seems. She starts talking to the maids, gets to know them...and writes their stories into a book.
On the one hand, the film is dealing with a very serious and sensitive topic and it does so very well. It comes across as very authentic; historical events from that period of time, such as the assassination of President Kennedy, the civil rights rallies from Martin Luther King or the murder of Emmett Till, are mentioned and weaved into the plot. On the other hand, the film is supremely emotional - with emotions ranking from compassion, sadness, despair, hope and joy...but also a lot of humor, which prevents it from becoming too heavy. This outstanding mix is probably due to a large part to the cast; I especially liked Emma Stone as Skeeter, the young journalist.
This has been the first film in a while that I thoroughly enjoyed; definitely a must-see.
No comments:
Post a Comment