The Help

[Mugsy]

Loved the book and am really looking forward to the movie. Although I had my own casting ideas in my head while reading, I'm quite happy with everyone they chose.
I'm seeing all sorts of ads for it, but no one here has mentioned seeing it yet, even though I thought it opened Aug. 11.
I haven't seen it playing anywhere in Canada yet.
Has anyone seen it?

[comfortablynumb]

I know two people who have seen it, and they say it is OK, but the book is MUCH better. Which it usually is.

[bklynred]

As I know the author, I'm biased, but really amped that they got so many big names involved. I don't think Skeeter was meant to be as attractive as Emma Stone, but besides that, I think the casting is spot-on. She worked on this book for years....I'm so excited for her success (getting a book deal, then having that book spend more than 24 weeks on NYT bestseller list, to start). Kitty's a sweetheart, and definitely wrote this from the heart.

[Deleted]

There seems to be a lot of controversy around this novel, what are your thoughts about that, Greecies?

[Neurochick]

Some critical reviews.

Five reasons to not see The Help.

Review, The Help, a feel good movie for white people.

The Associate of Black Women Historians writes an open letter to fans of The Help.

[petitesuite]

I thought it was far better than the book--my problems with the book can be summed up in Neurochick's links, but I thought that Skeeter seemed much, much less like a central character in the movie, which helped. My other main issue with the book was that the way all the black characters spoke was written out phonetically while the way the white characters spoke was written in correct English--obviously, not so evident in the movie. Emma Stone did an excellent job, as did Octavia Spencer.

[chonies]

Great links, neurochick!

That said, I wonder if this a Catch-22 of sorts. Boycotting the movie means missing an opportunity to see something that could further the arguments of the ABWH and others who have a solid, critical voice* and missing the chance to support the performances of the two African American leads...but it also means boycotting a film that has some legitimate promises.

Personally, I probably won't be seeing it because I found the book lacking, and the whole pie story was a little OTT for me. But I will probably watch it on tv.

*it's a pet peeve--I try not to criticize films/books/etc I haven't actually experienced, but YMMV.

ETA: I read that the author used transcripts from oral history recordings to find an 'authentic' voice; as a former archivist I can appreciate that she went to the source material for that, but I also wonder about accuracy.

[Mugsy]

After reading the links provided above, it seems pointless to even acknowledge the "Five reasons" one, since she admits not reading the book nor seeing the movie, yet makes all sorts of assumptions and judgments. And adds a dig at Tyler Perry for no reason other than to be amusing, I suppose.

The second link has some interesting insights, but I don't agree with all of it. No, the movie doesn't make the link between Medger Evers' murder and the local racism the maids experience. It doesn't have to; the viewer can do that on her own. What do they want, one of the maids to exclaim, "That poor man is a victim of the same injustices we feel here!" Such trite exposition would have been ridiculed.

Also, the movie's focus on women doesn't leave the men blameless; it's just not a man's story. The Help is a story about women on both sides of the issue. It also doesn't touch on the elderly, the handicapped and Hispanics. Doesn't mean these groups don't count; it's just not their story.

My main critique of the critique is that Skeeter is just telling the maids' stories, not fighting racism. But again, that's the point of this character at this point in time. Would the maids have trusted Skeeter? Yes, because they did. Whether or not that would have happened in real life is moot, since it happened in this fictional story, which is what's being told. And yet, people throughout history have behaved against type to change the world. Who's to say that Skeeter and Aibilene couldn't be those people too?

And as the critic says, the maids need Skeeter to write their stories for them. Because of the times, it doesn't matter how great a writer Aibilene is, what are her chances of being published and promoted and sold in mainstream bookstores?

As a white person, I'm offended that these reviewers think that liking The Help means I'm some sort of lame uninformed race apologist.

[Neurochick]

My opinion of the movie is that some people like their "Magical Negroes" just the way they are. Reality is too painful for some people.

[incognito]

I think I'll pass. The movie trailers remind me too much of The Blind Side.