The Help is extraordinary in the way it evokes an era and explores an unspoken but well-understood social order, specifically in regards to race relations. It takes place in Jackson, Mississippi in the early 1960s, at which point the Jim Crow laws were still in effect — the segregation of public schools, public transportation, restrooms, restaurants, drinking fountains, movie theater entrances, and even the U.S. military. During this time, it was common for white families to hire black maids, who would do all the cooking and cleaning. Most importantly, they would raise the children. The cruel irony is that, in spite of the affection they were shown, many of these white children would grow up and perpetuate the racist beliefs of their parents. This is the thanks a black woman got for being more of a mother to their employer’s children than their actual mothers ever were.
The film is based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett. No one was more qualified to tell this story than her; born in Jackson in 1969, at which point the laws had changed but the “rules” had not, she was raised primarily by her family’s maid, Demetrie. “I adored Demetrie as much as my own mother,” Stockett wrote in an article for Mail Online. “In some ways, she was better than our mother, who was always busy (I am one of five). Demetrie played games with us all day and never got cross. She knew to rock us on our stomachs when we ached. She knew she needed to go to the doctor with me every time I had an injection. None of us would sit still for an injection without Demetrie there.” But the relationship was a bit more complicated than it seemed. “And yet, as much as we loved Demetrie, she had a separate bathroom located on the outside of the house. I never once sat down to eat with her at the table. I never saw her — except the day she lay in her coffin — dressed in anything but that white uniform.”
Stockett wrote The Help as a way to process her feelings about her relationship with Demetrie. This is clearly evident in the film, which is obviously rooted in the civil rights era but does not make civil rights the main focus. This isn’t a criticism; by narrowing their sights on this particular story, the filmmakers don’t allow the characters to be overshadowed by an all-encompassing message, one that has been sent and, I believe, gotten through to most people (although I don’t deny that there are exceptions). The more a personality is permitted to develop, the better chance it has of being understood and perhaps even embraced by an audience. Personality oozes from every character in this film, and it’s precisely because of that that the plot will resonate, no matter what your walk in life.
It’s told primarily from the perspective of three women. One is Aibileen (Viola Davis), a middle-aged African American maid whose son recently died in a horrible accident. She has been a maid for many years; her current employer is Elizabeth Leefolt (Ahna O’Reilly), who relies on Aibileen to care for her young daughter. We also meet Aibileen’s friend, a maid named Minny (Octavia Spencer), who has often gotten her fired for her sassy, confrontational attitude. Her original employer, Mrs. Walters (Sissy Spacek), has a lot of life left in her despite the fact that her mind is slipping away. Minny now takes orders from Mrs. Walters’ daughter, Hilly Holbrook (Bryce Dallas Howard), the community’s social leader and head of the Junior League. She proposes an initiative that would require the “colored help” to have private bathrooms built specifically for them.
Finally, we meet Eugina, better known as Skeeter (Emma Stone), a white college graduate who aspires to become a writer. Upon returning home, she lands a job at a local paper writing housekeeping advice columns. This doesn’t impress her cancer-stricken mother (Allison Janney), who only wants her daughter to get married. Skeeter is not interested in a relationship. She is, however, very interested to know what happened to the maid who raised her, Constantine (seen in flashback, played by Cicely Tyson). Mom provides an explanation, but hardly a satisfying one. What became of the woman who not only raised Skeeter, but also taught her to how to be caring, strong, and independent?
Skeeter sought out Aibileen initially as resource for her housekeeping column. But she quickly decides to embark on an ambitious and potentially dangerous project: Writing a nonfiction book from the point of view of “the help.” Aibileen is understandably reluctant to take part, but she eventually comes around. So too does Minny, who got her revenge on Hilly after she was fired for daring to enter the upstairs bathroom. What exactly did she do to Hilly? Let’s just say that the writers somehow managed to turn a tasteless, disgusting prank into a hilarious sight gag.
Other subplots weave their way into the story. One of the best involves Minny’s newest employer, Celia Foote (Jessica Chastain), who has been shunned from Hilly’s inner circle and just wants to be the perfect housewife. With this character, the filmmakers found the perfect balance between heartwarming and heartbreaking; although she’s sweet and naive, and although she takes part in some of the film’s funniest scenes, an especially tragic shot in her rose garden makes is clear that she has been seriously hurt in the past. We also meet a young man named Stuart (Chris Lowell), who seems to be a perfect match for Skeeter despite their rocky start. But the best characters are Aibileen, Minny, and Skeeter, in large part because of the spot-on casting of Davis, Spencer, and Stone. Because of them, The Help has transcended its status as a best-seller to become a heartfelt, compelling, and all-around wonderful film.