Movie Review - The Help

I always have a bit of trepidation when I watch a movie or TV show based on a book that I've read and really liked. Will they stay true to the elements of the story that I thought were most important? Did they cast the appropriate people in the critical roles? Will the vision on the screen exceed the one in my imagination?

The basic plot of both the movie and film, The Help, is that a young, privileged woman in Jackson, Mississippi aspires to be a writer and decides to tell the stories of the black maids that raise the white children in the town. The story takes place in the 1960s so racism is alive and well and the civil rights battles are just beginning.

The Help in film form mostly met my (good) expectations. I'd read a few reviews that found it only so-so but the in-person reviews from my friends and co-workers were universally complimentary. More so from those that hadn't read the book actually.

There's a lot left out of the movie that I think made the book a more enjoyable story so the movie was a little disappointing to me. A lot of the maids' stories were left out, most of the relationship of the the writer, Skeeter, and her boyfriend is missing and they took shortcuts in the story between Minny, a sassy maid you grow to love, and her employer and Aibileen, the stoic maid, and her young charge, Mae Mobley.

However, that's not to say that there weren't moments that touched me. I don't know why I didn't think to take a tissue but I had tears going several times. There were also some good laughs. It was just lacking the full heart that I felt while reading the book.

There were some fantastic performances in the film. Bryce Dallas Howard as Hilly was fantastic. She played the villain with just the right touch of control and disdain and watching her comeuppance was a joy. Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer were both very good in their roles as the two main maids. Allison Janney did a nice job as Skeeter's mother as well.

Good, not great, movie but one that I would recommend. And, it's not just a chick flick. Men would enjoy it just as much.