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Wednesday 30 November 2011

The Help, film review


The Help by Kathryn Stockett is an iconic book, so it comes as no surprise to see it arrive on the big screen. A touching, heart-wrenching and very real story, it sheds light on the difficult situation regarding white ladies and their black maids in Mississippi in the 1960s. An aspiring author during the civil rights movement decides to write a book detailing the lives of African-American maids, the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.

I cried throughout.. no, I'll be totally honest.... I sobbed throughout. The film is convincing and, despite the slow storyline, gripping. I was delighted to see a cast of such superb female actresses. Particular stand out performances for me come from Emma Jones as leading lady Eugenia ‘Skeeter’ Phelan who is frank and inquisitive; Bryce Dallas Howard as mean girl Hilly Holbrook and Octavia Spencer as outspoken Minny Jackson are also brilliant to watch on screen.

The translation from book to film can be a problem, but not in this case. I rarely go to the cinema, but The Help is definitely worth the effort and the extortionate ticket price!

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