The Help (2011)

October 12, 2022 8:38 AM

Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis) is a middle-aged African-American maid who has spent her life raising white children and has recently lost her only son; Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer) is an African-American maid who has often offended her employers despite her family's struggles with money and her desperate need for jobs; and Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan (Emma Stone) is a young white woman who has recently moved back home after graduating college to find out her childhood maid has mysteriously disappeared. These three stories intertwine to explain how life in Jackson, Mississippi revolves around "the help"; yet they are always kept at a certain distance because of racial lines.

Also starring Bryce Dallas Howard, Jessica Chastain, Anna Camp, Ahna O'Reilly, Allison Janney, Mary Steenburgen, Mike Vogel, Sissy Spacek, Chris Lowell, Cicely Tyson, Aunjanue Ellis, David Oyelowo.

Written and directed by Tate Taylor.

76% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Currently streaming in the US on HBO Max and hoopla. Also available for digital rental on multiple outlets. JustWatch listing.

Today, I'm going to post a bunch of movies that have merit and are worth discussing, but to one degree or another, are problematic. I will be tagging them #problematicmovies

posted by DirtyOldTown (3 comments total)

This will wrap up my six picks for "Problematic Movies Day." The idea was for me to bulk post a set of movies that are worth discussing because they have merit/are popular/were culturally big, but that people might not feel great about posting because they contain problematic elements, or were made by or star problematic people. Since I make a million FF movie posts and marked them with this tag, no one has to feel like this is an endorsement of any of that, but we can now discuss them, for better or for worse.

I'll probably do it again sometime. But that's it for today.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:47 AM on October 12, 2022 [4 favorites]

Loved the book, loved the film. Not sure there is any way to do a film with this subject matter that is not problematic.

Sorry, not much more to my comment-just wanted to chime in.
posted by sundrop at 6:11 PM on October 14, 2022 [1 favorite]

I read the book and found it to be whitewashed "faustalgia" so I haven't watched the movie.

I can see why this movie would be listed as problematic.
posted by mightshould at 8:43 PM on October 16, 2022 [1 favorite]