Yesterday’s discussion on The Help almost made me forget how much I liked the film. I watch every movie with an unbiased opinion from start to finish. Yes there are scenes in The Help that are difficult to watch, but I don’t believe they are meant to be analyzed as severely as we did yesterday. I took an Africana Studies course last year and the majority of the semester we talked about the continuing oppression that African Americans faced after colonization ended so I do understand it is a touchy subject. However, this movie (in my opinion) wasn’t supposed to be demeaning and insulting, but it was simply depicting the time period in which African Americans were living among extreme forms of oppression and racism.
Skeeter was never the savior to me, she was a helping hand to Aibileen who had written stories about her experiences. Without Skeeter, the book probably never would have been published. But Aibileen’s bravery to share these stories is what gave the rest of her community the hope and pride that they were missing. We see in one of the final scenes Aibileen and Minnie enter church where they are greeted by a round of applause. This scene made me tear up a little because I was so happy for Aibileen, and the sounds of clapping and encouragement always get me, no matter what movie I am watching.
I believe that if I were to watch this movie again with the thoughts of trying to find the crude, primitive elements and themes in the film, then I definitely would be more upset at how the characters were portrayed.
I also do not view Skeeter as the main character. The book and film are bookended with reflections from Aibileen Clark (voiceover reflections in the film).
I can definitely relate to this post– after all is said and done and we analyze the portrayals of feminism in every which way (not that it isn’t interesting and very important to do), what needs to be considered the most is our most basic reaction to the film as a viewer. I personally really loved it when I saw it in theaters, and despite the fact that it is not historically accurate nor as faithful to the book as I’d hoped it would be, I continue to have an appreciation for the story. I’d have to watch it again in time to see if our in-depth discussion has altered my reaction and sentimentality towards it, but until then I can’t deny that this film still holds a special place in my heart. (Just ask Liza– I had to put on slow and emotional music in the car on our drive back up the hill to match how I was feeling inside)