The Help leaves viewers helplessly in tears

Incorporating issues that address discrimination and courage, The Help is the perfect movie to see if you don’t mind walking out of the theater with tear-stained cheeks.

Centered in the 1960s in the town of Jackson, Mississippi, the movie opens with Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan as she returns from college with the dream of becoming a writer.  She immediately starts writing a cleaning column for the town newspaper and decides to interview “the help,” the African American women who carry out household jobs and raise the children of white families.

Skeeter soon begins to write a book revealing the help’s day-to-day experiences in the homes of their white employers, keeping their meetings private as to avoid facing punishment.  With reluctance, the maids eventually agree to divulge their stories.

Two maids, Aibileen and Minny, are the first to confide in Skeeter.  Together, the three revolutionaries contribute to a truthful novel that fully brings attention to the discrimination that had once been simply swept under the rug.

Based on the best-selling novel by Kathryn Stockett, The Help shows the hardships of living in a racist society and the determination of a few women to change it.  The racism throughout the film makes you want to leave the movie theater, but the hope expressed by the key characters glues you to your seat.  Throughout the film, the dramatic plot is subdued by cunning humor and clever lines, accompanied by entertaining scenarios that intertwine the people of the town.

Overall, The Help explores the simple pride in finding the strength to stand up for what is right.  This story will take you on an emotional journey through laughter and tears, leaving you with a renewed sense of hope.