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The Help is a film that has received a lot of attention since its release and it has mostly been positive. However, there are some people like myself who have a few issues with the film and the book. With award season approaching, nominations for The Help are being handed out left and right. Yet, it is my opinion that it should not be awarded anything in terms of Best Picture. I could handle actress awards for Viola Davis but otherwise The Help deserves to be snubbed.

Let’s begin with one observation. African Americans, especially women, are not often featured in award nominated movies. Is this because there aren’t many great African American actresses? Of course not. The Help comes along and showcases the brilliant Viola Davis. Yet, The Help features an African American woman in a subservient role that requires the aid of a white woman. Does this sound familiar? I’m surprised actresses still insist on taking this age old role.

So our main protagonist is white. Coincidentally, the author of The Help, Kathyrn Stockett, is also a Southern white woman. In her novel, one might detect that the Southern blacks speak in vernacular while the white characters don’t. Stereotypes are a specialty of The Help. Though, I suppose it is difficult for an author who was born in 1969 to write from experience. On the subject of stereotypes, we see African American actresses fill plenty of these roles. Even the sarcastic, loud, out-spoken character Tara Thornton in the series True Blood fits the bill.

In some ways, it would seem to the audience that Aibileen was so used to being underprivileged that she just accepted her lowly role. It took Skeeter to come along and show her just how bad things really were. Please. This story centers on Aibileen yet she is a mere stepping stone to advance Skeeter’s character. Aibileen is the enlightening whisper in Skeeter’s ear. Not only is Aibileen there to hold Skeeter’s hand but we see that the time spent in the Skeeter household almost seems like a blessing compared to Aibileen’s home life. She respectably serves, showing affection for the children. I suppose it would have been awkward for the audience had she just done her chores tiredly with no emotion. Realism goes out the window but we see that several times in The Help.

We hardly ever see a wholesome Southern black household on screen. There’s always dysfunction. Always some type of abuse, as we see in the film. Again, The Help continues to perpetuate stereotype. Some have argued that young audiences rarely get to learn about this era and we shouldn’t expect there to be a heightened level of realism about society during this time. Why can we not expect this? Why accept the reinforcement of plots that are untrue to the history of our country?

With white characters in the film, we get that notion that those who are “bad” are automatically racist. Here’s an interesting element that comforts those who have inklings of “white guilt”. Only the awful, poor white people were racist. Affluent, educated white people obviously see the error in the treatment of African Americans. Take comfort audience, not ALL white people were racist.

So, the audience for The Help is largely young. They’ll take the depictions in The Help at face value because most of them don’t know any better. The film is well constructed there is no doubt there. Yet, it doesn’t merit any attention other than to show that we still enable false stereotypes and artificial, air-brushed history.