The Help

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures | Release Date: August 10, 2011

7.8	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 506 Ratings

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NeverLiftAug 28, 2011

"The Help" tells us nothing new. Anybody who didn't know what it had to say has been in a coma for over half a century. But that isn't my problem with it.

Rather, it is a mawkish, sophomoric, soporifically paced, predictable, grotesquely"The Help" tells us nothing new. Anybody who didn't know what it had to say has been in a coma for over half a century. But that isn't my problem with it.

Rather, it is a mawkish, sophomoric, soporifically paced, predictable, grotesquely populated, "young adult" CHIC FLIC. Think of sitting through "Steel Magnolias" with a mixed race cast and "We Shall Overcome" as its incidental music. Twice. Non-stop.

We need a new rating system, one that advises single adult males that attending particular movies can be injurious to their sanity. Since I was stuck in the middle of a full row, I refrained from disturbing my neighbors and so sat through the entire four and a half hours of it. (It wasn't that long? It sure seemed like it.) My desire, after the first fifteen minutes, was to leave, running to find the nearest sports bar as an antidote. And I hate sports bars.… Expand

3 of 14 users found this helpful311

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jdicksteihnSep 5, 2011

The director, Tate Taylor, knows exactly how he wants the audience to feel about every character and every scene. He leaves almost no room for you to make up your own mind and so the deck continually feels stacked. You're not watchingThe director, Tate Taylor, knows exactly how he wants the audience to feel about every character and every scene. He leaves almost no room for you to make up your own mind and so the deck continually feels stacked. You're not watching reality unfold, you're watching propaganda. Bryce Dallas Howard's character is set up to represent the racist white south. But her character is so devoid of any redeeming qualities that she feels like a straw-woman, and the effect is that the movie says very little other than "bad people are bad". Most insulting to the audience's intelligence, the last 45 minutes of the film consist of 6 or 7 manipulative tear-jerk-er scenes in a row. Complete with swelling "please cry" music, a forced break up scene, a "group standing up and applauding" scene, and a "crying child saying goodbye" scene. No movie cliche' is spared. I think this would be less objectionable in a film about young lovers, or a boy and his dog. But when you are making a movie about "the help" in the south, a minority group whose story has (according to the premise of the movie) not been told, then you owe it to them, I think, to just tell the story and leave out the "tear-jerk-er" play book. So I'd go beyond saying this is a bad movie. It is a socially irresponsible movie that sets itself up to be something it isn't: the story of "the help". Peeking through all the stupid Hollywood tricks is Viola Davis, whose performance suggests to us that underneath this trite movie was a real complicated story to be told, about real people. It is rare that an actor can transcend material like this, and the movie is worth seeing just for that amazing feat.

But besides all this, you know a movie has no interest in reality when the strikingly beautiful Emma Stone, in full makeup and fashionable clothing, is sold as the 23 year old girl who has never been on a date. Change that plot point or change the actress.… Expand

1 of 5 users found this helpful14

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todayorJan 19, 2012

This movie is **** racist. It pisses me off that it has the audacity to abuse actual clips from the civil rights movement. **** this movie, it is condescending, patronizing, artificial, superficial, and pandering. The worst kind of movie, oneThis movie is **** racist. It pisses me off that it has the audacity to abuse actual clips from the civil rights movement. **** this movie, it is condescending, patronizing, artificial, superficial, and pandering. The worst kind of movie, one that tries to be about big ideas when it couldn't even manage small ones. Stupid, stupid movie. It reminds me of Uncle Tom's Cabin all over again. WTF is all I have to say.… Expand

1 of 7 users found this helpful16

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MikefromAngusJan 29, 2012

The movie, had one big problem. It was boring! As I started watching the movie, I knew how it was going to end. There were no suprises, or twists. Just a boring story, with some characters who you should feel sorry for and some characters whoThe movie, had one big problem. It was boring! As I started watching the movie, I knew how it was going to end. There were no suprises, or twists. Just a boring story, with some characters who you should feel sorry for and some characters who you should feel angry against.… Expand

0 of 7 users found this helpful07

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nashville13Nov 1, 2011

this movie's too hard to understand..... i think that a movie shoud have Understandable Plot,Clear Motive, and a movie should also be entertaining.i think this movie looked more likely a documentary than a movie.

0 of 9 users found this helpful09

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csw12Mar 24, 2012

The Help is just another racial movie about the past. when are we going to make movies that are different. yes there was some strong acting but i can't get over the fact it seems there are many of the chessy kinds of movies. time to grow up

0 of 5 users found this helpful05

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Andy111111Mar 14, 2022

Man this film was a bore. Very bad acting and obi one Kenobi made no appearance. Very dissatisfied

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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