The Help (film)

The Help
Two black maids standing, beside two white women on a bench. Against a bright yellow background, the text in light purple.
Theatrical release poster
Directed byTate Taylor
Screenplay byTate Taylor
Based onThe Help
by Kathryn Stockett
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyStephen Goldblatt
Edited byHughes Winborne
Music byThomas Newman
Production
companies
Distributed byWalt Disney Studios
Motion Pictures[a]
Release dates
  • July 30, 2011 (2011-07-30) (Madison, Mississippi)
  • August 10, 2011 (2011-08-10) (United States)
Running time
146 minutes
Countries
  • United States
  • India[3]
  • United Arab Emirates[3]
LanguageEnglish
Budget$25 million[4]
Box office$221.8 million[4]

The Help is a 2011 period drama film written and directed by Tate Taylor and based on Kathryn Stockett's 2009 novel of the same name. The film features an ensemble cast, including Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, Jessica Chastain, Allison Janney, Cicely Tyson, and Sissy Spacek. The film and novel recount the story of a young white woman and aspiring journalist Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan.[5] The story focuses on her relationship with two black maids, Aibileen Clark and Minny Jackson, during the Civil Rights Movement in 1963 Jackson, Mississippi. In an attempt to become a legitimate journalist and writer, Skeeter decides to write a book from the point of view of the maids, exposing the racism they face as they work for white families. Black domestic workers in 1960s United States were referred to as "the help", hence the title of the journalistic exposé, the novel and the film. "The Help" brings to light the challenges and discrimination that African American people faced.

DreamWorks Pictures acquired the screen rights to Stockett's novel in March 2010 and quickly commissioned the film with Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan, and Brunson Green as producers. The film's casting began later that month, with principal photography following four months after in Mississippi. The film is an international co-production between companies based in the United States, India, and the United Arab Emirates.[3]

The Help premiered at the Jackson suburb of Madison, Mississippi on July 30, 2011,[6] and at Beverly Hills on August 9, 2011, and went into general theatrical release in North America on August 10, 2011 with distribution by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures through the Touchstone Pictures label. The film was a critical and commercial success, grossing $221 million worldwide and receiving positive reviews from critics. The Help received four Academy Award nominations including Best Picture, Best Actress for Davis, and Best Supporting Actress for both Chastain and Spencer, with Spencer winning the award. The film also won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Debruge, Peter (August 7, 2011). "The Help: Review". Variety. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  2. ^ Eller, Claudia (February 10, 2009). "DreamWorks gets Disney cash in distribution deal". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 14, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "The Help (2011)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on March 22, 2017. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  4. ^ a b "The Help". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
  5. ^ Anderson, John (August 5, 2011). "Viola Davis on making 'The Help' work". Newsday. Melville, NY.
  6. ^ "Star-studded event for 'The Help' movie premiere in Madison". WLBT. July 30, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2024.


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