The Help

I always hesitate before going to see a film of a book, particularly a book which I have enjoyed. And if I ever question my hesitation, I have only to remember, with a shudder, the adaptation of Captain Corelli's Mandolin to renew my resolve. (See also the September entry on The Elegance of the Hedgehog). However, it is not always thus: think Revolutionary Road or The Reader for a film which did the book justice. It was this thought that made me determine to see The Help.

Kathryn Stockett's fictional account of the experiences of maids working in Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960s was a bestseller a couple of summers ago but it did not strike me then as a book which was written with an eye to Hollywood (some books you just know have been written for the movies). But maybe I'm wrong, as it has come to a cinema near you so quickly, not to mention the fact that the screenwriter and producer is the author's childhood friend.

And...... yes, I was very pleased I went. It is a faithful and true adaptation of the book even though Skeeter is not quite as lanky and gangly as I would have liked - she's more swan than ugly duckling right from the beginning - and her mother looks far too healthy. Of course there are issues with it: some events are excised, some characters are underdeveloped and some of the political grit is glossed over but it is a moving and satisfying film and one which seems to me to have the spirit of the book about it. It also contains what must be an award winning performance by Viola Davis as Aibileen (warning: you will need your tissues).