The Help is a 2011 film that involves the struggles of the African-American maids. However, Bryce Dallas Howard recommends other movies to watch during this time.
The Help is a period comedy-drama film that stars big names from Hollywood. One of them is Bryce Dallas Howard.
It’s a movie that is almost a decade old, but due to the protests against police brutality and systemic racism happening today, the movie suddenly became a popular choice on Netflix.
However, Howard, who plays the role of Jackson socialite Hilly Holbrook, thinks that there are more relevant films out there other than the fictional one she starred in.
What is The Help all about?
For those who have not watched it yet, The Help follows the story of a young white woman and aspiring journalist named Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan.
Played by Emma Stone, Skeeter shares a connection to two black maids, Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis) and Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer), during the Civil Rights Movement in 1963 Jackson, Mississippi.
Skeeter wanted to become a legitimate journalist, so she wrote a book from the perspective of the maids. The book exposed the racism they faced from the white family they work for.
Howard’s response to the movie’s current popularity
The movie suddenly became relevant today because of the ongoing protests for the Black Lives Matter movement.
But Howard is steering subscribers away from the movie despite being part of the cast. Her reason is deemed as an eye-opener, though, and everyone is urged to take note of it.
She took to Instagram her response to the movie’s trend. She wrote: “I’ve heard that #TheHelp is the most viewed film on @netflix right now!
The Black Mirror actress also mentioned about the friendships she built through the film.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CBKNHW9Aq2r/
“I’m so grateful for the exquisite friendships that came from that film — our bond is something I treasure deeply and will last a lifetime,” Howard said.
“This being said, The Help is a fictional story told through the perspective of a white character and was created by predominantly white storytellers. We can all go further.”
The 39-year old actress simply pointed out that Black stories are best told through the eyes of Black characters and creators.
She then went on to urge audiences to check out films and television shows that are far more educational compared to The Help.
Howard even gave a list of movie suggestions and asked her followers to add more titles in the comments section.
Bryce Dallas Howard may have played as the racist villain in the movie, but she shows to be far from it.
Featured image courtesy of Dick Thomas Johnson/Flickr