November 18, 2011 - 12:10am
Free Screening Alert: Oscar potential and controversy surround 'The Help'
BY DAVID TAO
People deal with “white guilt” in all sorts of different ways. One of the most prominent methods of doing so is through entertainment. Audiences flocked to TV shows like “Julia” during the civil rights movement, a whitewashed (rimshot!) program whose black characters were conceived in utter ignorance of any and all differences between the African-American condition and the common societal frictions televised on the evening news. Last year, “The Blind Side,” which featured the benevolent white population, embodied by Sandra Bullock, selflessly coming to the aid of the black people in their community, somehow managed to get itself nominated for best picture at the Oscars.
The latest film in this pantheon of subtly racist feelgoodery is “The Help,” which was released this August and followed much the same pattern as “The Blind Side.” Bullock is replaced as the voice of white America by Emma Stone, who endeavors to save the movie’s persecuted black characters from their lot in life by raising the awareness that they themselves are incapable of raising. Unsurprisingly, it stayed at the top of the box office for weeks and is now considered a likely Best Picture nominee.
If you’re into that kind of thing, or want something to watch ironically, our good friends at M-Flicks are bringing “The Help” to the Natural Science Auditorium tonight at 7 p.m. Don't judge them on their taste in film. Or do, because according to their website they’ll be bringing the latest “Harry Potter” movie here soon as well. And that movie is awesome.
