Kathryn Stockett’s wildly popular page-turner The Help refracted the thorny subject of ingrained Southern racism through a soft-pedaled, feel-good story about a young, free-spirited white girl who gives voice to black domestic servants in 1960s Jackson, Mississippi. In that sense, it’s no surprise to see that the film version strikes a similarly lighthearted, frothy tone: The Help takes place in a sassy alternate universe to movies like Mississippi Burning, and there’s nary a hint of danger or darkness lurking in this trailer that’s as bright and bouncy as the Capitols’ “Cool Jerk” on the soundtrack, and even occasionally as screwball as Emma Stone’s unfortunate perm. (Though the girl can’t help it, as her character, “Skeeter,” is burdened with that in the book.)
But although one gets the impression that Alison Janney (as Stone’s overbearing mom) and Bryce Dallas Howard (as Hilly Holbrook, the personification of rich-bitch racism) could be acting in their very own parallel Steel Magnolias remake, the success of The Help will likely be grounded in those actresses playing the maids that give Skeeter her story, particularly Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer. Like the book, the movie version of The Help may ultimately be too saccharine and cutesy about such a serious subject to garner much genuine critical acclaim, but it’s bound to be a crowd-pleaser.