The Help

Tate Taylor's 2011 film is set in Mississippi in the early sixties. A young woman who wants to be a writer decides to interview the Black maids working in white households and make a book. Speaking is dangerous. The film shows segregation through everyday detail; the narrative builds the story largely from the white character's view, a choice that was heavily criticised. Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer appear. Spencer won an Academy Award for the role; Davis later stated openly her discomfort at having taken part. Who it's for: viewers of period drama. Who it's not for: viewers expecting Black characters at the centre of their own account; the film does not provide it.