When Netflix announced plans to help further show what people were watching with its Top 10 lists, people were initially very happy. Finally, instead of Netflix telling subscribers what’s “popular” and “trending,” we can see what is actually being watched. Well, unfortunately, that also means we get to see when bad films and TV series are being watched, such as right now with “The Help.”
READ MORE: Viola Davis Says She Regrets Taking Her Oscar-Nominated Role In ‘The Help’
Over the past 24 hours, social media has gone a bit crazy due to the fact that the 2011 film, “The Help” is currently one of the most popular films on Netflix. Obviously, the resurgence of popularity for the drama has to be because of the recent protests in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd. Does this mean that the average American is turning to “The Help” to offer answers to racism? If so, the people of Twitter have much better ideas.
Film critic Rebecca Theodore-Vachon tweeted, “Hey White and non-Black folx, if you want authentic insight into Black life ditch ‘The Help’ and check out ‘Uncorked.’ Beautiful film about Black love – romantic and familial. Just Black people being unapologetically human and complex. Also about wine!”
READ MORE: Ava DuVernay’s ‘Selma’ Is Now A Free Rental For The Month Of June Courtesy Of Paramount
Other users suggested Ava DuVernay’s documentary “13th,” which is also available on Netflix and would provide a better look at the struggle of Black people and the plight of racism in the US.
Journalist Joe Lamour commented about the idea that “The Help” is trending is extra depressing when you consider the Black Eyed Peas song, “Where’s the Love?” is also on the charts again. He laments, “…what’s next? Green Book gets a second release?”
READ MORE: 22 Films About Rebellion, Protests & Civil Unrest
The main criticism of “The Help,” as well as “Green Book,” comes from the way the films were made, with white filmmakers telling a story about racism that is clearly meant to appeal to a certain demographic of people (older white people) that aren’t very well-versed in the subject. And unfortunately, those films tend to distort the reality and present a more palatable look at racism, usually with a happy ending, which is something that fails to touch the magnitude and severity of the issue that is still in our country. Plus, they’re just not that good.
Hopefully, with news that “Just Mercy,” “Selma,” and a portion of The Criterion Channel are now free to watch in the month of June will lead to people exploring films that aren’t “The Help” that might assist in opening their eyes to the issues that face Black people living in the US.
Also, if you need another list of films that are relevant to the times we’re facing now, we just published a list of protest and civil unrest films.
You can see more of the tweets about the film below:
