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The Help

By Danielle de Nervaux

30th November -0001 | 0 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

A story of a time where black maids raised white children and everyone had a story to tell. Just no one would listen.

The Help is an inspirational story about three women living in Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960s. The narrative changes focus on each of the women and follows a story that brings these very different women’s lives together. In Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960s blacks and whites lived very separate lives and the whites in Jackson believed the blacks were there to serve, to clean and to obey only.

Miss Skeeter is a young white woman who has just graduated college and returned home to Jackson after 4 years studying, ambitious to succeed as a writer. Settling back into Jackson, Miss Skeeter starts to notice the way black people around are being treated and decides she wants to help things change. In her quest to become a writer she decides to write a book about what it’s really like to serve the white families of Jackson, from the maids point of view. An unlikely friendship is found with Aibileen a black woman who has been serving the families of Jackson for the past 30 years. Suffering from the loss of her only child she agrees to talk to Miss Skeeter about working for white families and raising their children, with the hope to find some peace and the belief that things could change.

Minny is the third woman the book focuses on, a feisty, outspoken black maid with 5 children and a drunken husband to look after. Minny has been sacked from 9 jobs in 10 years and has made an enemy for life in the form of Mrs Hilly Holbrook, committee president and wife of a politician. Minny has no time for white people and is frightened to trust one but under the guidance of Aibileen she eventually agrees to tell her story and decides to talk to Miss Skeeter.

The stories and revelations that are uncovered are so honest and raw and this is what makes this book a heartfelt, warm and at times a painful novel to read.

The book highlights some of the difficulties black women faced working for some white families at that time, like having to use a different hospital when they were sick through fear of ‘colored diseases spreading’ but it also focuses on the warmth and love these women often had for the white families they worked for. All three women show such courage, bravery and heart in the obstacles and challenges they face throughout the book, they become unlikely heroines and strong female role models by the time you reach the final chapter.

The book is an uplifting read which takes the reader back to a time where such laws existed like: ‘No colored barber shall serve as a barber to white women or girls.’ The book is set in an era where things were tough, uncertain and where a lot of people lived in fear. The story is warm, hopeful and enjoyable. I would definitely recommend it!

With the film adaptation already a massive box office success in the US the film of The Help is due for release in the UK on October 28th 2011. I have no doubt it will be a great success over here too. I’m just hoping the film lives up the book!

The Help was published in 2009 and is written by Kathryn Stockett.

Danielle de Nervaux
The Ghost Writer: Review

By Stephen Bain

5th May 2010 | 0 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

Roman Polanski has never been one to avoid the spotlight, both in his private life and in his work with cinema. The Ghost Writer is no exception.

Based on the novel by Robert Harris (one which I admittedly am yet to read), The Ghost Writer tells the story of an anonymous journalist (McGregor) sent to interview disgraced former Prime Minister Adam Lang (Brosnan) after his predecessor mysteriously drowns.

This is a sophisticated political thriller which takes its time unravelling (at 2 hours and 30 minutes, it is long yet never dull) and rightly treats its audience like adults.

The narrative is relatively traditional with familiar story-telling techniques however they are all done with great efficiency and confidence. Polanski is clearly a man with a proven track record. Brilliantly filmed with frequent echoes of Alfred Hitchcock (the low-key yet effective score at times reminiscent of Bernard Herman), the vast, and constantly overcast Island ensures a feeling of uneasiness and dread throughout. This sense of fear and isolation continues onto the mainland in one brilliant scene where The Ghost is mysteriously followed after visiting a key member in this apparent conspiracy. Events conclude with a jaw dropping, terrifically executed denouement.

The references to real life political issues such as the use of torture on terrorist suspects give the film a sense of reality and context. This is perhaps most evident in Brosnan’s performance as Lang, a man who is none too subtly modelled on a certain Mr Blair. Lang is seen as a man who has charisma and style in public but who is somewhat jittery and often short tempered in private. What you see is not necessarily what you get. Cynical? Yes! Believable? Unfortunately!

A large reason why The Ghost Writer works as a conspiracy thriller is because we as an audience are never ahead of our protagonist. Like the character played by Mr McGregor we struggle to comprehend the scale of what is going on and never lose our senses of fear and danger. The Ghost of the title is never a superhuman but neither is he stupid, as we watch him gradually realise just how out of his depth he really is.

There is the odd silly plot development and the blatant use of product placement is at times distracting, but you should be able to overlook these and enjoy the meaty two and a half hours of suspense and intrigue put before you.
Las Vegas: A City of Excess

By Stephen Bain

19th March 2010 | 2 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

It is a city where self-control is essential, a place where very few will tell you to stop. From the moment I stepped out of the airport and started travelling past the strip to our hotel, I knew this was going to be a somewhat unique experience.

I am talking about my recent visit to the infamous Sin City, otherwise known as Las Vegas, my only trip to the United States to date. Talk about jumping in the deep end.

Las Vegas has been featured in many films over the decades, perhaps most famously in 1964’s Viva Las Vegas, the resulting song, sung by Elvis Presley, having been associated with the entertainment capital of the world ever since. Most recently Vegas has been seen in the hit 2009 comedy “The Hangover”. Likewise Katy Perry has also sung about “Waking Up in Vegas”. Being someone who admittedly enjoys an occasional early night and a cup of coco I was a little apprehensive about going to this so-called “adult playground”.

So what is it actually like? Well for a start, the sheer sizes of the hotels are something in themselves, with each resembling a palace. That last word is even co-operated into possibly the single, most famous hotel in the strip, Caesars Palace. There is also the Stratosphere hotel, which stands at a whopping 1,149 feet tall. The view from the top was a truly spectacular experience. The hotel which I stayed in, The Mirage, also did not fail to impress.

The city is perhaps known best for gambling. Go into any hotel and it is not long before you are greeted by apparently never-ending rows of slot machines, roulette tables and all the other forms of gaming you can think of. However, for me, some of the best aspects of the trip were well away from the betting tables. If anyone ventures to the city I highly recommend taking a helicopter tour over the Grand Canyon and then flying back over the strip (especially at night). The former acts as a deserved, breathtaking, break away from all the glitziness of the city (which will possibly be needed after a couple of days) and is one of the few attractions that is 100% natural in the area.

There is, of course, the less glamorous, seedy element of the place. Those who have seen 1995’s “Leaving Las Vegas” will remember that the city certainly has a dark side to it. Like everything else it is very much in your face. One sound that stuck with me was the distinctive flicking of escort cards being handed out to members of the public at all hours. There is also a fair share of so called “gentlemen’s clubs”, the few places where men are NOT sitting round playing cards.

So, to answer my earlier question, what is Las Vegas like? Well it is very much a city of two sides. For a United States virgin such as me, the scale of the place is bound to impress. The spectacle of Vegas is something not seen anywhere else in the world, and as a result, it has a unique sense of beauty to it. On the other hand there is an undeniable feeling of tackiness all around you. To use an old cliché Las Vegas is definitely a city of excess. You can eat what you want, drink what you want and gamble as much as you want and, as I said at the beginning, few would tell you to stop.

Is it a ‘real’ city? Certainly not, and it is subsequently not for everybody. I hesitate to imagine what it would be like to live there for anytime longer than a week. Surely the showiness would eventually wear thin. However it is safe to say that there is nothing quite like it elsewhere.
The best Christmas films

By Stephen Bain

22nd December 2009 | 5 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

What exactly makes a good Christmas flick? That is a question which has caused never ending debates at this time of year. On a day fraught with emotions (both good and bad) there is nothing like spending two hours in front of the television watching a story which, to use an all-too-familiar phrase, tugs at the heart strings. Every December the same films resurface in our local retailer. The faces of Bruce Willis, Will Ferrell, Bing Crosby and Macaulay Culkin stare out from the dvd shelves. Of course everyone has their own opinion but I thought I would give my all-time favourite Christmas film. Read more »
This decade’s sport: 2005 – 2009

By Harry Chichester

21st December 2009 | 0 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

In this review of cricket, golf and rugby in the latter half of the decade that is passing through our grasp, England’s Ashes triumph of 2005 rated as probably the most exciting and satisfying collective national event (if you are English!!). However, for sheer pathos, for sheer poignancy, nothing matched Tom Watson nearly but not quite winning the 2009 Open Championship at the majestic age of 59. Read more »
This Decades Music- 2005-2009

By Michael Somerville

21st December 2009 | 2 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

Starting with 2005, it will be remembered for two things… the Arctic Monkeys and Peter Kay. Now, I quite like both these things; The Arctic’s brought indie rock to the streets and Peter Kay made a catchy song. And all in the name of charity. Good man. Peter Kay has managed 3 number ones this decade which is pretty amazing from a bloke from Bolton who has one GCSE. Read more »
The Decade’s Pop Music: 2005 – 2009

By Matt Fricker

21st December 2009 | 2 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

By Hayley Thorpe

This year has been an emotional rollercoaster for the music industry with many highs and lows.

In March, Michael Jackson announced that he would do a series of shows named “This Is It”, spelling the end of his career in the music industry. The shows would be held at the O2 arena in London. Read more »
Countdown of the Decade – part 2

By Matt Fricker

21st December 2009 | 0 comments | 1 person likes this

So here is the moment you’ve all been waiting for, the finale of countdown of the decade, this weekend we’ve discovered that the final Number One single of the decade is Rage Against The Machine’s “Killing in the name of” a song which has exampled a public uprising of sorts against the world of reality TV seen to be led by Simon Cowell.

The song, which is the first ever download only Christmas Number One, beat Joe McElderry’s cover of Miley Cyrus’ The Climb, marking the first time in five years that the Christmas Number One has not come from an X Factor artist.

Last week, with part one of the countdown, we remembered quite how much this world has changed, if you’re not sure that the world is all that different, let me put this question to you…

Imagine the date is Monday, 20th December 1999 and I say to you that in the next ten years; terrorists will attack London and New York, England will win the rugby world cup, 3D cinema will be cool again and the Christmas Number One will be download only. Do you believe me? Or do you think that all I’m missing from my predictions are flying cars and alien contact?

So to one uprising from another, join us as we look at the final five years of the decade and let us know what your best/ worst memories of the Noughties are.
30 seconds of Fame

By Diana N.

17th December 2009 | 0 comments | 1 person likes this

So I was flicking through the channels on television, and I came across a show entitled ‘Rude Tube’. This show counts down the 10 most viewed Youtube videos. Everytime I watch this show my jaw literally drops at the amount of nonsensical things that can be accepted to be put on television like that; not to mention the 30 seconds of televised fame that these people have recorded due to boredom! Read more »
Top 5 Best/Worst Films – 2009

By Stephen Bain

9th December 2009 | 16 comments | 0 votes yet, click here to agree or disagree

Well its that time of year (again!) and that means more countdown lists and the inevitable debates/arguments which follow. Having figured out I have made around 20 trips to the cinema this year (I dread to think how much that amounts to financially) I thought I would look back on the last 12 months and give my top 5 favourite films as well as my top 5 disappointments. Maybe its a sign of my youthful ignorance but I cannot remember a previous year in which films featuring the elderly have made such an impact on me. Read more »