Steel Magnolias (1989)

I love this movie so much

This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Shirley Maclaine as the wry, eccentric Ouisa is the best thing about this movie. She lights up every scene she is in, and has the best comic role. This movie means very well and it's good to see six women as the stars. The male support actors such as Sam Shepherd and Tom Skerritt are excellent. The trouble is that the film's roots as a stage play are too obvious. Scenes are packed with dialogue and people standing around emoting. And there's not enough plot. All the female cast are likable but sometimes they just stand and deliver their lines rather than act them out. Which might be a direction problem. The movie is too long, but I love the small town setting and the fact the friends are from different generations.

Steel Magnolias (1989) tells the story of a group of southern women, including Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Julia Roberts, Shirley Mclaine....... And more! They all gave fantastic performances, Julia even got an Oscar nomination for her supporting performance, and should've won in my opinion, I also think Sally Field should've gotten a nomination as well, and a win! Shirley Mclaine was also a great joy to watch, she really had a funny, charismatic, deep character to dive into, and it was a joy to watch! The plot was so delightful and well executed! Also, the dialogue was so smart and really worked well in the scenes. People tend to believe this is a film strictly for women, a big chick flick, well in some ways, yes, it is a chick flick, but the men will enjoy this movie as well! This is very touching, emotional, well done 1980's southern flick! 10/10

Shelby Eatenton (Julia Roberts) is getting married to Jackson (Dylan McDermott). Her parents M'Lynn (Sally Field) and Drum (Tom Skerritt) are getting ready. Things revolve around Truvy Jones (Dolly Parton)'s beauty parlor. Truvy takes pity on the bumbling Annelle Dupuy (Daryl Hannah) hiring her. Next door neighbor Ouiser Boudreaux (Shirley MacLaine) is angry at all the fuss. Clairee Belcher (Olympia Dukakis) loves to crack jokes at Ouiser's expense. Shelby is weak with diabetes. She suffers attacks. She shouldn't have children, but some time after the wedding, she announces that she's pregnant.Sure it's a chick flick. But it's not a frivolous chick flick. There are big emotional melodrama. It's overwrought at times. The impressive cast is able to tame this beast. The best part is that these chicks are good friends. It's a chick flick in the best sense. There are some cute fun moments, some big lines, and some down right sharp jabs. Then there are the big cry moments. It's all there.

There are a couple reasons why everyone should watch this movie.First, Steel Magnolias is led by a strong female cast whose snappy and comedic dialogue are enjoyable to watch. Their performances are so raw and believable that it's a shock to learn that only Julia Roberts was nominated for an Oscar.The supporting cast is full of wonderful characters from Dolly Parton (Truvy) (she's so cute!), Olympia Dukakis (Clairee) and Shirley McLaine. McLaine was my favorite as Ouiser, a sarcastic, grouchy, two-time widow. Daryl Hannah was the one weak point within the tight group. Hannah's performance was spot on, but I found her character exhausting and annoying at times. Roberts was lovable as Field's daughter Shelby, whose Type One Diabetes casts a somber cloud over the otherwise cheerful movie.Second, the story is adapted from the play written by Robert Harling (The First Wives' Club). Harling's inspiration for the story came from his own tragic real-life experiences of dealing with his sister's sickness and eventual death.Third, Sally Field. Field is fantastic as Robert's strong and overprotective mother, M'Lynn. Field's monologue at the end gave me the chills, it was perfect representation of what M'Lynn was going through. It's enough just to watch the movie for that one scene. I have not seen many of her movies so I didn't realize how incredibly talented she is. I really really like her, I really do.Throughout the movie, I got confused with the time jumps and what was going on during some scenes. Sometimes the next scene jumps ahead a couple of years and I wouldn't realize it until the next scene. Other than that issue, I really have no complaints. The cinematography, hairstyling (the southern big puffy hair), and the acting by everyone (even the men) was perfect for this chick flick.A heartwarming and charming tearjerker, Steel Magnolias is a movie that everyone has to see at least once. Highly recommended. 8 out 10.