leeper@mtgzx.att.com (Mark R. Leeper) (12/13/89)
STEEL MAGNOLIAS
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1989 Mark R. Leeper
Capsule review: Six women go through folly, friendship,
and tragedy together. If the basic formula is familiar, at
least the writing by Robert Harling--based on his own stage
play--is usually crisp and often genuinely funny. Rating:
low +2.
STEEL MAGNOLIAS is about as formulaic a "women's film" as any film I
can imagine. You have a set of two or more women whom you get to know very
well through relatively mundane circumstances. You get a feel for what they
do in life's more ordinary moments. The tragedy (usually medical) strikes
and having known them already you feel for their tragedy. Suddenly any old
antagonisms seem small. But they are stronger for having known each other
and the remainder of their numbers will abide and endure. That's BEACHES,
that's TERMS OF ENDEARMENT, that's lots of other films, and that's STEEL
MAGNOLIAS. All that makes one of these films good or bad is whether the
viewer is really brought into the characters during the normal, mundane part
and is that part enjoyable. In STEEL MAGNOLIAS the mundane part is quite
good. As it so often is, it's not silly or cute or whimsical. It is
genuinely funny. And as such it leaves most of the other films of its
formula behind.
STEEL MAGNOLIAS is the story of six women from a small town in
Louisiana. The women are played by Sally Field, Shirley MacLaine, Dolly
Parton, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis, and Julia Roberts. Much of the story
takes place in a beauty parlor--as did all of the play the film was based
on. But the film greatly benefits from the opportunity to get out of the
beauty parlor and see the world. There are really three pairs of women: a
mother and daughter, the beauty parlor owner and her assistant, and two
older women who are often at odds with each other.
As is almost the requirement for this sort of film, there is a soft and
sentimental film score by George Delerue. Nobody plays these soft and
sensitive strings like Delerue. Also reasonably good, but obviously of
secondary interest, are the men, played by Tom Skerritt, Sam Shepard, and a
few others. Also this film boasts (?) a view of the most revolting cake
ever baked.
STEEL MAGNOLIAS obviously has a good cast and is diverting and
enjoyable. I rate it a low +2 on the -4 to +4 scale.
Mark R. Leeper
att!mtgzx!leeper
leeper@mtgzx.att.comlmann@jjmhome.UUCP (Laurie Mann) (01/07/90)
STEEL MAGNOLIAS
A film review by Laurie Mann
Copyright 1990 Laurie Mann
This is a *very* frustrating movie to watch. You have some wonderful
performances (Sally Field and Julia Roberts), and others that are just so
overdone (Shirley MacLaine, Olympia Dukakis, Tom Skerrit) that they almost seem
to be part of another movie. You have characters that make mysterious
transformations during the course of the movie, like Darryl Hannah and Sam
Shepard. You have some clumsy sound editing which left half the audience
wondering why the other half was laughing.
I basically liked the movie. I laughed more at this movie more than at
any movie since EARTH GIRLS ARE EASY. Even though I knew how weepy parts of
the movie would be, I still found myself crying. There's a moment after her
daughter's funeral when Sally Field suddenly starts reacting with such fury
over the death that she reminded me of her performance in SYBIL.
Maybe *that's* the problem. I never got so involved in the movie that I
forgot I was watching a movie. In films like CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS, ALWAYS,
and SAY ANYTHING, I literally forgot I was watching a film at times. But,
here, Dolly Parton is playing the same good old girl we've seen her play in
many other movies. Ann Wedgeworth is playing another Southern eccentric.
The movie takes occasional risks. Shirley MacLaine has never looked
worse, but it suits her character perfectly. The relationship between Sally
Field and Julia Roberts is *very* complicated, but it's also pretty believable.
I think I'd rate the movie about a 7 on the Chuck scale, because though
it's a flawed movie, I found it compelling just the same. It's so rare to see
the friendships of a number of woman portrayed in a film. Someone complained
somewhere about the lack of a strong male character anywhere in the picture.
All I can say is: ABOUT TIME!
Laurie Mann ** harvard!m2c!jjmhome!lmann ** lmann%jjmhome@m2c.m2c.org
Work: Stratus Computer ** Home: Northboro, MA ** lmann@jjmhome.UUCP */