Viewed in
2010
Formats
HD TV
Premise
Based on the play of the same name, a drama about six Southern belles in 1980's Louisiana.
Liked
The cool female cast, their acting, and the vibrant dialogue.
Disliked
The 180-degree turn in tone halfway through.
Thoughts
I expected this to be a total chick flick, instead it was a well-acted, likable drama.
Derived from a play, it was very dialogue-heavy. Not only was it fun to listen to, the dialogue was smart, funny, insightful, human, and even sometimes pushed the plot a bit. Each character had her own unique voice, and their personalities and zingers created some genuinely laugh out loud moments. Coupled with the Southern drawl, it was delicious ear candy (I just made that up).
The cast was practically a who's who of the 1980's: Julia Roberts and Sally Field were very strong as the mother-daughter centerpiece, Dolly Parton turned out to be a pretty likable actress, there was Tom Skerritt, Olympia Dukakis, Daryl Hannah, with Shirley MacLaine getting the juicy role as the local grouch, and apparently Dylan McDermott had not aged in the past twenty years.
Everyone acted very well, and they showed their versatility as it transitioned from comedy to drama during the film. Field's painful cry for reason near the end was especially excellent. Regardless of the situation, I empathized with the characters due to quality dialogue and acting.
I still despised the fact that the film changed genres midstream, going from frolicking light-hearted to Oscar-pining tear-jerker mode, but at least this time, it tried to forebode the oncoming crisis. So it did not come out of nowhere. Nevertheless, it gnawed at me, wondering when was the the movie going to actually start during the slice-of-life parts, and annoyed that I am watching something completely different in the heavy parts.
Despite this pet peeve of mine, I enjoyed the film, thanks to the Southern charm of the characters and vibrant verbosity that leaps to life off the screen.
What I would change
Nothing.
