Steel Magnolias (1989)

A young beautician, newly arrived in a small Louisiana town, finds work at the local salon, where a small group of women share a close bond of friendship, and welcome her into the fold.

Director:

Herbert Ross

Writers:

Robert Harling (screenplay), Robert Harling (play)

Stars:

Shirley MacLaine, Olympia Dukakis, Sally Field

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sally Field	...	M'Lynn Eatenton
Dolly Parton	...	Truvy Jones
Shirley MacLaine	...	Ouiser Boudreaux
Daryl Hannah	...	Annelle Dupuy Desoto
Olympia Dukakis	...	Clairee Belcher
Julia Roberts	...	Shelby Eatenton Latcherie
Tom Skerritt	...	Drum Eatenton
Sam Shepard	...	Spud Jones
Dylan McDermott	...	Jackson Latcherie
Kevin J. O'Connor	...	Sammy Desoto
Bill McCutcheon	...	Owen Jenkins
Ann Wedgeworth	...	Aunt Fern
Knowl Johnson	...	Tommy Eatenton
Jonathan Ward	...	Jonathan Eatenton
Bibi Besch	...	Belle Marmillion

Storyline

Pivoting around the lively Truvy Jones' Louisiana beauty parlour, a tightly-knit band of friends, confront griefs, loss, life's unforeseen tragedies and heartaches with what they do best: gossiping and sharing. The spirited diabetic and bride-to-be, Shelby; her always supportive mother, M'Lynn; Truvy's gawky assistant, Annelle; the city's curmudgeon, Ouiser; and the town's former first lady, Clairee, are the warm Southern belles who know how to survive life's challenges with their unwavering friendship. But when Shelby decides to conceive, things will turn upside down..

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Plot Keywords:

louisiana | beauty parlor | friendship between women | female bonding | wedding | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes laughter is a matter of life and death.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 November 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Steel Magnolias

Filming Locations:

Louisiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,425,440, 19 November 1989

Gross USA:

$84,614,512

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$96,759,512

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Pictures, Rastar Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Bette Davis saw the off-Broadway play, she thought it would be a great film for her, envisioning herself as Ouiser, Katharine Hepburn as Clairee, and Elizabeth Taylor as Truvy. However, when she contacted the rights holders for the movie adaptation, she found out that they intended to cast much younger actresses.

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Goofs

When Ouiser and Owen arrive at the Easter Egg Hunt at the end of the movie, Ouiser is wearing cream color high heel shoes. At the very end when everyone is waving and following the vehicle backing out of the park to take Annelle to the hospital, Ouiser is wearing brown socks with white lace and grungy looking tennis shoes.

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Quotes

Annelle: Sammy Wayne Desoto, what is this in my Frigidaire?
Sammy: Beer.
Annelle: I don't care what you do with your refrigerator, but you will not keep liquor in mine.
[dumps the beer out in the yard]
Sammy: Oh, Annelle, for Christ's sake!
Annelle: Who? Who did you say?
Sammy: Christ, Christ, Christ!
Annelle: Are you speaking of our Lord? Is that whose name you're taking in vain?
Sammy: That's the one.
Annelle: Well, I'm sorry, Sammy. But I am not about to spend the next fifty years of my life with someone I'm not gonna run into in the hereafter.
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in Spring Breakdown (2009)

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Soundtracks

Holy Holy Holy
(1826) (uncredited)
Music by Reginald Heber (1826) (uncredited)
Words by John B. Dykes (1861) (uncredited)
Sung by the church congregation

User Reviews

The flavor of the South

Every time I see this movie, I want to eat a plateful of jambalaya and smell the sweet aroma of a magnolia. No other movie I've seen quite captures the essense of southern living like Steel Magnolias. This movie has everything, hysterical comedy and satisfying drama. Everyone was great: Sally Field as M'Lynn, a mother who still worries about her very grown up daughter; Julia Roberts as Shelby, a special young woman who feels that having a baby is worth risking everything; Dolly Parton as Truvy, a lonely beautician who brightens like a light bulb when her little shop is full of "hens" : ) ; Olympia Dukkakis as Clairee, the town bigwig who loves to gossip; Daryl Hannah as Annelle, a very religious young woman who drives her friends crazy with her sudden fits of prayer; and of course who can forget Shirley McLaine as Ouiser, the grouchy old wretch who tows her pathetic dog around and mercilessly cusses out the equally obnoxious Drum (Tom Skerrit)??? A very satisfying movie for comedy and drama lovers alike. A totally feel good, yet very real movie.