Fried Green Tomatoes

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES AT THE WHISTLE-STOP CAFE (aka FRIED GREEN TOMATOES) (PG)

D: Jon Avnet

Universal/Act III/Electric Shadow (Jon Avnet & Jordan Kerner)

USA 🇺🇸 1991

136 mins

Drama/Comedy

W: Carol Sobieski & Fannie Flagg [based on the novel by Fannie Flagg]

DP: Geoffrey Simpson

Ed: Debra Neil-Fisher

Mus: Thomas Newman

PD: Barbara Ling

Cos: Elizabeth McBride

Kathy Bates (Evelyn Couch), Jessica Tandy (Ninny Threadgoode), Mary Stuart Masterson (Idgie Threadgoode), Mary Louise Parker (Ruth Jamison), Cicely Tyson (Sipsey), Chris O'Donnell (Buddy Threadgoode), Stan Shaw (Big George)

A good slice of nostalgic Americana, starring Kathy Bates as an unsatisfied housewife who befriends an old lady whilst visiting a nursing home and becomes enthralled by her stories of the small town where she grew up and the people she once knew.

At 136 minutes, the film does a lot of unnecessarily juggling between the past & present and it's fair to say that the more interesting story is the one told in flashback, despite the fine performances of Kathy Bates and Jessica Tandy.

Adapted from the novel from Fannie Flagg, there's a homosexual subtext which doesn't survive the transition, with the Idgie & Ruth characters being portrayed as friends and nothing more.

Despite being a little overlong, it's a wonderful ensemble of brilliant performances within a bittersweet and charming fable.

7/10