Fried Green Tomatoes (1991)

My Review

“Fried Green Tomatoes” is a comedy-drama film about a housewife who becomes acquainted with an elderly woman on her visits to nursing homes. She becomes captivated by the woman’s stories of her youth and the characters that populate it from an era gone by. Director Jon Avnet, in his feature film debut, put together a well written and somewhat predictable “chick flick” movie that delivers some outstanding performances from cast members.

They make the difference in this film, which features Kathy Bates, Jessica Tandy, Mary Stuart Masterson, Mary-Louise Parker, Cicely Tyson, Chris O’Donnell, Lois Smith, Nick Searcy, Stan Shaw, Gailard Sartain, Gary Basaraba, and Tim Scott as Smokey Lonesome. The screenplay was penned by Fannie Flagg and Carol Sobieski, adapted from Flagg’s 1987 novel “Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe.”

The watchable “Fried Green Tomatoes” was a big hit at the box office for producer Jon Avnet, Avnet/Kerner Productions, Electric Shadow Productions, Act III Communications, and Universal Pictures. It was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Supporting Actress (Tandy) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Flagg and Sobieski).