Review of Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) by Diane S — 06 Mar 2010

I have friends who swear by FRIED GREEN TOMATOES, friends who have avowed that the film transcends its reputation as a weepy melodrama to become something truly quite special. They assured me it was a definitive story about friendship... and more besides. I'm not sure I had quite the same rapturous reaction to the film, but there's definitely something worth (re)visiting in TOMATOES... yes, even 19 years after the film was released back in 1991.

There are two friendships that form the core of this film. It starts with miserable housewife Evelyn Couch (Kathy Bates), who meets the sharp, sassy octagenarian Ninny Threadgoode (Jessica Tandy), while on a visit to an old folks' home with her husband. Ninny tells Evelyn the story of two of the greatest friends she's ever known: the wilful, independent Idgie Threadgoode (Mary Stuart Masterson) and the grounded, luminous Ruth Jamison (Mary-Louise Parker). Idgie and Ruth remain firm friends, through tragedy and triumph, becoming family in a way that inspires Evelyn herself to change her life and her expectations not just of herself, but her husband.

I think it's safe to say that TOMATOES is a film that probably won't get made today - it's a female-centric picture, for one thing, and really isn't very much more than a deeply-felt, intimate story about four women, living at different times and with different pressures, trying to live as best they know how. No, it's not the kind of movie that would draw large crowds into the cineplexes. In fact, it's the kind of sweet, gentle picture that would flicker onto your television on quiet Saturday afternoons... if you're at home to care.

That being said, the stories and performances at the heart of the film are worth your time. The four actresses are perfect for their roles: Bates plays Evelyn's manic desperation at the greyness of her life in a way almost anyone can understand. The sparkle in Tandy's eye turns her from a glorified narrator to a character you care about, to the point that you share Evelyn's horror when the latter arrives at the home one day to discover Ninny, well, gone.

Masterson and Parker, meanwhile, lend charm to their roles, and share an easy, believeable chemistry so convincing that you can see why the film has gained the cult status it has. Because that's the other reason this film is so frequently revisited today - although the subtext of their relationship isn't explicitly spelt out in the film, as it is in the book on which the movie is based, Idgie and Ruth are far more than BFF (omigod, you guys!)... they are life partners, in every sense. This adds a layer of intimacy and almost profound romance to the way Idgie and Ruth share a moonlit swim, or how Idgie protects Ruth so fiercely against Ruth's abusive husband, Grady.

As you would imagine for a film about life-changing friendships, TOMATOES does on the occasion creak a little from oversentimentality. The structure of the film is a bit odd as well, suggesting onn occasion that Ninny and Idgie are the same character (they aren't). But for the deeply-felt performances, most people can probably suffer through a little whiff of the soap operatic.