Overview
A heartfelt exploration of friendship, love, and resilience in the face of life's challenges.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- None
- witty
- warm
- sentimental
- girls night
- comfort viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film’s stage-derived, sentimental comedy drama uneven but effective in individual humorous and emotional moments, with Julia Roberts’s performance receiving particular praise.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Truvy, Shelby, M'Lynn, Annelle, Ouiser, and Clairee repeatedly rely on their beauty-parlour community to endure personal upheaval.
The women’s lively gossip and humor coexist directly with illness, mourning, and family tragedy.
The Louisiana beauty parlour and its group of outspoken Southern women provide the film’s central social environment and identity.
Truvy Jones’s beauty parlour is the recurring gathering place where gossip, support, conflict, and consolation unfold.
Films like Steel Magnolias, and why
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
female friendship, Southern setting, emotionally direct comedy drama, and a balance of sharp banter with grief
The Joy Luck Club
female-centered ensemble, intimate community relationships, witty dialogue, and sentimental family drama
Beaches
comedy tear-jerker structure, enduring female friendship, and a bittersweet emotional register
The First Wives Club
warm ensemble relationships, conversational humor, and heightened domestic drama centered on women
Movie Details
- Director
- Herbert Ross
- Release Date
- 1989-11-15
- Runtime
- 117 min
- Rating
- 7.2 / 10 (771)
Cast
- Sally Field
- Dolly Parton
- Shirley MacLaine
- Daryl Hannah
- Olympia Dukakis
- Julia Roberts
- Tom Skerritt
- Sam Shepard
- Dylan McDermott
- Kevin J. O'Connor
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, Paramount Plus Essential, Netflix Standard with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Steel Magnolias about?
- At a Louisiana beauty parlour, a fiercely loyal circle of women turns gossip, humor, and solidarity into a way of surviving life’s deepest losses.
- What is Steel Magnolias like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Steel Magnolias as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Steel Magnolias violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Steel Magnolias.
- What did critics think of Steel Magnolias?
- Critics broadly found the film’s stage-derived, sentimental comedy drama uneven but effective in individual humorous and emotional moments, with Julia Roberts’s performance receiving particular praise.
- Which films are like Steel Magnolias?
- Films with a similar feel include Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, The Joy Luck Club, Beaches, and The First Wives Club.
- How long is Steel Magnolias?
- Steel Magnolias runs 117 minutes.
- Where can I watch Steel Magnolias?
- In United States, Steel Magnolias streams on Netflix, Paramount Plus Essential, Netflix Standard with Ads.
