Fried Green Tomatoes

Play trailer

Fried Green Tomatoes

PG-13

1991

2h 10m

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

76%

Tomatometer

46 Reviews

87%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

On one of trapped housewife Evelyn Couch's (Kathy Bates) Wednesday nursing home visits, she encounters Ninny Threadgoode (Jessica Tandy), a colorful old woman who brightens Evelyn's outlook by sharing tales from her past. As Ninny recounts the exploits of her free-spirited sister-in-law Idgie (Mary Stuart Masterson), owner of a small Alabama café in the 1920s, and the bond Idgie shared with her friend Ruth (Mary-Louise Parker), Evelyn gains the confidence to change her own life for the better.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Fried Green Tomatoes' tearjerking drama is undeniably manipulative, but in the hands of a skilled cast that includes Jessica Tandy and Kathy Bates, it's also powerfully effective.

Read Critics Reviews

Hugo Davenport

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Do not be deterred by the indigestible title nor, if feministically inclined, by the fact that it is directed by mere man Jon Avnet. It is funny, cleverly constructed, often rather moving, and only occasionally allows sentiment to slop over the bucket.

May 20, 2022

Full Review

Michael Sragow

The New Yorker

[A] clunky, fraudulent, yet apparently crowd-pleasing laugh-and-tear-jerker.

Jun 2, 2014

Full Review

John Hartl

Seattle Times

When a group of actors this gifted and lively tries so good-naturedly to deliver such an obvious message, the audience is left in the position of trying to stop a tidal wave. You may hate yourself for responding, but you're smothered before you know it.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 2, 2014

Full Review

Malinda Lo

AfterEllen.com

Fried Green Tomatoes is iconic in its presentation of love across the years, across generations and across boundaries. It’s a tamed but still powerful love story -- and a lesbian classic, if only in subtext.

May 6, 2024

Full Review

Rex Sterling

Alabama Forum

A compelling and enjoyable movie.

May 4, 2023

Full Review

Maria Vetrano

Gay Community News (Boston)

The final and most important question is, is Fried Green Tomatoes worth all the compromise or will you leave the theater forlorn and bleary eyed? Not to worry... it will leave you with that warm, gummy feeling you get when Bette Midler sings a lullabye.

May 17, 2022

Full Review

Read all reviews

Tom and Pat Hardy

A great movie about the South and Southern people. Some of the funniest lines in any movie, and some of the most heart-breaking scenes..

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/14/23

Full Review

VITALII H

I like when you're watching the movie and throughout it you feel different kinds of emotions. I experienced empathy, happiness, sadness, irony and a whole bunch of others. That's what I really appreciate about the movies. Technically it's a drama movie but it's also a comedy, romance in some way, and just in general a great movie. You can find yourself in one of the main character Evelyn, which is so relatable to me. If you like old drama/romance movies then you're definitely gonna enjoy this one.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

10/28/25

Full Review

Bronson K.

90’s classic is very heart breaking.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/03/25

Full Review

E W F

This my absolute most favorite movie of all time. I love the American gothic nature of it... the old Southern town and it's history that still peeks through the rust and overgrown foliage. It is a tale in both the "present" and past and it is full of heartfelt moments with lighthearted laughs and above all... the endurance of the human spirit and the complications with humanity itself. It's beautiful. I love it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/22/25

Full Review

Jake S.

One of a kind. Instant Classic. Jessica Tandy is my hero. She talks better than almost any female actor of all time. The story from start to finish had myself glued to my tv.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/03/25

Full Review

Sara C

This movie is infuriating to me because its great potential is wasted. While Mary-Louise Parker has enough lesbian dynamism to take any movie to the next level, Mary Stuart Masterson was not a good match. I felt this heat coming off Parker and dropping like 30 degrees at the other end. I couldn’t believe Masterson as a tomboy or a strong lover, and combined with the awful Southern accent, the onscreen chemistry was DOA. But this miss on one character’s casting could’ve been overcome if the filmmakers had had enough balls to add some sexuality to the film. It didn’t need to be graphic but to omit it entirely was more than just a commercial cop-out. It’s an artistic collapse of the worst kind. The filmmakers denied the story’s true life and in doing so, it lost its creative integrity. Despite being hollow at its core, FGT is enjoyable to watch and has great actors. As my straight friend insists, it’s about two women who are great friends. Right, it is but it could’ve been so much more.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/30/25

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Jon Avnet

Director

Kathy Bates

Evelyn Couch

Jessica Tandy

Ninny Threadgoode

Mary Stuart Masterson

Idgie Threadgoode

Mary-Louise Parker

Ruth Jamison

Nick Searcy

Frank Bennett

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - Taking the Stand

2:43

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - The Best Birthday

2:07

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - A Lady Always Knows When to Leave

2:57

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - Evelyn the Destroyer

1:07

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - The Spark Back in Marriage

1:34

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - Ruth Leaves Frank

2:55

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - Buddy's Accident

3:00

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - Frank Intrudes on Ruth

1:25

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - Food Fight

2:08

Fried Green Tomatoes: Official Clip - Parking Lot Rage

2:04

View more videos

The Cure

50%

84%

The Cure

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Cure

The River

27%

49%

The River

Watchlist

Crooklyn

79%

89%

Crooklyn

Watchlist

Lorenzo's Oil

93%

80%

Lorenzo's Oil

Watchlist

Reality Bites

61%

74%

Reality Bites

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

New on Prime Video and Freevee in September 2022

Trailer Bulletin: Al Pacino in "88 Minutes"

Avnet Set to Visit "Second World"

View more photos

Synopsis

On one of trapped housewife Evelyn Couch's (Kathy Bates) Wednesday nursing home visits, she encounters Ninny Threadgoode (Jessica Tandy), a colorful old woman who brightens Evelyn's outlook by sharing tales from her past. As Ninny recounts the exploits of her free-spirited sister-in-law Idgie (Mary Stuart Masterson), owner of a small Alabama café in the 1920s, and the bond Idgie shared with her friend Ruth (Mary-Louise Parker), Evelyn gains the confidence to change her own life for the better.

Director: Jon Avnet
Producer: Jon Avnet, Jordan Kerner
Screenwriter: Fannie Flagg, Carol Sobieski
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Fried Green Tomatoes Productions, Universal Pictures, Avnet/Kerner Productions, Act III Communications, Electric Shadow Productions
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 27, 1991, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 15, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $81.2M
Runtime: 2h 10m
Sound Mix: Surround

Most Popular at Home Now