Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

I absolutely love the original, but I hated the remake. The actresses failed to make the characters their own. There was so sentiment, no character development, no connection between them. The original film has two strong scenes that they absolutely ruined in the remake. One, was the Shelby's seizure. Julia Roberts was amazing and didn't fear do push her limits. Rashad acted like she was drunk staring at nothing. No to mention the fact that Truvy poked her. I am not kidding. The moment Shelby starts having the seizure she pokes her. Latifah may be a good actress but the role of M'Lynn was simply not for her. The highlight of the movie is her outburst. Shally Field was phenomenal during that scene. You could hear and feel her pain. Latifah said the words, but there was no emotion behind them. The character of Shelby can be wrapped up in just one line. "I would rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special". Once again, they kept that quote hidden for the ending where it lost it's meaning. I hated how they left out Spud and his confession in the end that he can't live without his wife. Anyway, I wouldn't watch it again. In fact I wanna watch the original once more just to get this fiasko out of my memory.

While I loved the original Steel Magnolias movie and really like Queen Latifah & Phylicia Rashad, I just think this movie just did not come together. The lines seemed a little robotic and about half way through I felt I was forcing myself to continue sitting through it. The dynamics of the cast in the original movie was just not here in this remake. The original movie left you with a warm, nostalgic feeling. This movie left you with a feeling you were glad it was over. I don't understand why it was necessary to remake this movie with an all black cast. It didn't add anything to the movie and sadly the actresses and actors chosen here did not convey the essence of the characters they were supposed to portray. Don't waste your time with this one.

The acting in this movie is painfully bad. It's so sad too because I really love Queen Latifah, Phylicia Rashad and Alfre Woodard. I was hoping for something good or at least palatable. This was like watching a high school play. There are some new scenes in the movie which is a good idea because when making a remake one must set the film apart from the original but the new scene at nothing. They actually take away from the movie. Additionally they give too much of a back story for Truvy and her husband. It serves no purpose. We got it the first time around. Ultimately the heroines lack strength and believability and there is no joy in this film. The characters in the first film did such a great job and were cast so perfectly that I knew it could be a pretty hard act to follow. I mean who wants to follow Sally Field, Olympia Dukakis and Shirley MacLaine? But I had high hopes that women would do them proud. They didn't.

The original movie shows a much stronger bond and relationship between the cast. The banter in the original is so natural and funny, the whole cast is cute and hilarious. I love the idea of an update and I love the cast. Phylicia Rashad is a wonderful actress, Alfre Woodard is a favorite since Hearts & Souls and Grand Canyon. I watch every Queen Latifah movie that comes out. The problem with the movie is that there was no real feeling in the acting. The lines were said and tears were in the eyes but there just wasn't the same sense of love and camaraderie that you felt in every scene in the 1989 version. Key points that bugged me: -Shelby 1989 was cute, lovable and exuberant, Shelby 2013 was muted and plain -M'lynne 1989 was tough and loving, M'lynne 2013 was loving but seemingly already defeated. -The relationship between Truvy, Ouiser, Clairee and Annelle is much more developed in the original. They seem to have so much fun. Ouiser and Clairee have the best banter ever. In the remake they just have no chemistry. -In the remake the relationship between Truvy and her husband Spud is never resolved which is one of my favorite stories in the original. -The love hate relationship between Ouiser and Drum is hilarious in 1989 but the 2013 version it was just never developed. -And finally, most importantly, the climax that sally field absolutely nailed in the original and the supporting cast made one the the most memorable scenes in cinematic history was not redone with the proper care in my opinion. I mean you basically remake a movie scene for scene and then ruin the climax? What? There is more but...Queen, Phylicia, Alfre I still love you but at the end of the day the original cast knocked this play out of the ballpark and it is a hard act to follow.