Director Bruce Beresford's affinity for the subtleties of southern life is apparent in this adaptation of Alfred Uhry's Pulitzer Prize-winning play. Starring Jessica Tandy as Daisy Werthan and Morgan Freeman as Hoke Colburn, the film opens in late-1940s Atlanta. Since Miss Daisy is becoming a menace behind the wheel, her son, Boolie (Dan Aykroyd), ignores her protests and hires Hoke, a black chauffeur. When the feisty matron decides to resist necessity and walk to the store, the equally stubborn chauffeur follows her in her car. As he says to Boolie, "I used to rassle hogs down to the ground...ain't nary a hog got away from me yet." But Hoke's methods are gentleness and patience, and as the years elapse in his ongoing tug-of-war with the temperamental Daisy, she begins to tacitly acknowledge his wisdom. When she expresses annoyance over the demands of the nascent civil rights movement, Hoke points out to the Jewish woman the similarity between the attack on her synagogue and Klan attacks on black churches. But it is only after many years together that they can finally admit to the depth of the friendship they have shared. The two stars give unforgettable performances, and Beresford's direction is a model of restraint.
Adapted from Alfred Uhry's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, DRIVING MISS DAISY tells the tale of the reluctant friendship between Daisy Werthan, a willful, wealthy Southern woman, and Hoke Colburn, her stoic black chauffeur.
Theatrical release: December 15, 1989.
Shot in Atlanta, Georgia.
DRIVING MISS DAISY received 8 Academy Award Nominations, including Best Actor--Morgan Freeman, Best Supporting Actor--Dan Aykroyd. The film won 4 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress--Jessica Tandy, Best (Adapted) Screenplay.
Excerpt: "Did you have the air-conditioning checked? I told you to have the air-conditioning checked."--Daisy Werthan (Jessica Tandy) to Hoke Colburn (Morgan Freeman)
"I had the air-conditioning checked. I don't know what for. You never allow me to turn it on."--Hoke
"Hush up!"--Daisy
"Hoke?"--Daisy
"Yes'm."--Hoke
"You're my best friend."--Dasiy
"No... go on, Miss Daisy."--Hoke
"No, really, you are... You are."--Daisy
"Yes'm."--Hoke
DVD Features:
Region 1
Digipak
Single Side - Dual Layer
Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
Letterbox - 1.85
Audio:
Dolby Digital Stereo 2.0 - Spanish
Dolby Surround - English
Dolby Surround - French
Additional Release Material:
Featurette
Audio Commentary
Trailers: Original Theatrical Trailer
Text/Photo Galleries:
Stills/Photos
Executive Producer
David Brown: Producer, worked with Richard Zanuck, began in '73, JAWS
Review 1:
"...Small and pure and healthily skeptical....[Tandy] has never had a role of a richness and humor to match Miss Daisy, and she brings to it her mastery..."
Source: New York Times
p.C19 12/13/1989
Review 2:
"...Freeman and Tandy have their own performer's pride, and that transfers to their characters....The disciplined yet intuitive way in which these actors connect is a model of ensemble performance..."
Source: Los Angeles Times
p.F1 01/12/1990
Review 3:
"...Funny and touching..."
Source: Rolling Stone
p.30 01/11/1990
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