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Eighteen years after being accused of
murdering her husband, a small-town Maine woman again
finds herself in the midst of a murder investigation.
The only one who can save her from the overzealous
investigator who failed to convict her before is her
estranged daughter.
Based on a novel by Stephen King, the
film features a star-making performance by Kathy Bates
as the title character, a placid woman who can take only
so much before she strikes back. Christopher Plummer is
the detective determined to convict this time.
Eighteen years ago, the abusive
husband of Dolores Claiborne (Kathy Bates) died under
mysterious circumstances. His death was ruled an
accident despite the suspicions of police detective John
Mackey. Now the elderly woman she has nursed for many
years has also died--with Dolores found standing over
her body with a rolling pin in her upraised hands--and
this time she is accused of murder. Her estranged
daughter (Jennifer Jason Leigh), who blames Dolores for
her father's death, returns to confront her with her
resentment. Are things as cut-and-dried as they seem, or
is there more to the story? After years of living a lie,
Dolores Claiborne has to finally face the truth with her
daughter--or risk losing her for good. Weaving
skillfully between past and present, director Taylor
Hackford delivers a deceptively adept melodrama, based
on a novel by Stephen King and illuminated by Kathy
Bates's bravura performance.
Shot on location in Nova Scotia.
The film's credits list Alex Hackford as the "Gull
Wrangler!!"
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