Mary Stuart Masterson is persuasive playing women who do not make themselves agreeable. We value the independence and affection she brings to Fried Green Tomatoes, and find far less to enjoy in her cartoonish turn in Five Nights at Freddy's.
Fi1m perspective
Idgie Threadgoode can be difficult company in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), and Mary Stuart Masterson lets that remain part of her appeal. She makes the independence convincing without insisting that we endorse every choice. That gives a sentimental film something it needs: a woman who does not exist simply to be admired. We prefer Masterson when she is allowed this much complication.
The parts leading up to Idgie help explain the casting. Watts, her drummer in Some Kind of Wonderful (1987), was another of the unconventional young women she was often asked to play. Immediate Family (1989) and, later, Benny & Joon (1993) belong to the stretch that brought her wider notice. In Fried Green Tomatoes, that casting works because she has someone persuasive to play against.
Mary-Louise Parker's Ruth Jamison is essential to that success. Parker gives Ruth enough presence that Masterson does not have to supply all the feeling herself. We were moved by their scenes together because the affection feels mutual. Jon Avnet's direction is less willing to acknowledge what the actors suggest about the women's sexuality, settling for a reassurance about friendship that feels evasive. The performances are a reason to accept the film's sentiment, not a reason to overlook that caution.
Masterson shifted towards television from the early 2000s and made her feature directing debut with The Cake Eaters (2007). She continued to take occasional film roles alongside recurring television work. Those appearances cannot tell us everything about her, though each still has to work on its own.
Aunt Jane in Emma Tammi's Five Nights at Freddy's (2023) is a disappointing part. Masterson's performance is cartoonish without being funny, and there is little here of the feeling that makes Idgie persuasive. We cannot excuse the result merely because we have liked her elsewhere. Start with Fried Green Tomatoes, with the caveat that its actors are more candid about the central attachment than its director.
Biography
Mary Stuart Masterson is an American actress, producer and director. She made her screen debut as a child in The Stepford Wives (1975) and returned to acting after a period focused on education with roles in Heaven Help Us (1985), At Close Range (1986) and Some Kind of Wonderful (1987).
She received the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actress for Immediate Family (1989) and earned further recognition for performances in Fried Green Tomatoes (1991) and Benny & Joon (1993). Masterson was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for the 2003 Broadway revival of Nine. She has also directed The Cake Eaters (2007) and appeared in television series including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Blindspot. In 2023 she played Aunt Jane in Five Nights at Freddy's.
