Dolores Claiborne (1995)

NEUTRAL

Various

86%

1995, Crime/Drama, 2h 11m

RT Critics’ Score: 84% (UNBIASED)
RT Audience Score: 82%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 8 nominations

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Critics Consensus

Post-Misery Kathy Bates proves to be another wonderful conduit for Stephen King’s novels in this patient, gradually terrifying thriller

Audience Consensus

Dolores Claiborne” is a movie that will keep you on the edge of your seat, even if you’re not a fan of thrillers. The story is compelling, and the performances by the women in the film are wonderful. Kathy Bates does a walloping good job as Dolores, and the flashbacks to the past are well-done. The movie may not have a true “Aha!” moment, but it’s still a strangely delightful and powerful film. Plus, who doesn’t love a good yarn?

Storyline

Instead of heading to Arizona for her next big story in what has been her illustrious career in her relatively young life, New York based investigative journalist Selena St. George heads to her hometown on a small island just off the coast of Jonesport, Maine upon receiving a fax from an anonymous sender that her mother, Dolores Claiborne, is the only suspect in what looks to be the murder of her wealthy employer of twenty-three years, Vera Donovan. Dolores, who reassumed her maiden name following the death of Selena’s father, Joe St. George, started working as one of Vera’s domestics upon her moving permanently into what used to be the Donovans’ summer house after Jack Donovan’s passing, Dolores ultimately moving into the Donovan house full time as her caregiver when Vera required ’round the clock care. Dolores’ employment, which was solely to save money for Selena’s education, was despite miserly and overly particular Vera only paying a pittance. Selena has been estranged from Dolores for fifteen years, when Selena went away to college at Vassar on a full scholarship, on Selena’s belief not only that her mother killed her father when she was thirteen – the death ultimately ruled accidental – but the trauma she endured at the hands of townsfolk who believed the same in their often anonymous taunts. Selena still suffers emotionally from the trauma, she resorting to various means of self-medication. Detective John Mackey, who led the investigation, believed the same, this case the only blemish in his otherwise perfect career. He, leading the investigation into Vera’s death, has seemingly had it in for Dolores for eighteen years, and already has it in his mind that if she could kill Joe, she could just as easily have killed Vera, with a strong underlying motive beyond the seemingly open dislike the two had for each other in their mutual name calling. As Dolores and Selena are forced to move back into what has largely been the closed-up St. George house for however long Selena will be staying on the island, old memories come back to haunt both of them, with the truth behind what happened eighteen years ago and thus what happened with Vera buried deep within those memories in the house.

Production Company(ies)
Tequila Gang Estudios Picasso Esperanto Filmoj

Distributor
NA

Release Type
Theatrical

Filming Location(s)
Digby, Nova Scotia, Canada

MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for language and domestic abuse

Year of Release
1995

Technical Specs

Color:

Color
Sound mix:

Dolby SR SDDS
Aspect ratio:

2.40 : 1
Runtime:

NA
Language(s):

English
Country of origin:

United States
Release date:

Release Date (Streaming): May 15, 2007

Genre(s)
Crime/Drama

Keyword(s)
starring Kathy Bates, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judy Parfitt, Christopher Plummer, David Strathairn, Eric Bogosian, directed by Taylor Hackford, written by Stephen King, Tony Gilroy, Crime, Drama, $22.8M box office, R MPAA rating, reviewed by Michael Wilmington, Owen Gleiberman, Brian Lowry, Janet Maslin, Mick LaSalle, Almar Haflidason, Mal Vincent, Matt Brunson, Nicholas Bell, C.H Newell, Jim Laczkowski, produced by Taylor Hackford, Charles Mulvehill

Box Office Details

Worldwide gross: $24,361,867
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $47,904,197
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,351
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 5,224,013

US/Canada gross: $24,361,867
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $47,904,197
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,093
US/Canada opening weekend: $5,721,920
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $11,251,354
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 922

Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA

Cast & Crew

Kathy Bates

Jennifer Jason Leigh

Judy Parfitt

Christopher Plummer

David Strathairn

Dolores Claiborne

Selena St. George

Vera Donovan

Det. John Mackey

Joe St. George

Kathy Bates – Dolores Claiborne
Jennifer Jason Leigh – Selena St. George
Judy Parfitt – Vera Donovan
Christopher Plummer – Det. John Mackey
David Strathairn – Joe St. George
Eric Bogosian – Peter

Taylor Hackford

Stephen King

Taylor Hackford

Charles Mulvehill

Director

Writer

Producer

Director(s)
Taylor Hackford

Writer(s)
Stephen King, Tony Gilroy

Producer(s)
Taylor Hackford, Charles Mulvehill

Film Festivals

Awards & Nominations
1 win & 8 nominations

Academy Awards

Top Reviews

Michael Wilmington

Owen Gleiberman

Brian Lowry

Janet Maslin

Mick LaSalle

Chicago Tribune

Entertainment Weekly

Variety

New York Times

San Francisco Chronicle

DOLORES CLAIBORNE
All Critics (46) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (39) | Rotten (7)
It’s rare to see a pop best seller come out this well in the movies.

October 4, 2019 | Rating: 3.5/4

Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
September 7, 2011 | Rating: D+

Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
Deftly cutting between the past and the present, director Taylor Hackford manages to establish a compelling mood and pace even though the pic lacks a thriller’s true “Aha!” moment.

June 16, 2008

Brian Lowry
Variety
TOP CRITIC
The role of Dolores may be rough around the edges, but it’s a windfall for Ms. Bates, who does a walloping good job.

May 20, 2003

Janet Maslin
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
The mysteries of “Dolores Claiborne” are never gripping enough to consume an audience, and there are few, if any, surprises along the way. But the women are wonderful and reason enough to see the picture.

June 18, 2002 | Rating: 3/4

Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
January 1, 2000 | Rating: 4/5

Almar Haflidason
BBC.com
TOP CRITIC
A delightful yarn.

February 25, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/4

Mal Vincent
The Virginian-Pilot
The story remains compelling even as some of the particulars become obvious before they’re revealed.

September 18, 2021 | Rating: 3/4

Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
A fulfilling score from Danny Elfman and a well-rounded script from Tony Gilroy are met with some superb juxtapositions ranging from the dreary, drab present overshadowed by the events from a rose-tinted past.

August 27, 2020 | Rating: 3.5/5

Nicholas Bell
IONCINEMA.com
Dolores Claiborne is a strangely delightful, chilling, and powerful film all at once.

May 6, 2019 | Rating: 4.5/5

C.H. Newell
Father Son Holy Gore
We should be examining this one again for daringly showcasing how men get away with their impulsivity and evil deeds. Great works of art like this are telling truths we want to bury and forget, but our subconscious won’t let us.

October 31, 2018

Jim Laczkowski
Voices & Visions
It is well-acted and nicely textured, but scenes of euthanasia and child molestation, a flurry of violence and confusing flashbacks, and Leigh’s hard, angry face ensure that it’s no barrel of laughs.

December 6, 2017

Quentin Curtis
Independent on Sunday…

Plot
Instead of heading to Arizona for her next big story in what has been her illustrious career in her relatively young life, New York based investigative journalist Selena St. George heads to her hometown on a small island just off the coast of Jonesport, Maine upon receiving a fax from an anonymous sender that her mother, Dolores Claiborne, is the only suspect in what looks to be the murder of her wealthy employer of twenty-three years, Vera Donovan. Dolores, who reassumed her maiden name following the death of Selena’s father, Joe St. George, started working as one of Vera’s domestics upon her moving permanently into what used to be the Donovans’ summer house after Jack Donovan’s passing, Dolores ultimately moving into the Donovan house full time as her caregiver when Vera required ’round the clock care. Dolores’ employment, which was solely to save money for Selena’s education, was despite miserly and overly particular Vera only paying a pittance. Selena has been estranged from Dolores for fifteen years, when Selena went away to college at Vassar on a full scholarship, on Selena’s belief not only that her mother killed her father when she was thirteen – the death ultimately ruled accidental – but the trauma she endured at the hands of townsfolk who believed the same in their often anonymous taunts. Selena still suffers emotionally from the trauma, she resorting to various means of self-medication. Detective John Mackey, who led the investigation, believed the same, this case the only blemish in his otherwise perfect career. He, leading the investigation into Vera’s death, has seemingly had it in for Dolores for eighteen years, and already has it in his mind that if she could kill Joe, she could just as easily have killed Vera, with a strong underlying motive beyond the seemingly open dislike the two had for each other in their mutual name calling. As Dolores and Selena are forced to move back into what has largely been the closed-up St. George house for however long Selena will be staying on the island, old memories come back to haunt both of them, with the truth behind what happened eighteen years ago and thus what happened with Vera buried deep within those memories in the house.

Trivia