Dolores Claiborne
DVD Cover
Directed by	Taylor Hackford
Produced by	Charles Mulvehill Taylor Hackford
Written by	Tony Gilroy
Starring	Kathy Bates Jennifer Jason Leigh
Music by	Danny Elfman Hendrik Meurkens
Cinematography	Gabriel Beristain
Editing by	Mark Warner
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date(s)	March 24, 1995 (United States) Sept. 8, 1995 (United Kingdom)
Running time	132 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Dolores Claiborne (1995) film based on the eponymous novel by Stephen King. It was starring Kathy Bates and Jennifer Jason Leigh, and was directed by Taylor Hackford. Taylor Hackford (born December 31, 1944 in Santa Barbara, California) is an American film director. ... Tony Gilroy is a screenwriter most notable for writing the screenplays for the first two films in the Jason Bourne series starring Matt Damon. ... Kathy Bates (right) with Frances Conroy in Six Feet Under. ... Jennifer Jason Leigh (born February 5, 1962) is an American actress who has appeared in numerous films. ... Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953 in Los Angeles, California) is an American singer-songwriter who led the rock band Oingo Boingo from 1978 until its breakup in 1995, and has since gone on to become one of the most sought-after film score composers working in Hollywood today. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (84th in leap years). ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... September 8 is the 251st day of the year (252nd in leap years). ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... // March 28 - Actress Julia Roberts and singer Lyle Lovett announce their plans for separation November - After a six-year hiatus, the James Bond film series resumes with the successful GoldenEye. ... Dolores Claiborne (1993) is a novel by Stephen King, which was adapted into a 1995 film starring Kathy Bates and Jennifer Jason Leigh. ... Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author best known for his enormously popular horror novels. ... Kathy Bates (right) with Frances Conroy in Six Feet Under. ... Jennifer Jason Leigh (born February 5, 1962) is an American actress who has appeared in numerous films. ... Taylor Hackford (born December 31, 1944 in Santa Barbara, California) is an American film director. ...

Plot

As the story of the novel begins, Dolores Claiborne is in a police interrogation and wants to make clear to the police that she did not kill her wealthy employer, an elderly woman named Vera Donovan whom she has looked after for years. She does, however, confess to the indirect murder of her husband, Joe St. George, almost 30 years before. Her "confession" develops into the story of her life, her troubled marriage, and her relationship with her employer.

The novel was adapted for the screenplay of a 1995 film of the same name, filmed in Nova Scotia and starring Kathy Bates. The film differs from the novel in two important aspects. First, the events leading up to Joe's murder take place over the course of several months in 1975. In the novel, however, Dolores first rebels against Joe in 1961 or so, although she does not kill him until July 1963. Motto: Munit Haec et Altera Vincit(Latin) One defends and the other conquers Capital Halifax Largest city Halifax Regional Municipality Official languages English Government - Lieutenant-Governor Mayann E. Francis - Premier Rodney MacDonald (PC) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 11 - Senate seats 10 Confederation July 1, 1867 (1st) Area... Kathy Bates (right) with Frances Conroy in Six Feet Under. ...

More importantly, the film focuses less on the investigation into Vera Donovan's death and more on Dolores' relationship with her daughter, Selena. (Due to the film's extensive use of flashbacks, Jennifer Jason Leigh stars as the adult Selena while Ellen Muth portrays Selena as she was at age fourteen.) As many difficult truths are revealed about their family's domestic strife, (this is cleverly portrayed with the present "reality" filmed in cool blue tones, blending seamlessly into flashbacks filmed in vivid colour) the uneasy relationship between mother and daughter becomes increasingly combative throughout the film. Selena has long suspected her mother of murdering her father, and she demands to know the truth. Dolores eventually persuades Selena that she had no choice but to do the things she did (she lured her drunk-and-dangerous-at-the-time husband into an invisible well-hole in the garden while he was chasing after her), and that they were both victims of Joe St. George: the ever-more abusive husband that he was towards his wife Dolores, and the molester of their daughter Selena. In literature and film, a flashback (also called analepsis) takes the narrative back in time from the point the story has reached, to recount events that happened before and give the back-story. ... Jennifer Jason Leigh (born February 5, 1962) is an American actress who has appeared in numerous films. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require restructuring. ...

The film provided the inspiration for the song entitled "There Is No Arizona" which was performed by Jamie O'Neal. Selena, confessing that she doesn't really have an important assignment in Arizona, tells her mother "There is no Arizona". Jamie ONeal is an contemporary country singer and songwriter. ...

Memorable Quotes from the film

Dolores Claiborne: "That is the last time you ever hit me! You do it again, one of us is going to the bone yard."

Vera Donovan: "Sometimes, Dolores, an accident can be an unhappy woman's best friend."

Dolores Claiborne: "Now, you listen to me, Mr. Grand High Poobah of Upper Buttcrack, I'm just about half-past give a shit with your fun and games."

Vera Donovan: "Sometimes you have to be a high-riding bitch to survive. Sometimes being a bitch is all a woman has to hold onto."

Vera Donovan: "Look on the bright side, dear: you may not have gotten the job, but think how much fun you'll have telling all your friends what a bitch Vera Donovan is."

Dolores Claiborne: "I'm not making an enemy; I'm keepin' one."

See also

• Dolores Claiborne (Stephen's King novel)

Dolores Claiborne (1993) is a novel by Stephen King, which was adapted into a 1995 film starring Kathy Bates and Jennifer Jason Leigh. ...

External links

• Dolores Claiborne at the Internet Movie Database
• David Strathairn Online: Dolores Claiborne - information and media on the film