Jessica Tandy was nominated for an Oscar in the category “Best Supporting Actress” at the 64th Academy Awards (1992) for her role as Mrs. Ninny — the narrator of the film. This role is very popular because of its wit, wisdom and emotion.
The winner that year was Mercedes Ruehl for her role in The Fisher King.
Why is Jessica Tandy’s role highly appreciated?
- Charming and lovely demeanor: Despite her old age (about 82 at the time of filming), Jessica Tandy’s Mrs. Ninny is full of life, showing wit but also very delicate.
- Inspirational: Ninny becomes the motivator and catalyst for Evelyn to change her life — a subtle but extremely important role in the film.
- Deep performance: Jessica Tandy’s way of telling the story of the past makes the audience feel like they’re traveling through time — real, emotional, without being sentimental.
Other awards & nominations for Ninny
In addition to the Oscar, Jessica Tandy has received:
- 1993 BAFTA Award:
Category: Best Supporting Actress - Screen Actors Guild Award (SAG Awards):
Not held at the time (SAG was founded in 1995), but if it had been, she would have been a front-runner.
Some interesting facts about Jessica Tandy
She is the oldest actress to ever win an Oscar for a leading role (for Driving Miss Daisy, 1989 – when she was 80).
In Fried Green Tomatoes, many viewers assumed that Ninny was old Idgie — and Jessica Tandy played the role with artistic ambiguity, which gave the film a lot more depth.
This was one of her last roles before her death in 1994.
Ninny doesn’t just tell stories, she “lives” in the character
Jessica Tandy doesn’t play the role of a simple old woman sitting around telling a boring story. She makes the audience feel like the past is coming back to life through every glance, smile, hesitation or distant look.
Voice: Warm and gentle, creating a sense of intimacy. Tandy uses varying intonations – sometimes excited, sometimes emotional, sometimes choked up – to evoke the listener’s imagination and emotions.
Facial expressions: Almost every time she tells an important part, she includes a very deep look – as if she is really seeing the memories again.
For example, when telling about Ruth’s death, Ninny’s eyes droop, she doesn’t cry, but the pain appears through her eyes and the silence in her lines.
With her delicate acting, Jessica Tandy always wins the hearts of her fans
Jessica Tandy uses a restrained, unpretentious but extremely profound acting style. Instead of expressing her emotions through big actions, she chooses to express them through small details:
The hidden smile when mentioning Idgie’s rebellion, the slight tilt of the head and the wistful look when talking about Ruth – as if those memories are still very vivid. The hand that trembles slightly when Evelyn touches it – showing age, weakness, but at the same time the emotion of finding a new friend. In one scene, Ninny says: “A heart can be broken, but it keeps beating just the same.” – the way she pauses for a beat, looks at Evelyn and then continues very gently, making the sentence like a sad poem that falls into the listener’s heart.
Thanks to Jessica Tandy’s talent, Ninny is not only a “storyteller”, but also a person who opens up the past, connecting two timelines, two generations of women.
The mirror reflects Evelyn: The more Ninny tells, the more Evelyn changes – meaning Ninny has a “spiritual transformation” nature.
Mysterious Symbol: With her ambiguous performance, neither confirming nor denying that Ninny could be Idgie, Tandy leaves an artistic fog, leaving the audience to speculate.
When Evelyn asks if she is Idgie, Ninny just smiles and changes the subject. Without confirmation, just with a smile — Tandy stirs up a whole depth of emotion and debate.
Connecting with the character Evelyn and the audience
One of the things that makes Ninny special is her ability to connect deeply with Evelyn (and the audience).
Jessica Tandy makes it seem like she really cares about Evelyn — her keen eyes, her caring demeanor, her gentle words of encouragement.
The audience doesn’t just listen to a story, they feel like they are being held and comforted by a wonderful grandmother.
In an era where cinema often favors fierce, tragic roles, Jessica Tandy chose to go in the opposite direction: rustic, simple, but touching the hearts of viewers.
And that is the reason why the role of Ninny became immortal in the hearts of movie lovers, even though it was not the main role.
