What happens to Shelby in STEEL MAGNOLIAS? (Possible spoilers)

Yes, her body rejects the kidney.

I can't compare the movie to the play.

But, I think the movie is spectacular. The cast is magnificent. With such great actresses as Shirley MacLaine, Olympia Dukakis, Sally Field and wonderful performances from Julia Roberts, Daryl Hannah and Dolly Parton...it is such a tight plot.

This is definitely an extraordinary movie.

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I love this movie A LOT. It a wonderful movie, backed by that friggin' amazing cast.

I watched the movie today too and I have again FORBIDDEN myself from ever watching it again as I do after every time I watch it.... I am just such an emotional mess and so worn out by the end, I can hardly handle it!

Scroll up. The characters exact cause of death was posted.
I also <3 this movie. Not all chick flicks are bad. I usually double this one up with Waiting to Exhale.

The play is 1000 times better! The movie is phenomenal, but it confuses the focus a little. The play only has the women and they are only ever in the Beauty shop. The themes of Friendship, love, and the unique perspective of what exactly goes on in a beauty shop in a small town are lost when you start adding all of the men and locations.

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I like the movie, but I don't think it's a masterpiece.

I hated the play - it was so boring.

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i enjoyed the movie alot more than the actual play.

I acutally prefer the movie to the play. I've seen it onstage three times, two amateur productions and the recent Broadway revival and I felt ALL productions missed the emotional mark in one way or another. I didn't go to see the play with any expectations of the brilliant performances in the movie, how can you compare really, but I couldn't help but feel let down. I think that the Broadway production did well with the funnier side of the story, but had difficulty navigating to the more serious moments.

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I'm sorry to butt in but, going back to the original question...Shelby died after a diabetic coma. Both organ rejection and septic shock take time to develope (days or weeks.) She had Type 1 (juvenile onset) diabetes. This type is much harder to control than most Type 2 (adult onset)patients'. The fact that she was a very brittle diabetic (large swings in her blood sugar levels) is shown early on in the beauty shop when she goes from coherent to combative and disoriented very rapidly. Her mother remedies the situation with orange juice to bring her blood sugar back up. Sadly, there is no one around when her blood sugar precipitously drops at home with little Jack. When that happens the person passes rapidly into a coma. The brain uses glucose for its fuel source. Without it over a long enough time, like a brain deprived of oxygen, it suffers irreperable damage and dies. Incidently, Robert Harling's sister on whom the play is based, was Susan. She was married to a doctor not a lawyer and she is buried in Mansfield, LA where all of my family is originally from. My cousin is the same age as Robert and knows him well. Oh, and I'm an R.N. I Hope this helps.