Question: At Jack Jr's birthday party, you don't see Shelby's head at all... It was her 'body' because later that day she is wearing the same shirt when she gets her hair cut. Was there a sit in for Julia Roberts in that scene?
Answer: I agree with the other answers that this was probably the child's real mother and not Julia Roberts. It was probably because the boy was upset, but major movies do use second and third-unit directors and often shoot scenes using a body-double as a stand-ins so that other scenes can be filmed simultaneously with the principal actors. It shortens the film's production time and is more economical. It's possible that Roberts was shooting another scene elsewhere. Also, it's definitely not Jack's father (Dylan McDermott) holding him as he is sitting next to Shelby and is saying "blow." It was also not Shelby's father (Tom Skerrit) holding Jack, as he is videotaping the party at the opposite end of the table.
Answer: No. It wasn't a man. It was the child's real mother holding her kid during the scene. The kid wouldn't shut up with the crying and only would calm itself sitting on the mother's lap.
Answer: I believe that Jack Jr is being held by a man. When you freeze the scene, you can see facial hair on the chin and when the person says "blow, blow" it sounds to be a man trying to sound like a woman.
Answer: It's Shelby's father that is holding him.
Question: When Shelby is telling her mom about the pregnancy, what does Shelby mean when she says, "I think it would help things a lot"?
Answer: She means that she and Jackson (her husband) are having marital problems. Jackson wants a son, and she's hoping that having one will bring them closer together.
Answer: She did say he likes to hunt for everything.
Answer: I always felt it meant her husband is cheating on her. And so her having the baby would hopefully help them get back together.
Question: In the scene where Shelby and Jackson are eating the wedding cake, what was the point of Nancy Beth telling Shelby that Jackson is "one big-hanging man"? And how does Nancy Beth even know?
Answer: Nancy Beth, who has had a crush on Jackson, is likely jealous that he is marrying Shelby rather than her. She is trying to ruin Shelby's happiness with her spiteful comment, hinting that she has been intimate with Jackson, though it is uncertain if she ever has been.
Answer: Reading this answer, I just now put two and two together. While it's obvious Nancy Beth is referring to the fact that she's been with Jackson intimately, it kind of refers to the "ladies man" persona Jackson has. It also foreshadows for later in the film, when Shelby bitterly says, "Jackson loves to hunt for anything", he is what used to be called "a skirt chaser." I always felt that having babies wasn't the only reason Shelby reconsidered marrying Jackson. I always suspected she feared womanizing on the side would happen.
Answer: She's basically saying she has had a piece of him already and was trying to ruin her day by reminding her of their affair. This also helps clarify when Shelby tells her mom she's pregnant, that they are having marital problems pretty much he is cheating on her.
Answer: She'd definitely been to bed with him. Nancy Beth was known as kind of loose, as you can see her mom had to reel her in at the wedding. Then there was the Miss Merry Christmas scandal where she was stripped of her title because she was found in a hotel room with I believe one of the judges. Shelby tried to appease Jackson by having a baby, to try to keep his interest at home.
Question: What is the food the two women are serving at the fair?
Answer: It's called a "Low Country Boil".
Answer: It's a combination of potatoes, corn on the cobb, shrimp and crawfish and seasonings usually called a shrimp bake.
Yummy. I'm an Aussie so that is something I've never heard of.
Question: Where was Jackson when Shelby was dying?
Answer: He was at the hospital. He signs the permission form to remove Shelby from life support. Later, at the cemetery, M'Lynn says she was the only one in the family able to remain in the room as Shelby passed. Jackson, Drum, and Shelby's two brothers were too emotionally devastated to stay and went to the waiting area.
Thank you. I watched it again and saw that. I don't know how I missed it.
Answer: I believe it is because the child playing Jack Jr. was basically crying through this whole scene, as you can see. It's most likely his (actually her, as the real baby was a girl) real mother holding him to calm him down. Also, when the family is saying "Blow, blow," you can hear a female voice that is neither Julia Roberts or Sally Field.