Small Engine Repair (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes (2024)

79%

Tomatometer

52 Reviews

85%

Audience Score

Fewer than 50 Verified Ratings

Frankie (John Pollono), Swaino (Jon Bernthal) and Packie (Shea Wigham) are lifelong friends who share a love of the Red Sox, rowdy bars and Frankie's teenaged daughter Crystal (Ciara Bravo). But when Frankie invites his pals to a whiskey-fueled evening and asks them to do a favor on behalf of the brash young woman they all adore, events spin wildly out of control. Based on Pollono's award-winning play, Small Engine Repair is a pitch-black comedic drama with a wicked twist and a powerful exploration of brotherhood, class struggle and toxic masculinity.

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Critics Reviews

View All (52) Critics Reviews

Small Engine Repair (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes (1)

Peter Sobczynski

RogerEbert.com

Small Engine Repair is little more than 103 minutes of a would-be provocation whose only real advantage is that it's ultimately too dopey to be as offensive as it clearly could have been.

Rated: 1/4

Sep 10, 2021

Full Review

Small Engine Repair (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes (2)

Marc Savlov

Austin Chronicle

Small Engine Repair is a real American horror story, skillfully shot, perfectly cast and acted, and carrying a sorrowful message that resonates with brutal truth.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 9, 2021

Full Review

Small Engine Repair (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes (3)

Maya Phillips

New York Times

Ultimately, the story still feels unfinished, and Pollono's direction falters in the film's big twist, when it tries to balance horror and humor before its tidy resolution.

Sep 9, 2021

Full Review

Small Engine Repair (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes (4)

John Serba

Decider

The film’s best quality is the character work by its three leads, who embrace the qualities of their types for comedic effect, and transcend them for dramatic effect.

Feb 9, 2022

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Small Engine Repair (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes (5)

Neely Swanson

Easy Reader (California)

A gem on many different levels.

Jan 27, 2022

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Small Engine Repair (2021) | Rotten Tomatoes (6)

David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

...a striking debut for an exceedingly promising new filmmaker.

Rated: 3/4

Dec 17, 2021

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Audience Reviews

View All (63) audience reviews

Jason F Written, directed and Starring John Pollono. This was a solid indie film and I did enjoy seeing it on the Big screen. I liked the characters in the film, they felt believable. John Berthal and Shea Whigham were both good, playing childhood friends of Pollono. Ciara Bravo was a bright spot, playing Pollono's daughter. Spenser House was good, as well, playing the rich, douche bag college drug dealer. The movie was dark and gruesome, at times. Which i enjoyed. I wish they would have laid out more of Pollono's characters backstory. If Pollono gets to make another film, I will give it a shot. 3/5 stars. Rated 3/5 Stars • Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/25/21 Full Review Lyman G Really enjoyed this new version of the off-Broadway play. I loved the stage play and thought the screen version was perfectly adapted. I saw the stage production back in 2013 and a lot has changed with society and social media. I will definitely recommend this smart and funny film to friends and family. Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/19/21 Full Review Matt S Not what I expected, but worth a watch Rated 3/5 Stars • Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/15/21 Full Review Jennifer C Unexpected twists, laughs at the right moments, all talented actors, and ask yourself what would you do. Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/15/21 Full Review Brandon O Surprisingly good, great acting and all around a great watch. Rated 3.5/5 Stars • Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/14/21 Full Review alberto very nice movie to watch I like the story line it was good Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/13/21 Full Review Read all reviews

Small Engine Repair

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Cast & Crew

John Pollono Director John Pollono Frank Romanowski Jon Bernthal Terrance Swaino Shea Whigham Packie Hanrahan Ciara Bravo Crystal Romanoski Jordana Spiro Karen Delgado

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Small Engine Repair

Small Engine Repair: Trailer 1

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Small Engine Repair (2021)

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Movie Info

Synopsis Frankie (John Pollono), Swaino (Jon Bernthal) and Packie (Shea Wigham) are lifelong friends who share a love of the Red Sox, rowdy bars and Frankie's teenaged daughter Crystal (Ciara Bravo). But when Frankie invites his pals to a whiskey-fueled evening and asks them to do a favor on behalf of the brash young woman they all adore, events spin wildly out of control. Based on Pollono's award-winning play, Small Engine Repair is a pitch-black comedic drama with a wicked twist and a powerful exploration of brotherhood, class struggle and toxic masculinity.

Director: John Pollono
Producer: Peter Abrams, Jon Bernthal, Rick Rosenthal, Noah Rothman
Screenwriter: John Pollono
Distributor: Vertical Entertainment
Production Co: Canopy Media Partners, Universal Films
Rating: R (Pervasive Language|Drug Use|Crude Sexual Content|Sexual Assault|Strong Violence)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 10, 2021, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 30, 2021
Box Office (Gross USA): $73.0K
Runtime: 1h 43m