Rent Small Engine Repair on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: John Pollono (written for the screen by)
Directed by: John Pollono
Starring: Jon Bernthal, Shea Whigham, Jordana Spiro, John Pollono, James Badge Dale, James Ransone
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
Events spin wildly out of control when three lifelong friends agree to do a favor on behalf of the brash young woman they all adore.
Verdict
This has a strong ending, but two thirds in I wondered if there was any point to it. The groundwork this lays is important even if we don't realize that until much later. It's just too much lead and not enough payoff. The ending can't quite make up the disparity.
Skip it.
Review
This is based on Pollono's play. Pollono and Bernthal reprise their roles from the play.
This starts with a nice family vibe as Frank (John Pollono) and his daughter have dinner with Frank's friends Swaino (Jon Bernthal) and Packie (Shea Whigham). It's clear they're close. For hat seems like purely plot reasons, Frank and friends become estranged.
 |
| John Pollono, Shea Whigham, Jon Bernthal play Frank, Packie, Swaino |
Frank brings them back together, and while they are hesitant at first they begin reminiscing about old times. This takes a while to get into it. Half way in I was wondering what the plot would be. There's a lot of talking like this because it's based on a play. These are three Boston guys dealing with their best years being behind them. How do they approach fatherhood, how do you define masculinity? This asks interesting questions even if it doesn't explore them much. Swaino is the most interesting character. He always has to have the best and newest, often lying about it. He has a Ducati motorcycle, but the headlight is out. His image is a facade, and how he reacts to things reflects that. Frank and Packie just aren't as developed.
Frank invites another person over, and while there's a bit of plot contrivance, you might soon guess where this is going. This gets dark really quickly. The problem is the movie takes too long to get to that point. It is exponentially more entertaining once we get to the turning point, but that doesn't make up for the rest of the movie. I wish what happens in the last act tied into character development. While Frank's reactions are on brand, the characters' defining traits aren't really a factor.
This is a neat idea, but it isn't developed enough and takes too long too start. I want it to mean more or affect the characters more. Character development is uneven and with so much time spent on these guys, their personalities should play a bigger factor on the end.
No comments :
Post a Comment