Small Engine Repair follows lifelong friends Frank (Pollono), Swaino (Bernthal) and Packie (Whigham) who share a love of the Red Sox, rowdy bars and Frank’s teenaged daughter Crystal (Bravo). But when Frank 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 in this exploration of brotherhood, class struggle and toxic masculinity.
Pollono’s 2011 play became an underground hit in LA and off-Broadway. The film version won an SXSW premiere slot in the Narrative Spotlight section last year but with the live festival canceled due to Covid, Pollono and Bernthal opted to skip a digital showing. As the pandemic raged, the film nabbed a theatrical screening at the Electric Dusk drive-in last fall.
“Small Engine Repair started out as a late-night show in 2011 with a budget of about $500. But from that first performance, we were connecting with audiences and the play moved to bigger stages all over the country and even the world,” Pollono said. “Ten years later, we updated the material and captured the same heart we had in that late night show. The central themes, for better and for worse, are more relevant than ever.”
Small Engine Repair is a 2021 black comedy drama film written and directed by John Pollono based on Pollono’s play of the same name. The adaptation was penned and directed by Pollono and produced by Peter Abrams, Jon Bernthal, Rick Rosenthal, and Noah Rothman. Pollono and Bernthal reprise their roles from the original production and Shea Whigham and Spencer House portray Packie and Chad, respectively. Michael Redfield and Josh Helman, who both starred in the original production, are in the film as new characters. Additionally, Jennifer Pollono, the original costume designer, and Sophie Pollono, her daughter with John Pollono, also have roles in the film.
The adaptation was slated to premiere in March 2020 as part of the SXSW Festival’s Narrative Spotlight. Following the cancellation of the festival that year, the premiere was put on hold. Small Engine Repair was released in theaters by Vertical Entertainment on September 10, 2021.
Small Engine Repair (2021)
Directed by: John Pollono
Starring: Jon Bernthal, Shea Whigham, John Pollono, Spencer House, Jordana Spiro, Ciara Bravo, Nina Peterson, Addie Bernthal, Josh Helman, Ashlie Atkinson, Jenna Lamia, Jennifer Pollono
Screenplay by: John Pollono
Production Design by: Erin Blake
Cinematography by: Matt Mitchell
Film Editing by: Christopher Robin Bell, David Moritz
Costume Design by: Mia Fiddis
Set Decoration by: Jayne Clark, Eric Tumolo
Music by: Kathryn Kluge, Kim Allen Kluge
MPAA Rating: R for pervasive language, crude sexual content, strong violence, a sexual assault, and drug use.
Distributed by: Vertical Entertainment
Release Date: September 10, 2021
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