Small Engine Repair

This movie has great actors and the chemistry between them strong. The story is heavy dialogue but it keeps the story on point. This one is a slow build that is worth watching. It really surprises me, which rarely happens with movies.

'Small Engine Repair' is going to lose a lot of audience member's attention in the first 60-70 minutes. That's how long it takes for anything of interest to happen in the film. That shows a lot of trust in its audience to hang in there. The absolute key if you are going to structure your film that way is that the pay-off has to be worth it. Sadly this film can't live up to that requirement.

When I read that this was based on a play, that made a lot sense. A very dialogue heavy script with contained settings. Even the strongest plays can struggle to make the transition to film. They just feel so pointlessly limited. It's really noticeable here.

I don't want to savage this film because it doesn't deserve that. It is a bit of a frustrating ride though. The ending is fun and helps to save it a bit but by then the damage is already done. Not one I'd recommend. 5/10.

A real slow burner of tension-well acted and intense-like a very dark hybrid of Trailer Park Boys/The Iceman Cometh/Death Wish. I don't like to read reviews that give away the whole plot (especially with a surprise like this) or watch trailers that do the same thing-I have no idea why IMDB needs long descriptions of the plot written down by every viewer-the best movie experiences are when you walk in knowing nothing. Anyway-this movie was a real throwback to the old days of movies-no fake characters inserted to fill a Diversity Equity Inclusion quota, no fake looking actors not matching the character.

It takes a long time before this movie really begins. Actually the boring beginning makes the last half even better. I wasn't expecting this movie to go where it went. Don't read the spoilers before you watch it and you'll be surprised.

You'll sit through 60-70 minutes of "character development" to get to the real meat of the movie. If you can make it through that long, it's a decent movie. But then...it ends kinda abruptly and somewhat unsatisfying.