has43 I rated this movie 5/10 only because I truly hate the ending. Is the author saying Percy HAD to die to redeem everyone else? If so, that really stinks. God knows what her life was life before she took her tormentor out. AND after. Reminds me of "A Tree Grows In Brooklyn." The mother killed the man who raped her daughter, but after awhile all that anyone seems to remember is that she was convicted of murder. And then there's "Mystic River," wherein Tim Robbins' character was molested as a young boy by two priests, barely escapes with his life, such things were not discussed at that time, he lived with his pain, and then is taken out, and his murderer justifies the unfortunate wrongful murder, but we're left hanging as to any justice occurring, whatsoever.Also, I cannot abide Will Patton, in anything I've seen him in. Otherwise, I think the movie was pretty extraordinary, and I wish I'd walked out of the theater before the ending. If the author ever reads these reviews, I do wish he would explain the ending.Thank you for listening.

Furuya Shiro I like movies that have lasting effect in my mind, and that make me think about the meaning of some scenes over and over. This movie is that kind. There may be many similar movies but this one is different from any of those.A young woman gets off a bus in a small excluded town Gilead in Mane, US. In this town, three women who have different kinds of psychological trauma as a mother work together in a restaurant "The Spitfire Grill".The protagonist is Percy (Alison Elliot). There are mysteries in her words and behavior. But as the story goes, the deep scar in her mind hidden behind the mystery is gradually revealed. The second woman is Hannah (Ellen Burstyn). She runs a restaurant "Spitfire Grill". She has her own, deep scar in her mind. The third is Shelby (Marcia Gay Harden). Though she is very warmhearted, her husband always insults her. Maybe she is the one you can easily empathize.Perhaps, there is a meaning in the name of the town, Gilead. At the near end of the movie, we hear a black spiritual song "There is a balm in Gilead". The name Gilead comes from biblical world, which produces frankincense that was much-prized as medicine. The first stanza of the song is as follows: There is a balm in Gilead / To make the wounded whole; / There is a balm in Gilead / To heal the sin sick soul. The key to understand the heart of the movie may be in the lyrics.

Claudio Carvalho Percy Talbott (Alison Elliot) is a young woman, who has just left jail, and goes to Gillead, a small town in Maine looking for a new beginning of her life. She gets a job in a diner place called Spitfire Grill, owned by Hannah Ferguson Ellen Burstyn). Hannah lost her beloved son Elli in Vietnam, and is a very aggressive woman. Her nephew Nahum Goddard (Will Patton) is the local real-estate broker and has been trying to sell the place for ten years. He mistreat his wife Shelby Goddard (Marcia Gay Harden), questioning her intelligence most of the time. When Percy arrives in town, she changes the behavior not only of Hannah and Shelby, but of the local citizen, and deep secrets are disclosed. I bought the VHS "Spitgrill Fire" in 1998 and only today I have watched it. It is a sensitive story, filmed in beautiful locations in Maine and very supported by the performance by the outstanding central trio of actresses. The story is delightful most of the time and although having a good message in the end, I did not like the fate of Percy. I know life may be unfair, there are many envious and prejudicial people, but the story is fiction so I believe the writer used a very "heavy hand" to conclude the destiny of Percy. I would prefer a most commercial end for her character. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Spitfire Grill – O Recomeço" ("Spittfire Grill – The New Beginning")

Pedro Carvalho Everything's perfect. The actors, music (James Horner), landscape. One of the most touching films I've came across. If you don't cry by the end of this movie you have no soul at all. Saw it first on VHS on a day I needed a last VHS for a promotion of 3 titles for rent. After waiting some years to see if would come on DVD I finally bought the Australian version that is anamorphic and doubles as R4/R2 even when it says it's R4. Suffice to say it's the only DVD I own that hasn't subtitles in Portuguese (and I've got about 800 titles). I understand why the religious polemic, for it's about guilt, redemption, sacrifice, but frankly, who gives a damn about that, when a film moves you to tears.