The Spitfire Grill

"To a town with no future, comes a girl with a past."

1996 1h 57m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

★6.5TMDB · 69

ComedyDrama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Percy, upon being released from prison, goes to the small town of Gillead, to find a place where she can start over again. She is taken in by Hannah, to help out at her place, the Spitfire Grill. Percy brings change to the small town, stirring resentment and fear in some, and growth in others.

“To a town with no future, comes a girl with a past.”

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Cast

Alison Elliott
Percy Talbott
Ellen Burstyn
Hannah Ferguson
Marcia Gay Harden
Shelby Goddard
Will Patton
Nahum Goddard
Kieran Mulroney
Joe Sperling
Gailard Sartain
Sheriff Gary Walsh
John M. Jackson
Johnny B. / Eli
Louise De Cormier
Effy Katshaw

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Lee David Zlotoff
Writers: Lee David Zlotoff
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

30 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Lee David Zlotoff, shot by Robert Draper. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by James Horner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Margaret Goodspeed shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Alison Elliott and Ellen Burstyn and Marcia Gay Harden carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "To a town with no future, comes a girl with a past.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0117718 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 69 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Lee David Zlotoff directs. Robert Draper behind the camera. James Horner scores. Margaret Goodspeed cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

130 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Directed by Lee David Zlotoff, shot by Robert Draper. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by James Horner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Margaret Goodspeed shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Alison Elliott and Ellen Burstyn and Marcia Gay Harden carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "To a town with no future, comes a girl with a past.".
7IMDB entry: tt0117718 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 69 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Robert Draper
Original score: James Horner
Editing: Margaret Goodspeed
Production design: Howard Cummings
Costume design: Louise Mingenbach
Sound: John Brasher
Stunt coordinator: Danny Aiello III
Runtime: 117 min · 1h 57m
Status: Released
Budget: $6,000,000
Box office: $12,643,776
Return: 211% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: The Spitfire Grill (1996)

Awards

Sundance Audience Award: U.S. Dramatic

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Lee David Zlotoff

Plymouth
1991 · ★ 6.0

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2025-10-30
★ 8/10
After prison, a young woman plants herself in a New England town Shot in the late spring of 1995, this is a drama similar to “Heavy,” which was released three months earlier in 1996. Another reference point is “Signs of Life” from seven years prior. While this one resorts to cinematic contrivances in the last act, I favor it over those two (although “Heavy” places a close second). The film successfully brings you into the lives of a circle of people in the hilly countryside. Gene Siskel criticized that these characters are all too “colorful,” but I didn’t see that. They struck me as the typical people you’d find in any pastoral place in the Northeast (or anywhere, for that matter). The story focuses on protagonist Alison Elliott’s relationships with the surely café owner (Ellen Burstyn) and a meek waitress/cook (Marcia Gay Harden) as she entertains romantic possibilities and compassionately helps a wraithlike character living in the woods. Hovering around all of this is a well-meaning guy played by Will Patton, the husband of the waitress. Two years later Alison starred in “The Eternal” (sometimes subtitled “Kiss of the Mummy”) where she’s just as effective. The locations are lush and beautiful whilst the tone is reverent. Although you might roll your eyes at some tropes in the last act, the film is thematically rich. It leaves you reflecting; and the insights are biblical. It runs 1 hour, 57 minutes, and was shot in areas around Peachem, which is located in northeastern Vermont, about 10 miles southwest of St. Johnsbury, a 2-hour drive west of Mt. Washington. GRADE: B+/A-

Production companies