''Spike of Bensonhurst'' is a 1988 American

comedy drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple co ...

and

mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...

film written and directed by

Paul Morrissey Paul Morrissey (born February 23, 1938) is an American film director, best known for his association with Andy Warhol. He was also director of the first film in which a transgender actress, Holly Woodlawn, starred as a girlfriend of the main cha ...

and starring

Sasha Mitchell Sasha Mitchell (born July 27, 1967) is an American actor best known for his television roles as James Beaumont on ''Dallas'' and Cody Lambert on '' Step by Step'' as well as playing David Sloane in three installments of the original Kickboxer fra ...

. The film also features

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine (; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perfor ...

Maria Pitillo Maria Pitillo (born January 8, 1966) is an American retired actress. She has starred in films and on television, most notably as Audrey Timmonds in ''Godzilla'' (1998). She also had a recurring role on the TV series '' Providence''. Early life Pi ...

, and

Talisa Soto Miriam Talisa Soto (born March 27, 1967) is an American former actress and former model. She is known for portraying Bond girl Lupe Lamora in the 1989 James Bond film ''Licence to Kill'', and as Kitana in the 1995 fantasy action film ''Mortal Kom ...

Plot

The protagonist, Spike Fumo (Mitchell), is a young Italian-American man who lives in

Bensonhurst, Brooklyn Bensonhurst is a residential neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bordered on the northwest by 14th Avenue, on the northeast by 60th Street, on the southeast by Avenue P and 22nd ...

and aspires to be a boxer. However, he falls in love with a girl who turns out to be the daughter of a

Mafia boss A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, Don, gang lord, gang boss, mob boss, kingpin, godfather, crime mentor or criminal mastermind, is a person in charge of a criminal organization. Description A crime boss typically has absolute or nearl ...

. As he is forced to leave, he moves to

Red Hook, Brooklyn Red Hook is a neighborhood in northwestern Brooklyn, New York City, New York, within the area once known as South Brooklyn. It is located on a peninsula projecting into the Upper New York Bay and is bounded by the Gowanus Expressway and the Car ...

, a predominantly Puerto Rican section of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, where he falls in love with a girl from that neighborhood.

Cast

as Spike Fumo *

as Baldo Cacetti * Anne De Salvo as Sylvia Cacetti *

as India *

Frank Adonis Frank Testaverde Scioscia (October 27, 1935 – December 26, 2018) was an American film and television actor. He was perhaps best known for playing the mobster Anthony Stabile in the 1990 film ''Goodfellas''. Life and career Adonis was born i ...

as Vinaca *

Rick Aviles Rick Aviles (October 14, 1952 – March 17, 1995) was an American stand-up comedian and actor of Puerto Rican descent, best remembered for portraying the villainous Willie Lopez in the film ''Ghost''. Career Born in Manhattan, Aviles worked as ...

as Bandanna * Frank Gio as Pete Fumo *

Rodney Harvey Rodney Michael Harvey (July 31, 1967 – April 11, 1998) was an American actor, model, and dancer. Career Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Harvey was discovered by director Paul Morrissey in 1984. Morrissey cast Harvey in two of his fi ...

as Frankie *

Sylvia Miles Sylvia Miles (née Scheinwald; September 9, 1924 – June 12, 2019) was an American actress. She was twice nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performances in ''Midnight Cowboy'' (1969) and '' Farewell, My Lovel ...

as Congresswoman *

as Angel Cacetti * Geraldine Smith as Helen Fumo

Awards and nominations

Independent Spirit Awards The Independent Spirit Awards (abbreviated Spirit Awards and originally known as the FINDIE or Friends of Independents Awards), founded in 1984, are awards dedicated to independent filmmakers. Winners were typically presented with Poly(methyl m ...

*1989: Nominated, "Best Supporting Male" - ''Ernest Borgnine''

References

External links

* * * 1988 films 1988 comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films American boxing films Films directed by Paul Morrissey Films set in Brooklyn American independent films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{1980s-comedy-drama-film-stub