''Kiss Me, Guido'' is a 1997 independent

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

film. Written and directed by Tony Vitale (a former location manager) and produced by Ira Deutchman and Christine Vachon, it stars Nick Scotti, Anthony Barrile, Anthony DeSando and Craig Chester.

Synopsis

Frankie (Scotti) is a young

Italian American Italian Americans () are Americans who have full or partial Italians, Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeastern United States, Northeast and industrial Midwestern United States, Midwestern ...

man living with his family in

The Bronx, New York The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County to its north; to its south and west, the New York City bo ...

. He works in a pizza parlor but, inspired by the likes of Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, he wants to be an actor. After catching his fiancée (

Jennifer Esposito Jennifer Esposito (born April 11, 1973) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in the feature films ''Summer of Sam'' (1999), ''Don't Say a Word'' (2001), ''The Master of Disguise'' (2002), ''Welcome to Collinwood'' (2002), ''Crash (2 ...

) cheating on him with his brother, Frankie decides the time has come to move out and pursue his

dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...

. He starts by checking the classifieds for roommate ads. He finds an ad from a "GWM." In classified-speak this stands for " gay white male" but Frankie and his friend Joey ( Domenick Lombardozzi) interpret it as "guy with money." The GWM in question is Warren (Barrile), an actor who's recently broken up with his director boyfriend. Frankie and Warren each have some initial misgivings – Frankie over Warren's being gay, Warren over Frankie's being a "

Guido Guido is a given name. It has been a male first name in Italy, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Argentina, the Low Countries, Scandinavia, Spain, Portugal and Latin America, as well as other places with migration from those. Regarding origins, there ...

" or stereotypical

– but Warren lets Frankie move in. Warren's ex, Dakota ( Christopher Lawford), returns and offers Warren a part in his new play. Warren initially accepts but after being injured in an attempted gay bashing, has to withdraw. Frankie replaces him, but the part involves a same-sex kiss, which makes him nervous. At the premiere Frankie gives a good performance (although he hesitates on the kiss, leading his scene partner to hiss "Kiss me, Guido!") for an audience that includes his family, who come to understand and accept his decision to become an

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

Cast

* Nick Scotti as Frankie * Anthony Barrile as Warren * Anthony DeSando as Pino * Craig Chester as Terry * Domenick Lombardozzi as Joey Chips * Molly Price as Meryl * Christopher Lawford as Dakota * David Deblinger as Stage Actor * John Tormey as Patsy Zito * Antonia Rey as Josephina Zito *

as Debbie * Anthony Vitale as Pizza Guy #1 * Frankie Dellarosa as Pizza Guy #2 * Rebecca Waxman as Wiggy * Tony Ray Rossi as Vinny the Fish

Soundtrack

* Machine – "There But for the Grace of God Go I" * Panic Patrol – "Out of Control" * La Flavour – "Mandolay" * Miquel Brown – "So Many Men, So Little Time" * 3rd Party – "Can U Feel It" * Edwin Starr – " Contact" * Carol Jiani – "Hit & Run Lover" * Martha Wash – "Magic Charms" *

The Gap Band The Gap Band was an American Contemporary R&B, R&B and funk band that rose to fame during the 1970s and 1980s. The band consisted of three brothers: Charlie Wilson (musician), Charlie, Ronnie, and Robert Wilson, along with other members; it wa ...

– " Burn Rubber on Me (Why You Wanna Hurt Me)" * Nick Scotti – "I'm Gonna Shout" * Edwin Starr – "H.A.P.P.Y. Radio" *

Gloria Gaynor Gloria Fowles (born September 7, 1943), known professionally as Gloria Gaynor, is an American singer, best known for the disco era hits "I Will Survive" (1978), "I Have a Right, Let Me Know (I Have a Right)" (1979), "I Am What I Am (Broadway mus ...

– " I Am What I Am" * Love Tribe – "Stand Up"

Reviews

In 1997, Janet Maslin of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote of the film "amusing high-concept notion of sending a Bronx heterosexual into the midst of gay Manhattan and watching the fur fly" and it (the film) "has an appealing indie flavor".

Television

CBS brought ''Kiss Me, Guido'' to the small screen in 2001 under the title '' Some of My Best Friends''. The series starred Jason Bateman as Warren, Danny Nucci as Frankie, Michael DeLuise as Pino and openly gay actor

Alec Mapa Alejandro "Alec" Mapa (; born July 10, 1965) is an United States, American actor, comedian and writer. He got his first professional break when he was cast to replace B. D. Wong for the role of Song Liling in the Broadway theatre, Broadway product ...

in the newly created role of Vern Limoso. The series, written by Tony Vitale and Marc Cherry of '' Desperate Housewives'', was cancelled after one season.

References

External links

* * *{{IMDb title, 0259144, Some of My Best Friends 1997 films American comedy films 1997 LGBTQ-related films 1997 comedy films American LGBTQ-related films American independent films Paramount Pictures films LGBTQ-related comedy films Films produced by Christine Vachon Films scored by Stewart Copeland Films about actors 1997 independent films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films English-language comedy films English-language independent films