Tony Vitale Movies
One man's life begins to crack under the weight of his compulsions in this drama. Michael (Patrick Cupo) works as a salesman for a garment firm in Los Angeles. Michael has a job, a wife named Gina (Anita Barone), and a baby on the way; however, he also has a gambling problem that is threatening to destroy him. As his debts mount, Michael is forced to lie to his boss (Charles Durning) in order to come up with money to pay his bookies, and as the pressures of his job and the coming responsibilities of fatherhood weigh on him, Michael sinks deeper and deeper into his addiction to gambling, always convinced the next bet will be the big win that pulls him out of the hole. One Last Ride was based on a play written by leading man Patrick Cupo. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patrick Cupo, Chazz Palminteri, (more)
- 2000
A crime caper that gaily spoofs such antecedents as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and nods its head more than a few times to the work of Quentin Tarantino, Very Mean Men opens in a bar, where a bartender (Matthew Modine) finds himself serving drinks to a tough-looking guy (Martin Landau) he pegs as a cheap drinker. In order to keep the miniscule tips coming, the bartender makes up a story about warring mob families in the San Fernando Valley. In one corner there are the Minettis, who are led by Gino (Ben Gazzara), a mobster who's mellowed with age. Gino wants to make amends when Big Paddy Mulroney (Charles Durning) complains that Gino's clan is invading his side of the Valley. Gino's temperamental son Paulie (Scott Baio, sporting peroxided hair and a goatee to match) gives Mulroney money, only to then stiff Mulroney's waitress daughter on a tip after having lunch at the family's diner. Soon ethnic insults are flying like bullets, and everyone is out for revenge. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matthew Modine, Martin Landau, (more)
Six teens on a quiet camping retreat are forced to fight for their lives after a mysterious virus transforms the local birds into monstrous flying predators capable of spreading a highly contagious plague and killing every human in their line of flight. Later escaping from the woods into a secure military bunker on the outskirts of town, the teens attempt to draw up a workable escape plan with the help of some scheming local survivors. But the birds have spread their virus throughout the nearby town, rendering escape without infection virtually impossible. Though they have enough supplies to stay safely put for the time being, it won't be long before a desperate situation calls for desperate measures, and the group must venture outside to confront a winged menace that may well be a flying harbinger of the apocalypse. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Clare Carey, Lance Guest, (more)
Can a homophobic tough guy and an out-of-the-closet gay man find happiness splitting the rent in Midtown Manhattan? This and other crucial questions are answered in this comedy. Frankie (Nick Scotti) is a macho and slightly thick-headed Italian-American from the Bronx who works in a pizzeria but dreams of becoming a successful actor, like his heroes Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. He's long had vague plans of someday moving to Manhattan and taking a serious shot at making his dream a reality, but it takes a personal crisis to put Frankie's plans into first gear -- namely, learning that his brother Pino (Anthony DeSando) has been sleeping with his girlfriend. This turn of events leaves Frankie with neither a significant other nor a place to live, so he starts hunting for affordable digs downtown. Looking in an alternative newspaper, Frankie spots an ad for a "GWM seeking same to share fully furnished apartment;" naive Frankie figures "GWM" means "Guy With Money," and since the price is right, he moves in right away. However, after spending several days with his new roommate Warren (Anthony Barrile) and his friends, Frankie slowly makes the discovery "GWM" actually means "Gay White Male," which is most certainly not what Frankie was looking for. However, he's in no financial position to go anywhere else, so both Frankie and Warren wind up confronting their fears and learning a lot about people different from themselves. As it turns out, Warren does a bit of acting, and when he hurts his leg shortly before the opening of an off-Broadway play in which he's to appear, Frankie arranges to take his place. There is, however, a catch -- Frankie will be playing a gay man, and he'll have to kiss another actor full on the lips in his big scene. Kiss Me Guido was the first feature film from writer and director Tony Vitale. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nick Scotti, Anthony Barrile, (more)
