Gangster Sonny (Chazz Palminteri) is the big man in Calogero's (Francis Capra) Bronx neighborhood. A shooting witnessed by Calogero (Francis Capra) is the starting point of a lasting bond between the Sonny (Chazz Palminteri) and the (small boy Francis Capra). Lorenzo C's Father (Robert De Niro), however, disaproves. Calogero (Lillo Brancato) grows up under the wings of both men, torn between his own natural honesty and his fascination with Sonny (Chazz Palminteri). C's (Lillo Brancato) neighborhood cronies get involved in theft, use of guns, racial fights. When C (Lillo Brancato) meets a girl, things don't become easier. C's (Lillo Brancato) leap to manhood is marked by tragedy, but also by his recognition of the many faces of love.