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Back in the Day (2016)
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Yeah. That's my heart pounding. Biggest fight of my life... Title shot. Anthony Rodriguez is my name. They call me lefty. Anyway, I wasn't suppose to be here. People will doubt you until you prove them wrong. Too many haters out there, who don't have the balls to strive for their dreams. So they shit on yours. Now it comes down to 36 minutes in the ring, Max. And all those thoughts stirring through my head don't mean a damn thing until that bell rings. This is one for the ages, folks! Who would believe Rodriguez would be in the 10th round with Dawson? I said right! Yeah! Throw that hook! Watch it! Yeah! A strong finish in the round for Rodriguez. Huh! Nothing, huh? How does it feel to get your ass kicked in front of world, huh? In front of the world, baby! Dawson just won't let up with the taunting. Hey! Don't let him get into your head, man. That's his game. Tonight is your night. That fucking belt belongs to you. All right? Brooklyn! Brooklyn! He's from the neighborhood. He's a Brooklyn boy. Now you go on there and you go get him! Get him! Round 11, folks, and it doesn't get any better than this here at Caesars Palace, Atlantic city. ...Each your corner. Rodriguez is down for the third time, and, folks, this might be it. - Three... - Come on, get up! Four... Five, six... - Seven... - Get up! Come on! Are you kidding me! Don't let him take your heart! You kidding me? You want another beating? He's back on his feet. Unbelievable heart from Rodriguez. Are y'all seeing this? Let's go! Now get that air in your lungs and let's go! Dawson's looking to close this round out strong! There you go! There you go! Stop, break. Let's go. Lay the fuck down, you dumb Guinea-rican! Do yourself a fucking favor, man. Lay down, motherfucker. Yeah! Yeah! Oh, what an upper cut from Rodriguez! Well, folks, you'll get your money's worth on this one. A true middleweight classic. Come on, now. Breathe, breathe. All right, pretty boy? Three minutes left. It's the final three minutes. All right? It's all up to you, Anthony. You need a knockout. It's your time to make history. This is your last chance you'll ever be here again. Everything you've been through in your life comes down to these final three minutes. So you give it everything you have left in your body and shut that asshole up! Yeah. All right? You hear me? You hear me? Now you get out there. You're my champ! - Go ahead. All right, here we go for the twelfth and final round! Dawson's got Rodriguez in the corner. Oh, some great body shots by Rodriguez! A hard right! Wow, he's got him! Show him who the champ is! There you go! Yeah! Dawson's down for the first time in his career! Oh, my god! He's done it! Anthony Rodriguez is the new middleweight champion of the world! Goodbye, Reggie Dawson. Hello, Anthony Rodriguez! In a stunning upset, Anthony "lefty" Rodriguez became the middleweight champion of the world last night, beating undisputed champion, Reggie Dawson, in a twelfth round knockout that stunned the boxing world. Some words from Reggie Dawson. Yo, man, are you kidding me? Are you people everywhere? Yo, let tell you something right now. Anthony Rodriguez is one lucky mother... I want to tell him right now, matter of fact, I want to tell all of y'all. I want a rematch. That shit ain't gonna happen again. Get out of my face, it's over. Hello. Yeah, I know. Don't worry about it. If I say I'm gonna be someplace, then I'm gonna be there. Hey, I can't believe it. That's Anthony Rodriguez. - I know him. - You know him? Yeah, we're good friends. Hey, Anthony! What, you don't remember me? Come on. Sal? Sallie from the neighborhood. I go to all your fights. Yeah, yeah, that's right. How you doing? I'm doing great. I am doing great, Anthony! Not as good you, though. I mean, come on, man, that's some set of wheels you got there. And that fight last night... Way to go. I'm so glad you kicked Dawson's ass. Thank you. Listen, I gotta meet somebody inside. Okay, sure. But, hey, before you go, you think maybe give a little shout out in my cellphone here for my wife, you know. She's a big fan too, and I'll impress her if I bring it home with me and all, you know? - Okay, all right. - I'll tell you when. What's your name, again? Sal! Sallie, from the neighborhood. - Come on, you know! - Yeah, yeah, that's right. You know. All right, you're ready and... go. Hey, Sallie! This is your boy, Anthony Rodriguez. You the man, Sal! You the man! Good? Good? That was great! Thanks a lot, Anthony. I appreciate it. Enjoy your lunch, champ, all right? Thank you. I told you we were close. Like that. Hey, Dino. Hey, Anthony, how you doing? - Good, how are you? - Congratulations. - Great fight. Amazing. - Thank you. Larry's been waiting here for you. - Okay. - Let me take your coat. Thank you. Let me know if you need anything. All right. Hey. Anthony "lefty" Rodriguez! Forevermore known as champ. How are you, Larry? Finally got you in a one-on-one sit-down. Why did you pick this place? The food. It's really good here. Most fighters, they want fans to know who they really are, where they come from, what they're made of. And reporters want to know that too. They want to connect the dots. But it's almost like you've been hiding something all these years. I really wasn't ready to talk. But now since it's over... I'm ready to tell you how it all began. So... So tell me what it feels like to be back here. Don't actually feel the same. What do you mean? Being here. I haven't been back since. Since what? We'll get to that. What was it like for you growing up in this neighborhood, Anthony? Whoa, did you see that? What else do we got? The bandolier! Matt, what are you doing? Save some stuff for the fourth. Ha! Fuck it! Come on, Anthony. Come on. Oh, wow, that was great! Hey! Hey! Va Fangul! All the fuckin' day, you light up-ah these-ah fireworks and put the fire on the street. And shut the fucking music off! Why you don't go to the park, huh? Okay. Relax, Mr. Volpe. Don't you tell-ah me to relax, Matthew. Wait until I tell your papa. I would tell yours too, Anthony, but I don't talk-ah to no spic. Bastard. I can't believe that old geezer said that to you. It's all right, Matt. I'm used to it. It's not okay. Hey, I got an idea. The noise bothers that cranky ass? Wait till he gets a blockbuster through his living room window. This is crazy, Matt. It's not a big deal. This will just scare the shit out of him. You really need to toughen up, Anthony. Come on, give me the lighter. Light it up. Oh, my god. Come on, light it. He deserves this for what he said to you. You son of a bitch! Damn, that was loud! What's going on, Anthony? Hi, dad. Hi, Mr. Rodriguez. What the hell are you kids doing on the damn curb? We... we... we're looking for something. Matty dropped some money. Money? I don't see anything. What's going on, Anthony? Nothing. Get your ass back home. See you later, Matt. What? What? Little shit. Why... why you always by the window, waiting for your mother? You're such a mamma's boy, you know that? You never waited for me when I was working. Look at me when I talk to you! You're like a kid looking for his mommy. "Mommy, mommy." I didn't even have a mother at your age. You need to grow up. And where the hell is she? She's always out! Where do you think she is, dad? She's working. More than anyone can say for you. I was laid off, you little shit! I'll beat the... I'll beat your ass. Oh, come on, dad. Seriously? I'll beat your ass for talking back to me. What's wrong with you? This needs to stop, man. You need to stop. You... you stop. Anthony. Anthony! What? You threw firecrackers into Mr. Volpe's living room? I don't know what you're talking about. Did you throw firecrackers into Mr. Volpe's living room? That's what he told me. You broke the coffee table, you broke I don't know what else in there and I have to pay for it or he's gonna call the police on you and your stupid friend. Matt is not stupid. He was just protecting me. Mr. Volpe called me a spic. Oh, Anthony, come on! You know we've been talking about this since you were five-years-old. People are ignorant. Walk away from that. They're gonna look for a reaction from you. Don't give it to them. I love you so much, but you've really disappointed me. Mary... Where were you? I was at work. Where do you think I was? Don't give me no lip! And... and stop babying this kid. He's not a kid, he's our son. Our son? He ain't nothing like me. He's gonna be like one of of these goombahs around here. Come on, don't say that. Ooh. Don't tell me what to do. I'm... I'm gonna go get more beers. Uh... See you in the bed when I come back. I never thought I would say this, but I'm really starting to hate my own father. He's in a really bad place right now. He needs our help. He don't want help. And it's only getting worse. I will get him to stop drinking. This will get better. The neighborhood is going to explode. So let's try to keep a little peace in the house, okay? We will walk where we want. This is Lauren Freeman. We're here in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn on 20th Avenue, a few blocks from where 18-year-old African-American Tyrone Williams, was shot and killed as he came into Bensonhurst to look at a car that he was looking to buy. Tyrone and two of his friends were approached by an angry group of white teenagers who were upset about one their girlfriends dating a black man. A large group of African-Americans are here protesting. As you can see, this is not sitting well with the folks in this neighborhood. We will walk where we want! We will walk where we want! We will walk where we want! Fuckin' nigger lowlifes! Get the fuck out of our neighborhood. Shove that watermelon up your honkey ass! Give me this, Tommy. You fucking Guinea, I'll fucking kick your ass! Get your ass out of our neighborhood! You don't belong here! Fuck you, okay! Get the fuck out of here! You motherfuckers! Fucking niggers! Get the fuck out of here, you fucking moolies! You fucking eggplants! You fucking hamster! - Can you believe that shit? - I know, right? What did you do that for, Dominick? That was pretty drastic. Drastic? These niggers have no right to march through here. How many whites get killed in their neighborhood and we never hear a damn thing about it? A nigger dies in a white neighborhood and these monkeys start marching. He's right. Whether he's right or wrong, it doesn't matter, Tommy. This is crazy. Look at what's happening here. I know, Maria. And the black kid didn't deserve to die. The poor kid came around here to look at a car and he ended up dead. Of course, you, of all people, would say that. What's that supposed to mean? Well, this is an Italian neighborhood, Anthony, and you're not fully Italian. I mean, everyone knows you have a drunken, greasy spic for a father. Don't use that word, Dominick. I don't like that. Leave him alone, Dominick. Yeah, come on, Dominick. We're all friends here. Yeah, you're right, Maria. Let's shake, Anthony. Forget about it. Fuckin' spic! What's wrong with you, Dominick? What are you gonna do, Rodriguez, huh? Shit, that's some last name. Fuckin' pussy. You can be a real jerk sometimes. Come on, guys, let's get out of here. Yeah, let's go. Matty, come on! Anthony! Anthony, stop! I wanna talk to you. Talk to me about what? About how I let that piece of garbage get away with hitting me? He gets out of hand sometimes. He feels like he can do whatever he wants. You know why, right? I know what I've heard. My dad said his father is in the mafia. Well, it's true, and that's why he acts that way. He thinks he's untouchable because of his dad. I'm so mad at myself for letting him get the best of me and not hitting him back. It's okay. You're better than that. And it doesn't matter to me at all that your dad is Puerto Rican. You're a good friend and I like you. Well, I think you know how much I really like you, Maria. I wish we could be together. Oh, Anthony. Right now, we're so young. But who knows what the future brings? Come on, let's go get a soda. Okay. What the fuck are you doing? You're always down here. I didn't even give you permission to use this thing! You don't even know how to hit the damn bag right. That's how you fuckin' do it. Maybe you'll learn one day when you become a real man, when you get out from under your mother's skirt! I'm really not in the mood for this right now, dad. And I really don't understand what you're so angry about all the time. You don't know shit, kid. You got it all. A nice roof over your head and nothing to worry about. A roof over our heads and it's because of mom. Hey! You show some respect, or I'll beat your ass right here! I don't care if your mother protects you or not. Where is that bitch? She should be home, anyway. You wanna know something, dad? I hate when people act racial and use words like spic. But you... You're a no-good spic piece of shit. Why, you... mi hijo es malo. Mi hijo es malo. "Mi hijo es malo." Some of the few Spanish words I learned from hearing them so much. Do you know what it means? I can't say that I do. My no-good son. That was the first time I was knocked out. And by my own father. He was out of control... ...but that night, he took things too far. What the fuck? What the fuck did you do? What the fuck will you do? What the fuck were you thinking? What you thinking? I never knew that it was a different building. And it's the same fucking bullshit... a brave man and he had a reason to be there. You know how it is. - Good night, Mary. - Good night, Mary. Heya, Mary. How was work? Long as usual. Good night, Enzo. Buona notte, sweetie. Where were you, huh? Look at this. Jose, don't do this right now. I was at work where I always am. What the hell are you doing, saying hi to these fuckin' goombahs for? Enzo. Why do you say hi to these goombahs for, huh? Huh? I walk down this street because they keep an eye on me, that's it. I say hello, I say goodbye. I know people in the neighborhood. Go take care of Anthony. He got a beat down, bitch. He got a beat down from... he got a beat down from me because of you. - Stop it! Stop it, stop! - Hey! Hey! Hey! We'll take care of it. All right, we'll handle this. No! Let us handle this. That's all right, it's enough! Fucking punk! All right, come on. Let's get out of here. Come back down here, guys, come on. You okay? Come on. I'm sorry. - I'm sorry. - That's all right, get up. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. He can't come back here. He has to stay away from here. You know, there's people in this neighborhood, they never forgive. And they never forget. Ever. We can get along just fine without him. Well... We're gonna have to. It'll work out, mom. I'm gonna get a job to help out. That'll be $5, miss Caruso. Thank you. Have a great day. Anthony, you're doing great work, okay? There may be a little surprise for you at the end of the night. Remember, today's payday, right? Hey, Anthony. We sold more chicken cutlets this week than I can remember. Put the broom down. Let's celebrate. - Celebrate? - Yeah come over here. Take your apron off, all right? Work is over. Come on, let's have a little drink. No, I'm okay, Mr. V. Hey, I told you. Call me Jerry. Don't insult me. We'll just have a little scotch, okay? To celebrate. Cheers. See? It's not that bad. Actually, it's pretty strong. Here's your pay, okay? I put an extra $50 in there for the week. You did good, okay? You worked hard. Take it. Thank you. You didn't have to do that, Mr. V. It's okay. I mean, I feel for you. It must suck, not having your dad around. It's okay. Me and my mom are fine. - I'm gonna get going. - Hey, no, no, no, can't you sit and talk for a little while? Nah, I really gotta go. Anthony... Relax. Relax, my boy. Relax. You're way too tense. You know, maybe you need a little massage. No, I'm okay. Really, Mr. V. I don't need a massage. Anthony, it's okay if it feels good. What the hell are you doing? What's wrong with you? What's wrong with me, huh? I like you. People looked at me and thought I was crazy for hiring a Puerto Rican. But I did it. I did it 'cause of you. You're sick, you know that? I'm sick? Get out of here! You're fired! And don't come back! Like I really would! Hurry up and eat and get back to work. What's the matter? Nothing. Just won't be going back to work no more. Why not? I just think I can do something better than work in a butcher shop. You can do something better with your life. You're gonna do something better. I don't know what it is, but it's gonna be huge. I hope so, mom. I got a surprise for you. A surprise? Close your eyes. Wow, mom. You're the best! These are great. I'm very proud of you. I know it hasn't been easy with your father the last couple of years but... You made everything better. And you've brightened up every day. Well, that's 'cause you're an angel, mom, and I love you. Would you believe he's still on the telephone? - Hey, guys. - Hi, Mary. - Hiya, Mary. - Hi, Enzo. Where you going? Holy shit! Hey, Mary... oh, no! Frank! Get an ambulance! My Anthony... My Anthony... Enzo... Take care of my boy. That was the last day of my childhood. Sorry to hear that. Every day... Every day she would pray to him before she came in. You're gonna be all right, Anthony. We'll take care of you. My dad said it. You can come and stay with us. I need some time alone, Matty. I just want to sit here by myself for a while, okay? Sure. I understand. I'll come back later. Hey, Mr. V! Hey, Anthony. How 'bout a massage? Anthony! Anthony! Anthony... relax! Shit! That's Mary Donato's kid. Pull over! Anthony, relax! Relax! Anthony! Hey, break it up! Anthony! Straight flush. You got something bad, you know what I mean? No. Straight flush. Yo, T.A. Hey, Vinny, how you doin'? Where'd you get that suit? Hey, Bg, where else? How bad was this beating? I mean, how far did it really go? How bad was it? Pretty bad. This kid packs quite a punch. He seemed real determined to kick the shit out of Jerry. We got a little Mike Tyson over here. Well, before you explain yourself, 'cause you are going to do that, want a soda pop or something like that? - Soda pop? - Yeah. I just buried my mother. I think I could use something a little stronger. How old are you now? - Sixteen. - Sixteen. Have at it. Why did you give Jerry a beating? I don't want to talk about it. Well... I got news for you. This is my neighborhood, see? And I need to know everything that goes on in my neighborhood. So you need to talk about it. Well, then I guess you need to know that the neighborhood butcher is a fuckin' faggot, who tried to have his way with me. Did I hear you clearly? Jerry's a faggot? Makes me feel kind of nauseous. Where'd you learn to fight like that? All I did when my father was drunk off his ass, was pound that heavy bag. And I really love boxing. Do you ever think about taking that built up anger and that boxing talent and getting paid for it? All the time. You ever hear of Eddie "rocks" Travor? Of course. He was a great heavyweight in his day. So, let's say I hook you up with Eddie. Eddie rocks. You... really, you don't have to do that. I don't have to do nothing. But it's already done. Thank you. So that's how it started with boxing, Larry. I met Eddie "rocks" Travor and to this day, he's still my trainer. That Enzo, he saw something in you. I guess he did. This was one serious guy. Hey, Jerry. We heard you like little boys. You said you were from the neighborhood, right, Larry? So then you must know this... The mob, it can be a cancer to some people, but it was also built for a purpose. To protect the neighborhood. If you did wrong, especially back then, there were serious consequences. Hey! You fuckin' sand nigger! Death... Pretty serious consequences. Look at who we're talking about here, Larry. A fuckin' pedophile, who apparently molested other kids. And a lowlife gypsy cab driver, who speeds through the neighborhood, kills an innocent woman and then drives away. Are you okay with these thugs being the judge, jury and executioners? That's one question I'm not gonna answer. Yo, Larry. Remember Hector Gomez? Who could forget him? Bad blood between these two and we got a rowdy crowd here tonight, folks. Come on, baby! Gomez popping the jab, showboating. Come on, Anthony! Yeah. Look at him taunting Rodriguez. And a shove at the end of the round. Go back to your corner. Come on. What the fuck, Anthony? Hey, I know this Colombian moves like he's on an eight ball of cocaine, but that don't matter. You let him float as much as he wants, then you get him on the inside and pound that body. Send that prick back to Colombia. Okay! Get him! I love this guy! Yeah! Rodriguez comes out like a ball of fire to start the round. Come on! Fierce trading in the corner. Whoa! The crowd loves it! You got him! Come on! Rodriguez pummeling him! - Mother... - Boom, boom, boom! And down goes Gomez! Three, four, five... Six, seven... Eight, nine, ten. Out. Rodriguez, you suck. You suck, Rodriguez! Excuse me. What'd you just say? He just got lucky, bro. You heard me. He sucks! You suck! That's my best friend, man! Who you talking about? Yeah, man, he sucks! Fuckin... you're a bum! Yeah, he's gonna be the champion! You'll see! I knew that Hector Gomez had nothing on you. I went wild when you knocked him out. I almost had my own brawl in the stands. Not everyone is gonna like me, Matty. You gotta understand that. I'm glad we finally got a chance to check this place out. I know, there's some show tonight too. Gino Fratelli is up at the balcony. That's Enzo's boss, right? From what I hear, he's everyone's boss. Look at this. Gino wants to talk to you. Okay. I said you. Not yous. No problem. Come on, let's go. I must have called him, I don't know, like, 15, 20 times, I mean. And he doesn't answer the phone. And you ought to make it clear to him, - that's not good enough. - I'll take care of it. I don't have time for them. It's like you gotta use your head. I know. You gotta think about the big picture. Where you're gonna... here. Anthony, sit down. You know who I am, right? Of course, Mr. Fratelli. I remember, back when I was a kid, my mom told me a very powerful man owns this place. And now I'm sitting here with you. First of all, call me Gino. I saw your fight last night. That's some left hand you got. That Colombian guy, he never knew what hit him. Thanks. I'm left-handed myself. Back when I was fighting guys in the streets, they were always guarding for the right hand and I'd slip in that left hook. Crack to the eye. I wasn't so bad with my hands when I was your age. Maybe you should of been a fighter. No, no. There's not nearly enough money in it. I know they probably didn't pay you very much money for last night's fight. A guy like you, struggling to come up, they pay you nothing, and this low-life Reggie Dawson, they pay him what, like $30 million a fight? Yeah, well, he's the champ. He's a piece of garbage. It's his arrogant fuckin' attitude I don't like. I can't wait for somebody to knock him on his fucking ass. You and me, both. Yeah. Enzo really loves you, Anthony. He thinks the world about you. He talks about you all the time. He's been real good to me. Good. I'm gonna make sure it stays that way. Not a lot of people from this neighborhood go on to achieve great things. No matter what it is you're doing, it's hard to climb your way to the top. I think you know where I'm coming from. I do. You keep believing in yourself, Anthony, because we believe in you. Thanks, Gino. You go enjoy yourself. We'll talk soon. - Thank you. - Yeah. Here you go, buddy. Thanks a lot, Anthony. Sure. - Hey, Anthony! - Hi, Maria. I heard you won your fight. Yeah, I did. You know, you never come to any of my fights. I guess someone don't want you there. You know I would love to come. It's just not so easy sometimes, all right? Dominick's got his jealous moments. Yeah, well, that's what you chose. So... - What can I get you? - Look. I'm not here for the pizza. I wanted to congratulate you on winning. I mean, I know how long you've been working on this boxing thing and I really want it to pay off for you. Start making some real money. Real money? I guess that's what it's all about for you, Maria. That's not true and you know that. Then why you wearing a huge rock like that? I guess all that loan sharking and bookmaking can really come in pretty handy. I can't believe you would talk like that. I can't believe you would go this route. You know, I just lost my appetite. Hey, what's the matter? Nothing. Don't tell me "nothing." I saw who just walked out of here. I don't believe after all these years, she still could get to you. You know she's with Dominick now. You know what Dominick's capable of. He's a made guy. I really don't care what he is. Let's talk about something else. All right. Let's talk about how I just plowed Mrs. Schwartz on my last delivery. It was a really good day today, Matty. The place is really starting to come together. What the fuck are you doing? I thought I'd be doing something better than making fuckin' pizza boxes. What are you talking about? The pizzeria is doing good. Didn't it pay for the sweet Chevelle that you're drivin'? Yeah. But I thought I'd be doing something better. This ain't enough action for me, man. You know what I want to do. Then take the test again. I failed it three times, Anthony. Three fucking times! I can't seem to get this series seven. You know why? Because I'm not disciplined like you. You wake up every morning, you exercise, you eat right. Me, I can't even stay focused enough to fucking study right. Well, that's on you. If you want to be a stockbroker, then do it. Stop chasin' all these girls and pass the test, bro. You want me to stop chasing girls? Yo, Annie can't go to ac with me this weekend. Why don't you come instead? No, Matty. No way. I'm not going with you to Atlantic city tonight. No, don't give me that look, Matty. I'm not going. All right. What a break. I can't believe it. That's six hands in a row I lost. Maybe you should call it a night. You're down about four gs. That's a lot of pizza to make. You know what? I'm all in. All in, baby. Come on. Nice. Queens, baby, I love it. Twenty. I'm good. Nice! Come on, baby, bust! Bust! Come on! Come on! Twenty-one. You suck! You know that? You can't give me a frickin' hand? I'm sorry, sir. It's not his fault. Come on, let's go home. No way, Anthony. My host comp'ed a suite. Let's go to the pool party. I heard it's pumping. Come on, let's go. You know what? Take a walk to the bar with me. You, too. Come on. That waitress wants you. Yeah, right. You're so hooked on Maria, who you're not even with. I need some pussy, man. I'll even bang a hooker tonight. Yo. I noticed you from my table. You're that fighter they call lefty, right? Anthony Rodriguez? Yeah, that's me. Well, don't be getting a big head 'cause I recognized you. The only reason I did is because my cousin, Vito, is a boxer and he's fighting you next month. Vito Germano is your cousin? Yeah, that's right. I'm Nicky Germano. Vito's a good fighter. It should be a good match. Good match? He will knock you the fuck out in the first round. I'm glad you think so, Nicky Germano. Come on, Matt, let's go. Who the fuck do you guys think you are, coming over here and your Jersey shore crew? My boy over here is gonna kick the shit out of your cousin. Get the fuck out of here, you fucking wannabe Joe Pesci. I'll fuckin' bitch-slap you. You ain't gonna do shit. Now you and your friends go back where you came from. We're not looking for any trouble, all right? Come on. Well, I don't know if you know this or not, but I do a little boxing myself. Yeah, golden gloves and all. Good for you. Good for me. Let's go, guys! You're out of here. Come on, man! Get him out of here, too. Get the fuck off of me! I'm gonna fucking sue this place! Get the fuck off me. Hey, look at this. What a bunch of shit? He beat the shit out of some guy in Atlantic city. He beat up the cousin of the guy he's gonna fight in a couple of weeks. That's funny. He beat him up 'cause he's gonna lose to his cousin. You think so? He's been training hard lately, he's been fighting good. And you say things like that. I'm joking around, Enzo, okay? Keep your comments to yourself. That's fucked up that he had to spend a night in the joint. He's probably scared shitless in there. Here she is. Thank god. Saved by the shots. Yeah, thanks, sweetheart. Thank you so much. - Thank you. - Thank you. All right. To, uh, our health. The good life. Mmm. You havin' fun? Yeah. Yeah, of course, I am. I gotta go to the ladies room, though. Take a walk with me? - Everything's good? - -Ah! - Hey, what do we got here? - Hello. Go, go, go. - All right, guys... - can we get you a drink? No. Thanks. I'm just trying to go to the bathroom. Me, too. I wanna buy you a drink. - You got your hands full. - Aye. You know what? I'm... I'm with someone here, all right? So just... I don't see anybody. Look at this shit. For two more drinks? Three? How about you just fuck off and get out of my way? I could fuck off but I don't want to. Seriously, you don't want to mess with my... what the fuck you think you doing, stepping in front of my girl? I'm sorry. We didn't realize she was with you. They said that they were sorry, all right? Just let it go. Come on, Dominick. You know I can't have any trouble here. There's no trouble, Danny. We're good, okay? We're good. Go ahead. Go do what you were gonna do. Doin' good, all right? Hey, can my friends and I buy you guys a drink? Buy you a drink. We didn't mean any harm, bro. I ain't your bro. Now get the fuck out of here! - Go ahead. Now. - Good idea. Guys, let's go. Okay. Too bad. She really had a nice ass. These Guidos... They're always lookin' for a fight. Did I, um... Did I just hear what I thought I heard? Yup. Meet me outside. - All right. - You got it, Dom. Hey. Where did Tommy and Victor go? Ah, they left. They had something they had to do. - Don't do anything to them. - Are you crazy? - You see those guys? - Let it go. Come on. It was a joke, those guys. Seriously, it's okay. Look, I gotta go. I got something I gotta go do. Here, why don't you stay here with your girlfriend. What happened? Where are the guys? I don't know. You know Dom. He's a fucking crazy, got a temper. Let's go. Oh, and that ass, right? Do you believe that ass? Oh, so good! Oh, I'm not your bro, I'm not your bro! Enough with that guy. Let's go hit the other bars. I'm driving. Oh, shit! Look! Oh, no! Come on. I told you we didn't want any problem with you guys. What makes you think we got a problem, huh? Come on, let's get out of here, Rocco. What were you thinking? Can you tell me? You just wanted to go spend a couple of days in jail, is that it? As you well know, I've been there and it's not a nice place, especially for someone like you. You go and beat the shit out of somebody and they lock you up. It's in the fucking papers. What the fuck were you thinking? I know, Enzo. I'm sorry, man, I... I lost my head. You know what... This is a very important time for you, and it's a time for you to focus. You shouldn't have been in Atlantic city, in the first place! I know. You're right. This guy's gonna eat you alive. You got the rest of your life to do that kind of thing. You know, you've been doing this for a long time, but your window is closing. You only have a limited amount of time left before you can reach your full potential. And you gotta get involved. You gotta want to get there. You know you're not there 'cause your head ain't right. Stay away from Matty. He's... he's bad news. He's trouble for you, goddamn it! I'll stay out of trouble, Enzo. But I can't stay away from Matty. His family raised me after my mother died. He's like my brother. Live in the gym. You got Eddie. He's the best trainer you can have. Don't let everybody down. Don't let yourself down. I gotta fucking meet Gino. He's gonna go fucking nuts if I'm late, all right? You walk me out? Absolutely. Yo, Vic, let's go! - Ready, Enzo? - Yeah. - Ciao, Enzo. - Enzo. Whoa, Anthony! Where you going? Stick around. Have a drink. No drinks for me. You're fightin' that Italian kid from Jersey soon, right? - Yeah. - Yeah, and you... You're fucked. I mean, he's probably pretty pissed off you beat up his cousin. What the fuck was that about anyway, huh? What are you... What are you, fuckin' stupid? Oh, what's the matter? You gonna tell Enzo now what I said? I don't need to tell Enzo anything. How's your friend Matty doing? Huh? You know, his pizza sucks. Take care, guys. Why you gotta break his balls like that? And you know the pizza is awesome in there. Come on. We've known him and Matty all our lives. He's never been nothing more than a spic to me, Tommy. Okay? Finish your drink. Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! All right. Yeah, you got it, baby. Yeah. I love the sound of that! Sweet rhythm. Yeah, it's do or die for you in these next few fights. I know, Eddie. Hmm. I don't want you to make the same mistakes I did. I never thought I'd see the inside of a jail cell. It's not a pretty place, is it, Anthony? No, it's not, Eddie. Try spending six years there instead of two days. I had six years to think about all of my fuck-ups. There always gonna be people who're gonna try to knock you down and get in your head. Fuck 'em. You got a gift, and you get it from both sides. You're a half-breed. You got the Italian heart of a rocky Marciano and the Spanish moves of de la Hoya or Roberto Duran. Yeah, don't waste what you got, kid. Don't disappoint. You got no fuckin' excuse. It's time for you to bring this all to another level. All right, Eddie. Now get your ass down there and take a shower. All right, buddy. Good work, baby. Can I help you? No, I'm just thinking. Thinking? Yeah. I used to live here. Yo, Anthony, what are you doing over here? Get in. No, Matty. I'm just gonna go home to relax. Please, Anthony. It's important. Come on. I need someone to talk to. It'll just be an hour, tops. I promise. His jeans were tighter than mine. Um, with a popped collar. I'm gonna do it, pal. I'm finally gonna study hard and then take the stockbroker's test. This time, I'm not gonna fail. No way! Now that's what I like to hear, Matty. Make it happen. It's because of you. I see what you do every day and it motivates me. I'm really sorry about that fight we got into. I should have never took you to ac. It's all right. Shit happens sometimes. Look at that. You'd think I'd slow down, that my libido would relax a little as I got older. I wanna bang everything. I don't even care how hot they are. As long as it's a new piece of ass. There's nothing like that first time with a girl. It's the ultimate thrill. I don't know how anybody could just be with one girl. So you don't ever want to get married? I don't have a Maria in my life like you. It doesn't matter. It's all just a dream with that girl. You said one drink. I'm gonna drive your car home. Let's go. You're the only one doing anything in the neighborhood. I'm so proud of you. I love watching you in that ring. You're gonna hold up that belt one day. I fuckin' know it. - Thanks, Matty. - I know it! Come on, let's go. Let me finish my drink. I really... I need a cigarette. I'll be right back. Excuse me, do you have an extra cigarette? Sure, sweetie. Thank you. I'll take your number too. - Um. No, I don't think so. - No? - Thanks. - You kidding me? Let's go. Like that hot girl is gonna give that jerk-off her number. Let's go, Matt. All right, listen. I want a cigarette. Hey buddy, you got a cigarette? Sorry, buddy, all out. What do you mean all out? I just seen you give that girl one. If you looked like her, I would. But you don't, so you're not. Look, I don't want a problem, pal. All I want is a lousy cigarette. And I gave you your answer. So why don't you and your friend go fuck yourselves. All right, calm down. Are we really gonna argue over a fuckin' cigarette? Hey, man! Behind you! Behind you! - He got my fucking arm! - You all right? Yeah. That motherfucker should have gave me a cigarette. You fucking pounced him! That motherfucker's got a gun! Get out of here! ...Shit! The fucker shot at us! You believe that shit? Oh, my god. I can't be doing this no more. We're lucky to be alive. And this is for sure gonna get back to Enzo. We're probably gonna have a sit-down over this. I... I just really don't need this shit. You're the one lucky to be alive. I don't got much to live for. Don't talk like this. You know that's not true. I'm just a fuck-up that can't get my shit together. I... I shouldn't be getting you into these situations. You got too much going on right now. You're just better off staying away from me. I don't want to stay away from you, Matty. I just can't be hanging out in bars and stuff right now. I gotta give boxing my all. I know, Anthony. Where are you going? This is your car. Keep it for now. I gotta get my shit together. I'll just end up fucking crashing it anyway, 'cause I'm gettin' drunk. Matty! Matty, where are you... get back here! I'll talk to you soon. Get that arm looked at. Matty! Maria! Maria. What happened? Come here. What the hell happened? Did Dominick do that to you? Get in. Get in. What are you doing? You're gonna get us killed. I'm gonna find him. Is he in the social club? - Answer me, Maria! - Are you crazy? - Have you lost your mind? - Maybe I have! There's no way I'm gonna let him get away with hurting you. No fucking way! Look, it's okay, all right? - It's not okay. - It is okay. Look, I'm over him. I'm done. I'm done with Dominick! Just let it go! Okay, going after him is just gonna make it far worse for both of us, all right? Please, let it go. What happened to your arm? It don't matter. It's okay. It's not okay. You need to dress it better. Let's just go to your place. What the hell did you do, Anthony? I can't believe we both got messed up on the same night. There, that's better. I remember taking that picture. I can't believe you still have it. So I can look at you every day. Your mom was so pretty. She was beautiful. She'd be real proud of you. You're doing something special. It hasn't been so special yet. It will be. So tell me. What happened to your arm? Even with that bruise on your face, you're so beautiful. You always have been. - Your turn. - Come on. No no more. Come on. You piece of shit! Please. Please, give me a break. That was a good one. That's enough. It's over. What the fuck were you thinking? I was drunk. I don't know. Huh? I'm sorry. No guns get shot in my neighborhood unless I give the okay that they get shot. - You understand? You stupid fucking moron. Not only are you shooting off guns in my streets, you're firing at somebody who's close to me. I don't like that. I don't like that one bit. I am sorry. I'm... shut up! Don't you say a fucking word, man! I'm so... Mr. Devino, I'm so... it'll never happen again, I promise. You're sorry. I'm sorry too. Everybody's sorry. - So because you say that... - I'm sorry. You should get up and walk out, is that it? I made a mistake. You gotta go. No! No! No! No, no, no... so, Maria, I've been thinking, let's do something tonight. I wanna be able to do different things with you and not just stay here. So you don't like what we've been doing in your apartment? Of course, I do. Let's just give it a little time. Us being seen together right now won't be good for either of us. I wanna leave this place. I'm done with it. I'm leaving after this next fight. Come with me. I can still train and box, but just in a different place. I never thought that I would say this, but I want to get out of here, too. I want a different life and I want it with you. Yeah, yeah, right there. You got it, baby. Come on! Yeah, give me some movement. Okay, give me some movement. Give me a jab move. Keep your feet moving. Left, right, left, right. Come on, Anthony! Yeah, baby! Yeah! Pump it. Yeah! That's it! What do you think, we're fucking stupid? What are you talking about, Enzo? You didn't think we were gonna find out, did you? Yeah, we find out everything, Anthony. All right? When are you gonna realize that? Enzo, what are you talking about? We had to take care of those idiots that you got in the fight with in the bar, right? Enzo, you didn't have to do that. Anthony, Anthony, come on. You weren't supposed to get in trouble anymore. Right? That's what you said. It was either you or them. I mean, which way did you want it to go? Hey, give me a minute with him, would you? I've been looking after you for a long time, kid, you know that. I think the world of you. Been watching your back and want to point you in the right directions and make sure you got all the good things of life. And I'd never let anybody fuck with you. Now I'm starting to wonder if I've been believing the wrong thing all this time. Don't make a jerk out of me. I wouldn't do that to you, Enzo. You remember... You remember that dirty, stinking pedophile? You beat the shit out of him. Remember that? Yeah. Go and do that to this Vito guy. And you gotta fight with the same thing. Oh, I plan on it, Enzo. I hope so. Wake up, Anthony. Come on. I love you. Okay? Maria. Maria. Dear Anthony... This last week has been amazing. I thought about everything we talked about. The thought of leaving here with you seems too good to be true. But I can't. It's just too much for us both to risk. And even though Dominick can be such a jerk, he's all I know. I've been with him for so long, I think it's only right to go back with him and give him another chance. I wish you nothing but the best, and I will always remember this wonderful time we just spent together. Love, Maria. Now! All right. Yeah! Yeah! Come on. Move your feet now. Yeah! Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. You got him! You got him! Six, seven, eight... yeah, I'm good! - Come on! - Get in your corner. Hey, that's what I'm talking about! You're on fire, Anthony. Okay? He's all yours. Finish him this round. Hello. Is this Anthony Rodriguez? Yeah. This is officer Johnson. Can you come down to the station, son? Something happened to your mother. Hey, hey, hey! Look at me. Fuck New Jersey! Show that prick what Brooklyn's all about. Come on! Go ahead, baby. That's it, Jefe! Okay! Go... go to him! Finish him! Now! Come on now, think! Oh, he's losing! Yeah, yeah, yeah. Come on, come on. No! Yes, yes, yes! Hit him... there you go! Oh, you got him! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah, that's right, bitch! One, two, three, four... Five, six, seven, eight... Nine, ten. You're out! Yeah, that's my cousin! Vito Germano! Nicky Germano! Come on! Awful... shit! Oh, Anthony... Right now we're so young. But who knows what the future might bring? What the hell is going on? I don't get it. I really don't. That kid was destroying that Vito Germano. Come on. I mean, don't think he took one single punch in the first round. I didn't see it. Second round, he comes on, he's all over the place. He's... he's like... It's like he's on drugs or something, like a completely different human being. What happened? Maybe he is on drugs. What is that supposed to mean? I'm just saying. What do you mean you're just saying? Oh, fuck you. Just sayin'. I know you love this kid, Enzo. I just don't know why. You don't know why? You know what, Dominick? You've had everything given to you, okay? And maybe you hate him because he has a little bit of Puerto Rican blood in his veins, could that be? Well, you're starting to get a little bit too comfortable with yourself, I think. Forgettin' who's running things around here, forgettin' who's in charge. I was coming up in this game, in this world, on this planet, before you had hair on your fucking nut sack. You, fuck... Relax, Enzo, okay? Everybody knows who's in charge. Good. That's good. That's a good thing. I don't want you to think that I don't like the kid. What, you think that I don't want somebody from our neighborhood holding up the belt someday? Ah, maybe you do. Yeah. Besides... We love you. You love me? Come on, Enzo. We all do, you know that. Come on. You know we got that meeting with Gino. A lot of people come and go, Enzo. But you and me, we go back a long time. You believe I've had this joint for over 30 years? It's a landmark in this neighborhood, but... Everything else around here is changing. It's a different fuckin' world now. Yeah. I mean, me, I'm old school. I just can't take this, you know, social media, websites and the cellphones, you know? Every time you turn around, somebody's pulling a fucking camera out of their pocket. - Am I right? - It seems like it. And this social media thing is gonna be the ruination of the life we chose. Yeah, I agree. Hey. I got a good one for you. Let's hear it. Vinny Ferrato has got a Facebook page. What the fuck? A friend of ours has a Facebook page. What is he gonna put on there? His hits? The shakedowns? Pictures of him in the can? Pictures of his dick? - Who knows? - What the fuck? I told that prick to come in. I'm gonna poke his heart out with a pencil when he shows up. He's a fucking moron. What are you gonna do? Guys like us, we're a dying breed. It's kind of sad. Yeah, it is sad. Speaking of sad... Enzo, I wanted you to come here to give me an explanation. An explanation of what? I've been hearing some things. You heard some things? A lot of people hear things. Doesn't make it true. I don't know what kind of things you've heard, or who's been saying it. But I got a funny feeling I know who said it. That fuckin' mutt behind me! I'd bet money on that. He's filled your head up with a lot of shit. You shouldn't believe what he says. He's full of shit. Thanks for the drink. It's you, isn't it? You're the mutt. You couldn't let him speak? What, so you could hear a pack of lies? Come on, Gino, we been through this before. He was trying to make a move on you! Look, I did this because I wanted to prove my loyalty to you. All right. Come on. Clean up this mess. So another person that cared about you, gone. Yeah. As Anthony Rodriguez was knocked out in the second round, it was much different for middleweight champion, Reggie Dawson, who won again in the first round. Hey, hey, come on now. No big deal. Look at the first round knockout by yours truly. You know, I told you. I can't be beat. I cannot be beat. I told y'all that already. That's right. Atlanta, Georgia, baby. All day, every day. Representin' Atlanta... matter of fact, man, I am Atlanta. You feel me? That's right, all the other so-called boxers out here trying to get in the ring with me, you better step off and stop wasting your time. You're all gonna get knocked out. You know what I'm saying? Hey, is that lefty Rodriguez? The greatest boxer of all time? Yeah, right. That's why I got my ass kicked. Where the hell have you been? I've been looking all over for you and haven't heard a word. I went by the pizzeria, went by your house. You know what your dad told me? He told me you haven't been around. He didn't know where you were. I told you I wasn't coming around until I got my stuff together. I just went away for a little while. Where? Does it matter? I'm doing the right thing. I heard about Enzo. I'm sorry. I see you've been taking care of my car. Of course, I have. I even fixed the tail light. That's great. I'm gonna need it back now. That's not a problem, right? Why would it be a problem, Matty? It's your car. Yeah, I know. It's just... Are you all right, Matty? - Is something wrong? - No, not at all. You got the keys? I gotta go. You need a ride? I can drop you off at home first. I can walk home. Okay. Are you sure you're okay, Matty? Of course, I am. I'm just in a rush. I got somewhere to be. Let's catch up later, all right? You know... I'm thinking about getting married. Really, Dominick? Come on! Yeah. You know that week we were broken up? It made me really realize what I had. I mean... I'm out getting my cock sucked every night. And she's... She's doing nothing. She was crying over me at her cousin's house somewhere out in Jersey. Hard to find, Dominick. Yeah... yeah. Hey, guys. How's it goin'? We good, Matty? Yeah, it's parked outside. Here's the keys. You know, uh... You're lucky. You're lucky I decided to take the car as partial payment. You know, because I'm not really into these muscle cars. I'm a caddy guy myself, as you know. You know, in fact, I'm gonna sell your car and I'm gonna get myself another caddy. Oh, it's my fault that you're a degenerate gambler, huh? You gotta borrow money from me to keep open that piece of shit pizzeria? Oh, you know you still owe some vig on that, right? 'Cause next thing I'm gonna do is I take the pizza joint. That won't be necessary, Dominick. I'll have the rest of your money. Yeah. Well, for your sake, I hope so. Hey, how's your friend doing, Anthony? He sure got his ass kicked. And by a full-blooded Italian, no less. Vito Germano. Germano. I love that name, you know? Oh, and I wonder what he's gonna do now that Enzo's not around. Anthony Rodriguez. What a fuckin' waste. Oh, I suggest you get that look off of your face. No look from me, Dominick. Enjoy the car. Hey, kid, give me that bat. So after all that, she can't even tell me to my face that she's going back to him. She was too embarrassed to face you. I poured my heart out to that girl. All these years wanting her. And for what? I'm done with her. I'm done boxing. I'm fucking done with it all. What are you talking about? You're gonna quit boxing? Don't talk stupid. I'm tired of always having to watch everything I do. Look at you! Always drinking, having a good time. Me? I'm sipping on fuckin' water. And for what? I mean, really. What's the point? It's a good thing you left your Chevelle home. Because I ain't in no condition to drive it. I lied. It's not home. I just got it painted. Painted? You got a sick paint job on there already. Well, I won a lot in ac. Who cares? It's only money. Look at this. Of all the people to walk in here... Relax, Anthony. I can't relax. If I wind up staying here, I'm gonna wind up hurting somebody real bad. Just go home. Forget about it. You got too much to lose. Don't lose it with this fucking asshole. It's not worth it, man. You know what, Matty? Ain't gonna give her the satisfaction. If that's what she wants, so be it. They deserve each other. Come on, let's get out of here. Now that's what I like to hear. Finally you grew some balls when it comes to this girl. Come on, man, you don't need her anyway. Listen, go home, I'm gonna hang out a little while. I'll meet you later. I gotta meet Mrs. Schwartz for a drink. She finally got a divorce. We can meet in public. Mrs. Schwartz again? Where do you find these girls? Come on, man, I gotta get laid, man. Come on. I love you, man. Fuck them. What the fuck are you looking at? What do you mean? Nothing, Dominick. What are you talking about? Don't make me smack you in here. Smack me? Yeah. Why do you gotta talk to me like that? I don't understand you, Dominick. I'm going to the ladies room. Yeah. You do that. Go to the ladies room. Hey. What's up, Dominick? You know i... I've been thinking about something since... since after you left. I think I'm gonna keep the Chevelle. Yeah, and drive it around once in a while, you know? I think it'll be a good statement for me. Because everybody knows that was your car and everybody knows what a fuck-up you are. And they'll know that you fucked up with me. Yeah, yeah, how about I get you a drink? Ow! You motherfucker! He's got a gun. Let's get out of here. I want your girlfriend and everybody to see what a bitch you are without your friends around. You're fucking dead. Matty, you kn... ow. Matty, stop! Stop? ...Shut up. Matty, please. I don't know what's wrong with you, girl. Stop it. - Stop. - What's wrong with you? Get out of here, Matty. Go. Just go! Get the fuck out! I never liked you. Please, stop. I don't know. Come on, Tommy! Please! I mean, we known each other since we're kids. Fuckin' kids! You're gonna do it because of that piece of shit Dominick? Come on! - Just shut up, Matty. - Please, stop! We known each other since we're kids, Tommy! - Shut up, Matty. - Please. You know what? Fuck you, guys. Go ahead. Fuck you! Go ahead! He did it all for me. That's how he was. He always put me first. In the end, he took a bullet for me. How did you deal with that? Whoa, come on, Anthony! Anthony, you don't want to do this. You don't want to shoot an unarmed man, come on. Come on, look, don't do this, man. We known each other since we were kids. Put the gun down, Anthony. Fuck you, Dominick! - Who is it? - Open up, Anthony. Hello, Anthony. What the hell are you doing here? - Listen, son. - Don't call me your son. Whether you like it or not, you are. All I'm asking is you give me a minute to hear me out. That's all I ask. - I really don't care what you have to say. -Please. Just let me speak. There is nothing to speak about. I buried you a long time ago. I know you did, and you had every right to. But... Just hear me out and I will leave. It took me years. Years to forgive myself for what I did to you and your mom, god rest her soul. I was a horrible father and husband, but it wasn't me. It was the alcohol. It destroyed me. But I've been sober now for years. I've watched almost all your fights from a distance and you didn't know I was there. I didn't have the courage to face you, because I knew if I did, you would tell me to get lost. All I ask that you give me a chance to show you that I've changed. I'm old now. And what I want is to share the rest of my days with you. You're my son, my blood, and you've made me proud. You made me proud. Please, Anthony, find a way to forgive me. And if you find it in your heart, give me a chance. Just like that, after all those years, he shows up on my doorstep. Just before I was walking out the door to ruin my whole life. When I look back at it, I feel like it was a message from my mom, that my dad showed up. I needed a break from the only world that I knew. It's because of you. I see what you do every day and it motivates me. You're the only one doing anything in the neighborhood. I'm so proud of you. I love watching you in that ring. You're gonna hold up that belt one day. I know it! You can do something better with your life. You're gonna do something better. I don't know what it is, but it's gonna be huge. I'm very proud of you. I know it hasn't been easy with your father the last couple of years, but you made everything better. You brightened up every day. ...Come on. We not ballet dancing, this is boxing, come on! - Eddie! - Watch your body. Yeah, what? Phone call! Keep jabbing. Yeah? Hello. I'm ready. Hey... Anthony? Anthony, where you been? Get me a rematch with Germano. I thought you were done and it was over with. Nah, it's far from over, Eddie. Set it up. Yeah. Yeah. Remember the bag in the basement! He's going... I see it! He hit it! Lookin' sweet. You own him! That's who his daddy is! Come on, Vito! What the fuck, man? Five, six, seven, eight. This is not what you were taught, come on! Nine, ten, that's it. All right, Anthony! Huh? You love that! No! No! - It was a different story this time... -That's my son! ...for Vito Germano, who was knocked out halfway through the first round by Anthony "lefty" Rodriguez. Come on, Anthony, go! Get him off you! Come on! Knock him out, son! You got him, baby! There you go! There you go! He's down! He's down! He's down! That's it, Italian power! Puerto Rican power! Blue to corner. Yeah, yeah! That's my boy! Yes! He's all yours! That's it! Finish him off! Finish him off! Blue to corner. Knock him out, son! We're ready. Five, six, seven... We're ready! Eight, nine, ten, out! We're ready! Ha-ha! Yeah! Neighborhood kid. He's representing, Gino. He sure is. I hope he opens up Dawson's fuckin' hole. It's a big payday for Anthony Rodriguez as he is set to fight undisputed middleweight champion Reggie Dawson. As well as he's been fighting, I still don't think he stands a chance against Dawson. Dawson is just too explosive. He barely gets hit and he's never been knocked down. I really don't see Rodriguez getting out of the first round. Yo, are you kidding me? Anthony who? What's up with all this Brooklyn stuff? Brooklyn this, Brooklyn that. - Who gives a damn? - Brooklyn? Look, son, we came from a rough neighborhood and it wasn't easy being a Puerto Rican there back then. But that didn't break you. And neither will this punk Dawson. You knock him out, you hear? You hit him hard. These last few months with you have been the best time of my life. Thank you. You don't have to thank me, dad. I'm glad you're here. You've been a big inspiration to me. Your mother would be proud, mi Maravilloso hijo. What does that mean? My wonderful son. So you go out there and you show the whole world what you're about, you hear? Anthony. Don't mean to disturb your focus, but there's somebody outside that really wants to talk to you. Anthony Rodriguez. Mike Tyson. Man, I just came by to wish a Brooklyn brother some luck, that's all. Speaking about Brooklyn, you hear all that shit that Dawson is talking about, dumping on Brooklyn? I'm from Brooklyn just like you, and I took that personally. Dawson's always talkin' a lot of shit. He's been able to back it up, too this time it's gonna be different, right? You're gonna prove all these cocksuckers wrong making you the 25-to-1 underdog. You gonna go in there and you gonna kick his ass in the dirt. All of Brooklyn is behind you out here. You got this, man. Trust me, you got this. The crowd's electric here at Caesar's palace as the fighter from Brooklyn Anthony "lefty" Rodriguez makes his way to the ring. Get ready, get in there! Knock him out! Knock him out! Oh, that's it. Oh, man, stack it up! There you go! There you go! Brooklyn, Brooklyn, Brooklyn! It's all up to you, Anthony. Everything you've been through in your life, it's your time to make history. Stay on him! See, he's goin'! The rest is history, Larry. After all I went through back in the day, when my mom was alive, that was the greatest time of my life. So has boxing become an escape from the real violence in your life? Or is it part of who you are? Part of the rock your mother was? I always felt like my mom was in my corner through every fight, through every day. I know she's looking over me right now. And whatever happened to Maria? As far as I know, she's still living around here. I heard her and Dominick got married. Wow. I thought he'd be up the river, - behind bars by now. - Yeah. Yeah, you and everybody else. He has a much smaller crew now, so I heard. So in a way, us meeting here, is a kind of a statement. "I'm not afraid of anyone." No, I'm not, and that mob world, it's changed so much. You got these gangsters on reality shows right now. It's a joke. The joke's on them, because you're no joke. You're the middleweight champion. They can never take away that achievement. Thanks, Larry. Way to go, Anthony! Way to go, champ! You earned it. Thank you, buddy. Way to go. Sure, yeah, go ahead. I heard that you were here. Being interviewed by Larry merchant, that's big time. I told you that you would do it. Thank you. So you know, me and Dominick, we got separated. Really? That's too bad. Yeah, actually it's mutual. He's seeing some slut in Staten island. - What about you? - Me? I've been waiting for you to come back here and rescue me. Don't tell me that you don't miss me. 'Cause I miss you so much. Could you ever forgive me? Of course, I could forgive you, Maria. I even forgave my father. But I can't be with you again. Those days are gone. Are you serious? I'm dead serious. I'm sorry you feel that way. Shit. Dominick's here. Why do you look so nervous, Maria? You can do whatever you want now. You know, I must say, Rodriguez, you shocked me. You proved Enzo right. Now, I call a spade a spade. You did it. Congratulations. You're not gonna shake my hand? Don't think for a minute that I didn't know you two wanted each other okay? And now you can have each other. What, did you think you could just come back here? Huh? To my neighborhood? You know what? I'll see you outside. Do you really think I give a fuck about you and your friend? I've been waiting my whole life to tell you what a fuckin' punk I think you are, and I will see you outside. You don't change, Dominick. Go fuck yourself. Okay, thank you. What are you, fuckin' stupid? I'm so sorry, Mr. Dom... hey, how do you like it, huh? What's the matter, they can't hire better busboys at this joint? Leave him alone, Dominick. Of course, one spic defending another spic. Oh, shit. Go back to work. I got this, Dino. All right, Anthony. You're such a jerk-off, Dominick. He's a boxer, right? You want some? Uh... Get that fuckin' camera out of my face! Oh, shit. What are you staring at, you bald headed prick? Shoot him! Go ahead. Shoot me. You fuckin' pussy! I knew I shouldn't have let you in my fucking crew. Crew? This isn't 1989 anymore, Dominick. Oh, shit. Hey, that was awesome. Don't be puttin' that on YouTube, Sal. On second thought, do whatever you want. Yeah? - Ooh. -What are you looking at, you prick? - What do you think? -Get that fucking camera out of my face. You can do something better with your life. You're gonna do something better. I don't know what it is, but it's gonna be huge. The people from olive garden came by. They offered me four mil for the building and the restaurant. Like I'm really gonna sell out. I said, "not in my fucking lifetime," right, Rocco? We know that, Gino. Aw, fuck. I wanted to come by and tell you that I'm whacking that spic, Anthony Rodriguez. World champion or not, I don't give a fuck! That cocksucker put his hands on a made man. Broke my rib. Yeah, we heard all about your escapade in front of la Palina. In fact, there's a video of it all over the fuckin' place. I think maybe you're in the wrong business, Dominick. You should have been an actor. Seems like you love the attention. We all make mistakes. My mistake was believing a fucking mutt like you. Remember when Enzo used that word to describe you? Well, he was right! Fuck, Enzo! Hi, Anthony. Just one minute. No, Tommy! - Please, don't. We known each other since we were kids, Tommy! Oh. That's right, we did grow up together. Don't ever show your face around here again. - Okay. -As far as everybody's concerned, you're dead and buried! You got that, Matty? Yeah, Tommy, thank you, yeah, thank you. Thank you, Tommy. I'll call you later, okay? Okay. Bye, Matty. So, how is this one? You know, I actually like this girl. I think I'm gonna settle down. Yeah, okay. On second thought, nah! By the way, how was the interview? What was it like going back to the old neighborhood? Come on, champ. Tell me what happened. You're gonna love it. We couldn't do this in Brooklyn when we were shooting the movie, but this is how we really do it in real life. Brooklyn style, baby. |
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