Wise Guys (1986)

Italian American Harry Valentini and his Jewish friend and next-door neighbor Moe Dickstein occupy the bottom rung of Newark Mafia boss Anthony Castelo’s gang. Making a living by doing Castelo’s lowest jobs (such as looking after his goldfish, testing out bullet-proof jackets, or checking the boss’s car for bombs) the two men dream of opening the world’s first Jewish-Italian delicatessen. However, they get little to no respect from their boss or his subordinates, who frequently ridicule them. They accompany Frank “The Fixer” Acavano, one of Castelo’s top men and a violent, heavyset psychopath, to Meadowlands Racetrack to place a bet on Castelo’s behalf. Valentini changes horses at the last minute because his boss usually bets on the wrong one. However, this time Castelo had fixed the race, meaning that Harry and Moe now owe their boss $250,000. After a night of torture, both are forced to agree to kill each other.

Unaware that each has made a deal and frightened following the murder of Harry’s cousin Marco, they steal Acavano’s Cadillac and travel to Atlantic City to see Harry’s uncle Mike, a retired mobster who started Castelo in the crime business. After using Acavano’s credit cards to pay for a luxury stay in a hotel owned by their old friend Bobby DiLea, the two go to Uncle Mike’s house to ask for help. They find only Uncle Mike’s ashes, leading to Moe leaving in disgust. Grandma Valentini, however, is able to give Harry the money he owes. Harry tries to get DiLea to sort things out with Castelo. As he and Moe leave the hotel, their limo is being driven by Acavano, after DiLea appears to double-cross the two. Harry luckily spies Castelo’s hitmen and decides to stay behind and gamble the money. After a chase through the hotel casino, Moe catches up to Harry and accidentally shoots him. Harry is pronounced dead and Moe flees.