IF YOU GO:

What: ‘Pizza with Bullets’ film screening with guest Vincent Pastore

Where: Palace Theatre in Syracuse

When: Today, 8:15 p.m.

How much: $6

Combine an aging mob boss, his long-lost son, a local pizza parlor, and some violence and mayhem. What results is ‘Pizza with Bullets,’ a lighthearted mafia comedy that will debut at Palace Theatre Wednesday night as part of SYRFILMFEST ’10.

 

‘Pizza and Bullets’ actor Vincent Pastore, who is known for his role in the HBO series ‘The Sopranos,’ will screen the film after performing a stand-up comedy routine at Wise Guys Comedy Club.

 

Directed by Robert Rothbard, the film brings together mafia film veterans and newcomers to tell the story of a sickly mob boss who thinks the owner of a pizza shop may be his estranged son. With Vincent Pastore (‘The Sopranos’) and Talia Shire (‘The Godfather’) co-starring in the film, ‘Pizza with Bullets’ is a comedic tale that plays on many stereotypical mob characterizations and clichés, with an intimate family drama at its core.

Owen Shapiro, the artistic director of the Syracuse International Film Festival and a professor at the College of Visual and Performing Arts, invited Pastore to submit the film after meeting the actor at a fundraiser last year.

Christine Fawcett-Shapiro, executive director of the festival, believes the festival has a lot to offer Syracuse University students. Beyond the combination of pizza and mobsters, there are plenty of reasons for students to attend.

Fawcett-Shapiro said she hopes this easily understandable comedy will serve as a steppingstone to attract students to the festival. She hopes students will return for some of the more difficult-to-watch films that provide a deeper, more rewarding viewing experience.

‘Pizza with Bullets’ is centered on Don Vito Perspirino (Pastore) and his wife Mary (Shire). On his deathbed, Don Vito orders pizza from Johnny Casanova’s Pizza Parlor. Johnny (Ronnie Marmo) delivers the pizza himself, and upon smelling the pizza, the don is miraculously cured. He then embraces Johnny as his long-lost son, Anthony, who went missing over 20 years ago.

‘It sounds interesting,’ said Evan Dinger, a junior television, radio and film major. ‘Some of my favorite movies are ‘The Godfather’ and ‘Goodfellas,’ and the mafia culture is so over-the-top that I think a comedy could be really funny.’

The film is filled with chases, shoot-outs, dramatic revelations and surprises — the standards of a mob flick. Don Vito and Johnny’s lives are jeopardized by Gino Falcone (Tony Devon), the don’s right-hand man, trying to maintain his power. Along with Johnny’s money, girl troubles and the confusion surrounding his parents, ‘Pizza with Bullets’ becomes a complex story filled with action, drama and comedy.

‘We’re really trying to encourage students to try something new and take a chance on the films in the festival,’ Fawcett-Shapiro said. ‘We’re hoping to catch their initial interest with a funny, easy-to-watch film, in the hope that they’ll come back for others.’

rjmarvin@syr.edu