Ten-year-old Nicky Moskoff's suburban life is shattered when an act of vengeance exacted upon his prosecutor father leaves him an orphan. With nowhere else to go, young Nicky's sent to live with his rough-and-tumble grandfather in the underbelly of a working class section of Brooklyn known as Bensonhurst. Unaccepted and taunted by Paulie and his gang of neighborhood troublemakers, Nicky learns to survive by his fists and his wits. In their late teens, Paulie commits an act of cruelty against Nicky's grandfather. Nicky's responds with swift violence, leaves Paulie wounded and lusting for revenge. Suddenly alone in the world, Nicky encounters Mona, an alluring older woman...with selfish reasons, she seduces him and invades his isolated world. When Nicky senses her feelings for him might be superficial, he finds himself in a dire situation that could bring Paulie's vengeance upon him and cost him his life.