In the late 1970's the cocaine was pure and the lust for sex, drugs, and money corrupted the body and soul. The casino boom was flourishing in Atlantic City; and the Natalie Crime Family was making millions. However, the son of a Brooklyn crime boss became slipshod and haughty, disregarding the code of silence and the old-world philosophy of Sicily. This leads to a series of catastrophic events all caught on F.B.I. surveillance tapes. This is a gripping look at the mafia mentality, narrated by a convict rotting away in a federal prison, who reflects back upon his life explaining what went wrong and how the events of the spring of 1977 destroyed one of the most powerful crime families in the world. What makes Lions at the Gate special is the naked depiction of the mafia, the kangaroo courts, and the corrupt incarceration system.