All language subtitles for Wasted Talent (2018) - WEBRip.x264-ION10

[piano music]

- When I was first
approached to do

the documentary, I was
a little apprehensive,

obviously being a
former police officer

and they said why don't
just take a meeting

and see if you guys, you
know, get on the same page.

And I spoke to him.

I told him if we were
to move forward

with this, it could not
under any circumstances

be a puff piece and you know,

there might be
people calling you

a scumbag, piece of shit

as well as people
saying you deserve

a second change and
he was okay with that.

So, once I found out
he was okay with it

and it wasn't going
to be a puff piece,

I decided, you know, I think

it would be a good idea
doing my due diligence

on what actually happened.

Once we decided to
move forward, I really

dug in and did my due
diligence on the case

and realized that a lot
of stuff that I perceived

was through tabloids
and the newspaper

and a lot of other people
had the same perception.

So basically, it's my
job and hopefully

when you leave here,
you have an opinion

of other either way.

That he either deserves
a second chance

or he got out because
he is who he is.

- How you doin'.

My name's Lillo.

I'm an addict.
- Hi, Lillo.

- You know, I went from
the kid in the Bronx Tale.

You know, rising star
from the neighborhood.

Starring in the classic
movie to a junkie.

- [Narrator] Five a.m.
December 10th, 2005.

Off duty New York police
officer, Daniel Enchautegui

responded to what sounded
like a break in

at a neighbor's home.

The burglary erupted
into a gun fight

with Broncato and
his accomplice.

- They said the
police officer is dead.

He was villainized in
the press immediately.

- [Narrator] We all
remember Lillo Brancato.

He was such a rising star.

Acted with De Niro,
James Gandolfini.

But his career came to a
screeching halt one night

when he was involved
in a crime that ended

with a police officer dead.

[echoing crash]

- So Lillo, tell me
about how it was growing

up in Yonkers.

How about your childhood?

Family and all that stuff.

- We were very middle class.

Blue collar family.

It was a very tight knit
community.

It was all, it was all Italian.

It was all Italians
with the exception

of my next door neighbor
which was Puerto Rican.

But pretty much,
it was all Italian.

There was a lot goin'
on in the streets.

You know, we were playin'
stick ball, football.

Lot of that goin' on.

Parents yellin' from the
window to get inside.

You know, yeah, it was a
really, really good childhood.

Lot of great memories
from my childhood.

- Was there ever type
of drug use back then?

Not with you.

Did you ever witness
any of that stuff

or was that even a thought or--

- Absolutely not, absolutely.

I mean, you would hear
about things, you know,

in cautionary things,
cautionary stuff in school.

- Right.
- You know about drugs,

but that's something that
wasn't really prevalent

in my life or something
that I ever witnessed.

Or I really never
paid attention to it,

only until later on in my
life when it, you know,

the opportunity to do drugs
started presenting itself.

- You're on Jones Beach one day

with your brother--

- Yeah, brother, like I was
like maybe 10, 15 of us.

- [Steve] Uh huh,
then what happened?

- It was the day after
Fourth of July.

July fifth, 1992, and
you know, we just decided

let's go to the beach tomorrow.

We used to go out to
Jones Beach, field four

and that's a drive.

Yonkers with traffic, it could
take you

an hour to get out there,
sometimes even more.

So we went out there.

We just went out,
school just ended,

so this is the beginning
of summer vacation

and little did I
know that that day

on the beach was gonna
totally change my life.

Now, I had heard
about The Bronx Tale

and I heard that there
was open call auditions

and that they were
looking for someone

with no previous
acting experience

to play Robert De Niro's son

and a film called A Bronx Tale

which Robert De Niro would
make his directorial debut.

And you know, to go
back to what I

was just sayin',
I thought in my mind,

that would be pretty
interesting,

being that people tell
me that I look like him,

but I said, naw,
there's now way I'll

ever be in a movie.

I mean, it's a movie
on the big screen.

Where the long shot, middle
class, blue collar family,

it just doesn't
happen every day.

And my brother, I hear
my brother screaming.

I didn't know what happened.

I ran out of the water
and my brother said,

"hey, you know, remember
that movie we heard

"about, that
Robert De Niro movie?

"Well, this guy, he's out
here right, he's out here

"on the beach today
looking for kids

"to play the part and I told him

"that you look like him."

And the guy's name
is Marco Greco

and my brother,
and the guy said,

he told my brother,
"you're right, he

"does look like him."

And I just kind rose
to the occasion.

I knew, I knew this was my shot.

So, he didn't have to
ask me to do anything.

I just started
doin' the face and

the whole thing and
are you talkin' to me

and the guy's like oh
wow, this guys' great.

I love this guy.

So, it was a Sunday, July fifth.

He said usually we're closed

at the Belmont Playhouse.

"Usually we're closed
today, but I like you."

he goes, can you meet
me in the Bronx tonight

at this time and for
some reason, I just knew.

I knew on the ride home
from the beach, I

just knew that something
was gonna happen

from this situation.

I went home, I told my mom.

It was my next door
neighbor's birthday.

My aunts were there
and then, ah, you know.

Her son read for the
part and she was like,

oh, you know, so and
so read for the part.

You're not gonna get it.

They've got so many kids reading

and you know, it's big.

So I said, well,
I can only try, right.

So, I went in that night.

My two friends drove
me down there

and the guy, Marco, was there,

and I'd never seen anything
in the screen play,

in screen play form.

The guy just gave me the scene

and he said, "have you
ever done this before,"

and I said, "no, I've
never done this before."

he said,
"well, here's the scene.

"Just read it, see what it is

"and I'll come
back in a little bit.

"Let me know when you're ready

"and you'll read it."

And I remember
just lookin' at it

and just looked like something

that was familiar to
me and something

that I possibly would
be capable of doing.

It was the bathroom
scene when I'm shaving.

In the original script, De
Niro's shaving

and I ask him, dad, let
me ask you a question

about the interracial dating,
you know.

What his thoughts were on that

and the whole thing and
that was the audition scene.

And I read it and I
just knew what to do.

It just seemed like it
came naturally to me

and I told the guy,
Marco, I'm ready

and I read it and the
guy was blown away.

He was like, wow,
that was great.

That was the best
anyone's ever read it.

And then he started asking
me to do other scenes.

He said, "why don't
you try this scene,"

and, "do this scene."

And the character in the
movie, his name was Calogero.

My father's Sicilian
and so is the character.

My father is from the
province of Agrigento

in Sicily in a little town
called Naro

and in Italy, you have a
lot of these little towns

that have saints that
come from that town.

- Right.
- The saint from

my father's town
was San Calogero

and my father even went to
the reform school, San Calo,

when they used to shorten it.

But you know,
just for like that part,

that role in that movie
was just meant for me.

- [Steve] It was all lined up.

- Yeah, all the stars aligned

and I was like, wow, man.

He was like, that was great.

Then we exchanged
numbers and he said right

before I left,
he said, "call me in

"about a week," you know.

"Call me in about a week
or so and I'll tell you

"how you did."

And he said a week, that
seemed kinda distant.

Maybe I thought
maybe he didn't like me

as much as I thought
he liked me.

I was working for
a lawyer at the time.

It was my summer vacation,
summer job.

I was filing.

My father's a builder.

The lawyer was did the
closings for my father,

so he was a family
friend and took on

a summer job at his office and I

used to file stuff,
answer phones

and I came home
from work that day

and some woman
had called on the phone.

She seemed very professional
and when I heard

her voice, she asked
for Lillo and that's

also my father's name and
she said, "can I please speak

"to Lillo Brancato," and I
said, "yeah, hold on, I'll

"get my dad for you."

And she said, "are you
Lillo," and I said yeah.

She goes, "no, no, I think
I want to speak with you."

She said, I'm so and so.

I work in down in
Tribeca Casting

and we saw your tape
and we loved it.

We wanna meet and
we would like for you

to come down and I was
like, wow, you know.

Now, it's started becoming real.

The next day I went down
there with my father

and my uncle and was very
overwhelmed

'cuz you know, like when
I go down there, I've

never done, remember,
like I said, I've

never done this before.

I've never been to an audition.

I don't know the whole process.

I'm not familiar with
any of this.

So, when I went down
there, my father

and uncle walked
in the room with me

and there was like
40 kids there reading

for the part and you got
kids in the corner reading

their lines, talking to
the wall like real actors.

Guys that really wanna do this.

I was so intimidated
and so overwhelmed

by the whole thing,
but I just figured

what, they liked
what I did, so I'm not

gonna change what I did.

I'm gonna just keep
going in that direction.

Obviously they liked me.

I made it to this point.

So, I went in and I read.

They liked me again.

They said, "listen, can
you come back tomorrow."

And I kept getting a
call back, call back

and as that happened,
I noticed

that there was a lot
less kids in the room

and at that point,
everyone was introduced

to me, you know,
on a first name basis

and then one day they
said we're gonna

go upstairs and meet Bob

and I had already
met Chazz Palminteri.

Seen him in the
building and he would

always congratulate me.

Saying thank you
for coming down.

We really love what
you're doin'.

Just keep it up.

Very inspiring,
very inspiring stuff.

And then they said we're gonna
go upstairs and meet Bob.

I said okay.

I just thought Bob is
maybe a script supervisor

or someone, I didn't
know who it was.

So, the way it was
set up, I come in

through the door back there.

I'm De Niro.

He's got his back to me
and Chazz is right there.

So, I can see Chazz.

I can see his profile
and then he looked over

and they said, they said,

the door's a little open.

It's open and,

"Bob, Lillo's here to meet you."

And Bob's you know,
turnin' around

and then he walked over,
like you know.

I mean, you can't
explain that moment

in words and just like
when he came up

to me and you know, I
remember he'd just finished

doing a movie,
Mad Dog and Glory,

so he had that reddish
hair that he had,

so it wasn't like De Niro,

the De Niro that I knew

- Right.
- from seeing on TV

but it was still De Niro.

That's still the face.
- Right.

- We hope they're not
fooled by his fame.

He's an actor, he's acting
on that stand.

- What was the
first initial reaction

with other cops,
the guys who worked

it when the story broke
the next morning?

- It was anger, frustration.

Sorrow.
- Today,

if you mentioned Lillo
Brancato's name

to other cops, what would
be the reaction?

- I think most cops
would be hate.

You know, yeah,
most cops would be

just flat out hate.

You know, it's just really
one of those unfortunate

things that can happen.

Life can be very simple,
but somehow us grownups,

we can complicate things.

- Mmh hmm.
- And that was

the product of
something that just

should never have happened.

- [Steve] What do
you think Pat would,

what do you think his
reaction would be to this?

- Pat would love his
head on a platter.

- Right.
- You know, especially,

Pat mentioned he
can be very animated

and he's pro-cop to the max

and that what's you
want in somebody

that's gonna represent you.

But even cops screw up.

- Right.
- And there's cops

that have hit bottom, whether
it be alcohol or drugs.

And he's human, this is one
of the flaws of being human.

- [Steve] So police
officer to police officer.

Why did you think it
was important to come on

and do this documentary?

- Because the
young police officer

that lost his life did
something that I think

any other police officer
would have done

and it's unfortunate.

Lillo Brancato is out
and living his life

and still can do things and
the young officer is not.

- The night the, actually
it was in the morning

when it happened.

It was about 5:20 a.m.

I was in my crime scene office.

We received a phone call
that an officer

had been shot and
he was likely to die.

When I got there, the scene was,

there was a lot of cops
around the peripheral

because there was, he was,

the incident happened in
the middle of the block

- Mmh hmm.
- And it went up

to towards Westchester Avenue.

- Mmh.
- So there were a lot

of cops around the
peripheral of the scene.

They had it marked off
and the cops actually

did a great job in preserving
the scene

because there was a lot
of snow on the ground.

- Mmh hmm.
- If you were in actually,

in Daniel's apartment,
you could look

right out his,
he lived in a basement.

You could look right
out his window

and you could see
the window where Bancato

and Armento tried to get in

and they broke the window.

It was directly across.

He had a clear view

and he actually went
outside and went

to approach them
in the driveway.

So, initially you
don't know exactly

how it went down because
Armento was removed.

He ran, him and Brancato ran
towards Westchester Avenue

and they both left a blood trail

'cuz Daniel actually
hit them with every shot

the he fired.

He hit the both of
them with every shot.

He didn't miss them.

So, a couple of the
bullets and fragments

actually came out.

Now, they both left
separate blood trails

going down towards Westchester.

Lillo actually made
it to the vehicle

that I believe was a Durango.

It was on the corner,
right, parked

right around the
corner on Westchester

and there was blood all over it

and that's where the
officers had grabbed him.

- Mmh hmm.
- Armento was short of that.

He dumped his gun right away.

He was where the
cops grabbed him

and they were wearing
really thin rubber gloves.

- Mmh hmm.
- I mean, you don't

even see cheap gloves
like that anymore

in the emergency room.

These were really, really
cheap rubber gloves.

And there was a couple
of them over there

where Armento was
caught and there was one

back at the window
sill where they tried

to get in and that's where
we got Lillo's DNA from.

From that particular glove.

It'd be hard to get into the
jury's mind.

- Right.
- I don't know,

it might have come down
to how the judge explained

the law to them

- Mmh hmm.
- that they didn't

find him guilty.
- Right.

- But they found him guilty.

I was satisfied that at
least they found him guilty

of the burglary and he
did do some time.

- Right.
- So hopefully he

had time to reflect upon the
people you hang out with.

- Right.
- So, I wrote

on December 10th, 2005,
the assigned, being me,

along with Police Officer
Demato, I was training him

at the time, responded to 3117
Arnot Place

to assist Detective Schwartz
with a the sheer number

of the Bronx Homicide
Squad and the department,

excuse me, the department
investigation

of a police involved
shooting in which

the North duty MOS and two
perpetrators exchanged gunfire.

The off duty MOS was
removed to Jacobi Hospital

prior to CSU arrival where
he expired from his wound.

He was shot once in the chest.

The perpetrators were
also removed to Jacobi

prior to my arrival and are
reportedly in critical condition

and then I described the way,
the services that I provide

in terms of collecting
the evidence.

I think the fact that
he was who he was,

it might have had
an affect on the jury.

Might have had an affect on
the way the whole case went.

The same thing
if you're in a car,

somebody has a gun, if the
police come and stop you,

they pull you out and
you have the gun on you,

the only person gets
charged is the person

with the gun on them,
but if that person throws

the gun down on the
floor, now everybody goes.

- Right.
- It's the same

with narcotics, guns.

So, being that he was
involved in the burglary

and a police officer
was killed, he should

have been charged

and that's the law.

- Took me awhile to
decide to go forward

in a case like this.

I mean, so emotionally charged.

Obviously, a police
officer is dead.

He was villainized in
the press immediately.

Made to be a monster.

I have an astounding
respect for police officers.

I've represented, as you know,

- Sure.
- a lot of police officers

in some very difficult times

and I pride myself in helping
out members of the force

when they need me.

This was obviously
a difficult decision

for me to make,
but it was a decision

that I was able to
make pretty comfortably

once I got to know
Lillo and once I got

to know the facts of this case.

- [Steve] Sure and what
was your first impression

of Lillo at that time?

- A sweet heart.

Really a sweet heart of a guy.

Not the guy I read about.

Not the arrogant, you know,
sort of abusive individual

who was callous
or anything like that.

He was a sweet heart who
clearly had lost control

of his life,
lost control of his life

in the sense that drugs
began to overwhelm him,

take away the person
that he was that made him

so successful as a young boy,

make him so loved
by so many people.

- Mmh hmm.
- A lot of people

really love Lillo Brancato.

A lot of people care
about Lillo Brancato

and that's why,
I think, this was

so shocking to so many people.

But as individual as a
person, you know, look, I

was a prosecutor.

I've been a defense
lawyer a long time.

I like to not judge people
based on Google searches.

I don't judge people based
on third party analysis,

but on my own
impressions and I had

some tough questions for
him when I first met him,

but it was clear to me that
there was

a good soul inside that
sort of hardened shell

that had been eroded
by years of drug abuse.

After that case was
resolved, I still represent

the many cops
- Right.

- in their times of need,
including

the so-called infamous
rape cops in New York

who were acquitted of
rape after being vilified

for two years in the
press as rapists.

And the funny part
about that is,

the same people who
were giving me

a hard time during
the Brancato case

were the first ones
to call me after

the rape cop
acquittal telling me

how much I've done
for the boys in blue

and how much they
appreciated my help.

So, but that's all part of being
a lawyer.

I don't take it personally.

Once I got to them
about the facts

of the case and
the person, Lillo,

it was clear to me that this was

an individual who had
no legal responsibility

or moral responsibility
for the death

of that police officer,
as tragic as it was.

Another individual did and
he's rightfully serving

the rest of his life in jail.

That's Armento.
- A lot of people

don't realize that house
was his buddy's house.

So, that's important to know.

He wasn't randomly going
around the neighbor

trying to break into a home.

I mean, this was Kenny's house.

His buddy who had
died just recently

but Lillo didn't know it,
but he had been

there hundreds of times before

- Right.
- where Kenny supplied

him with narcotics
to get his fix.

He went there with
Armento that night

and when he went
there, they made

a sufficient amount
of noise where

it's startled, awaken
the neighbor who happened

to be a New York
City Police Officer.

Of course,
Lillo didn't know that.

Lillo didn't know Steve
Armento was carrying a gun.

That was proven in the trial.

And the police
officer fired first

and Armento returned fire and

all this was obviously
of great surprise

to Brancato who was
there to do what he'd

done a hundred times before.

So, there was
no legal liability.

I mean, it's easy
to lump it together

with another individual when
a police officer's shot.

That's our instinct as a
civilized society

and it's right in that
sense to have

a visceral reaction like that,

because when a
police officer dies,

it's tragic, if anyone dies,
it's tragedy.

- Right.
- But someone who

gave their life to
serve the community

as police officers often do,

it really creates
a righteous sense

of indignation and outrage.
- Sure.

- That's a good
visceral reaction,

but we also as
a civilized society

have to step back and look at

the true facts and when I did

in this case and
when the jury did

in this case, they came to
the only right conclusion,

which was Lillo Brancato
was not responsible

for this police officer's death.

- 2005 when the whole
incident happened, you

had uniqueness of
interviewing Lillo's family.

And you got to speak to his mom

and what was that
whole thing like?

- Well, I think that
the climate at the time

as a journalist,
I remember first of all,

when he got arrested,

- Mmh hmm.
- and it was a few months

before, it was in June
2005 when he was arrested

for an uncontrolled substance

- Mmh hmm.
- And I remember

that made a lot of
headlines because any time,

- What were you
doing it for at the time,

if you don't mind me asking.

- At the time, I remember
thinking I knew who he was.

He was certainly someone
who had a great background.

He was a New Yorker, you know.

He was from Yonkers.
- Right.

- And I just remember
hearing, oh, here's

this guy, he got
into drug problems.

He's probably another
celebrity with drug problems.

We've done many
interview like that

and then when I
found out what happened

in December 2005,
it was shocking,

but to be suddenly
charged with murder,

- Right.
- and also charged

with robbery was also
something very, very serious

and then it became not
just another celebrity

caught up in drugs.

It became something
very, very serious

and it was making
headlines everywhere.

- [Steve] Now, how
did it come to pass

that you got to, months
later, interview Lillo's mom

and how did that whole thing
transpire?

- I knew Mel Sacks and
Mel Sacks was the attorney

at the time.

I knew Mel very well.

I had interviewed
him many times.

I'd interview many of his
clients through they years.

He was probably, you know, if
not the best

or one of the best for sure
criminal defense attorneys

- Right.
- in the country,

not just in New York

and Mel and I had
a number of discussions

and he reached out to
me and said, "I would

"like to give
an exclusive to you

"with Lillo Brancato's
mother," and I thought, wow.

I'll take it.

It was interesting
as a journalist

because here I
was interviewing her

and I was looking
right across from her

and you could tell
that this was a woman

who was clearly heartbroken,
who was so devastated.

I thought she'd put a really
human face

on Lillo Brancato
for the public.

Our interview was shown
all over the world.

So many people
saw that interview

and the mother, I thought,
was very heartfelt.

Very compassionate
and you couldn't help

but feel heartbroken
for the mother.

- Right.
- I remember her saying

to me, "my son got a call, was
going off

"to a Christmas party and
then I didn't see him again."

And you could
just tell that this was

this mother who
just loved her son.

She adopted him
- Right.

- when he was a young boy.

Really cared for him

and knew he got
mixed up in drugs,

but was just shocked,
shellshocked by everything

that was happening.

Clearly, he has paid his dues.

I hope he uses this
time also to inspire

other children not
to take the wrong path.

Not to get mixed up in drugs.

And I also hope
that he uses the time

to also honor
law enforcement, too.

Because I think he can
have a powerful message

and inspire other
kids and he's also

a great actor.

I admired his acting back then

and I think he's,
you always want

the best for someone.

You want someone
to have another chance

and maybe there's
an Academy award

in his future, you never know.

- It was one day, Robert
De Niro said to me,

he said, "Lillo,
tomorrow I want you

"to dress like
you're doing to church.

"Wear a collared
shirt and I want you

"to dress nice."

He said, "we're gonna
do what's called

"a screen test."

Now, I didn't know what that was

but you know, we're
gonna do a screen test

and what we're gonna do
is we're gonna actually

put you on film because film
may make you look different.

It may make you look,
you know what I mean.

- Right.
- And I said, yeah.

No problem.

I remember I wore black slacks.

Button down, white button
down shirt, black shoes

and I didn't know what I
was gettin' myself into.

At this point in time, I
thought, you know, I'm C.

I'm C, so I'm just sittin'
there, I'm so nervous.

I'm just sittin' there.

My father's sittin' next to me.

And then, I feel
someone tap my shoulder

and I look and said,
"hey, how you doin', man."

And he said to me, he
said, "hey, how are ya."

He goes, "I'm Phil Barbarino."

He says, "I'm reading
for C also."

He goes, "it's me and you."

Whoo, when he told me
that I was like, oh wow.

I guess I'm not the only, I
guess I'm not the only guy

and I know he got to this point
because he

was good also.
- Right.

- There was something that
got him to this point.

- Right.
- Phil Barbarino was

the kid who shot Sonny
at the end of the movie.

- Right.
- Initially they were

gonna make him C and he was 21,

so the movie would have
been a little different.

It would have been him
at 21 and his friends

would have been
around that age also,

- Right.
- so they would have

been a little older.

Who, by the way,
still a very good friend

of mine to this day, Phil.

I remember, we did
the scene when Sonny

let me borrow his
car and when I gave

it back to him, he found
something under

the engine, under the
hood that he thought

I planted in his car
and nearly got physical

with me and wanted to know
where'd you go in my car

and I begged and pleaded,
Sonny, I'm sorry.

I didn't do anything, I'm
tellin' ya'.

I just went to pick up the girl.

That was the scene.

So, Phil read the scene first.

Had the doors closed.

All I can do is hear him.

Me and my father
were right outside

and all you hear is Chazz,
"where the fuck

"did you go in my car!"

And you hear slap, slap.

You can hear him
slapping this poor guy.

He's slapping the
crap out of him.

What did I sign up
for here, you know,

'cuz I'm thinking
after he's done, I

gotta go in there and
he's gonna beat me up

the same way.

So, Phil came out and
he's all disheveled.

His hair was messed up.

His shirt was ripped.

He had hand prints on his face.

So, I'm like, wow, boy,
they really worked you over.

They worked him over.

So, I'm like, nervous.

Now I'm nervous and
you're gonna beat me

on top of being nervous.

So, I go in there and I,
camera's roll

and we did the
scene and they didn't put

their hands on me once.

So, all weekend I
didn't hear anything.

I remember it
was a Sunday night.

This lady, Robin, called
me and said, "Lillo, Bob

"would like to see you
tomorrow."

I said okay and I
knew this was gonna

be the day.

My life was gonna change
in one way or another.

So, I went down
there with my father.

Robert De Niro, his office
was on the eighth floor.

We used to go to
the seventh floor.

The eighth floor,
you needed the key,

but he had like a balcony
where he could look down.

So now, he would come
out, he knew my father

at this point and he's such
a polite guy, Robert De Niro.

He used to call
my father, Mr. Brancato

and he said, "hey, how
you doin', Mr. Brancato."

They used to speak in Italian.

- Yeah.
- They were right around

the same age, also, you know.

So, he said hello to my father

and he said, "Lillo, come up."

So, I go upstairs
and you got Chazz

and you got De Niro
and De Niro's, he's

just lookin' at me
and he says, he

was making his face and
he says, "well, we liked

"very much what you did."

Now, that was ambiguous.

- Right.
- It could have been we

liked very much what
you did, but you know.

- Right.
- Or we like very much

what you did and
you got the part.

[exhales heavily]

Thank you, Bobby,
you know, thank you.

And to Chazz, thank you so much.

I said, "is it okay if
I go tell my father?"

And when I went to
tell my father, he

came outside with
me to the balcony.

Had his arm around me
and I told my father.

I said, "Pop," I said,
"I got the part."

And my father just looked
up, went like that.

And I said, "you mind if I use
your phone?

"I'd like to call my mother."

And Robert De Niro said,
"yeah, go ahead."

He said, "go use the
one in the bathroom.

"You'll have a little privacy."

So, I went and I
called my mother

and I heard my mother screaming.

My aunts were there, everybody,
they

were all going crazy,
he got the part.

Everybody's going
crazy, you know,

'cuz my mom, she told everybody.

My whole street,
everybody was outside.

Balloons and people whistling,
"Lillo, congratulations!"

I'm thinking to
myself, life can't

get any better than this.

It was like perfect, man.

Like living a dream.

- Biggie said it best,
more money, more problems.

- Right.
- You know what I'm saying.

- Right.
- You know, once you

start to get in that
money and the fame

and things are coming
at you real fast, you

gotta keep up.
- Right.

- And sometimes, trying to
keep up, you might fall.

We had access to everything.

We was on defjam, we
was rollin' with rush.

You know what I'm sayin'.

They gave us
everything we wanted.

You know what I'm sayin'.

To the models, the club life.

Even before I met Jay, you
know what I'm sayin', I

was always goin' to the clubs
and goin'

to joints like Mars and
underground clubs

where hip hop kids
weren't even allowed in,

so I was always
dibbling and dabbing

in certain crowds, but it's
always there

in New York City.

It's not hard to find.

- I met Lillo in Italy,
in Milan Italy, I think,

at a, I used to do a
little bit of print work

and he did some
print work as well

and so I met him back
stage at a fashion show

and then I met him
again in New York City

and we used to hang
around in the clubs

a little bit and you
know, he's a good dude.

I've never actually get crazy.

I mean, he was just
of the most amiable,

just very relaxed, authentic
people you wanna meet.

He was just of those
kinda guys that you

have an instant liking to him.

You can understand
why they canst him

in the film because he
was very, you know, he

was likable, he is likable.

I was completely taken
back because it

was unlike him, you know.

And when I hear more
details about the story,

then I started to understand
how someone like Lillo

could have found himself
in that situation

and sort of guilty by
osmosis or whatever it is,

but so yeah, I was surprised.

Celebrities, it hijacks
the human ego

and it gives people
a sense of hubris

where they just feel
that they're untouchable

and you know, this can't
happen to me.

- How you doin', my name's
Lillo, I'm an addict.

- [Group] Hey Lillo.

- Paulie, thank you for sharing.

You know, I know
today's topic is hope

and back before I ever
came into these rooms, I

didn't think was any hope, just
because of

the negative stigma
attached to drug addiction

and you don't want
to tell anyone.

You can't really go
anywhere for help

because everyone's gonna
look at you like you're

a piece of shit, a piece of
garbage.

And I didn't want to
really let anyone know

and as a result of that,
I just kept getting deeper

and deeper my addiction
to the point where I

was totally powerless.

There was nothing I could
do in my power to stop.

I mean, it felt like there
was a magnet

in my mouth pulling
the drugs and you know,

as Mike said, I went
away for some time also

and it's because of my
lack of self control

when it came to drugs.

And then when I got out
of prison, I started

coming to meetings,
something that I never

really did unless I was
forced to do because

of some case I going, whatever,

and when I first started
coming to meetings, I,

the word hope was
like the word that first

came to mind, because
everyone was so welcoming

and you know, giving
me their phone numbers

and now it's like you
have something behind you.

You have a support
system to fall back on

if you're ever in a
situation where you feel

like you wanna use
and I thank the people

in these rooms so much,

because if it wasn't and
weren't for these rooms, I

don't know where I'd be.

So, yeah, thank you.

I mean, this really
saved my life.

There's nothing worse than
wasted fucking talent.

You had this opportunity
of a lifetime

to become who you are right now.

To be, I would have done
anything to work

with Abel Ferrara.

I don't ever have to
work again after this.

That's the way I felt.

The way I saw it was, I
was still young, you know,

so I was like, God, I've
lost my right to party.

I lost my right to have
a good time, to be young,

because I fucked with that drug.

Like, that drug
was just, then you,

all bets are off after that.

You can't do anything anymore.

Now, you have to get sober

and you gotta stay sober
for the rest of your life.

You don't even have
to be an addict

to become an heroin addict.

You just have to
take heroin five times

and then you realize
you don't know

how to tie your shoes after
your fifth time without out it.

At least for me,
that's how it was.

I don't know if I was an addict

or if I, if it made
me an addict.

I don't even know,
but he, I knew

that it was the
beginning for him.

All I know is Abel Ferrara,
- Right.

- had a massive drug problem.

He was, he used to direct on
his hands and knees, Abel.

Hey, so I want you to do this.

He'd be petting
his hair and stuff

and I remember
even Lillo was like,

what the fuck is this.
- Right.

- How are we gonna
get anything done here.

By the sixth day
of shooting, I noticed

that Lillo was not the
same kid that started

the movie with us.

I remember we had one
scene in a horse

and carriage in
central park and we

were stealing shots
because, A, we

were shooting, winter time,
we shooting snow storms

and blizzards in winter time
for, we were

in a heat wave in New York.

It was that really big heat wave

and this fucking guy
was puking off

the side of the horse and
carriage

the whole time and
I'm like, what's

going on, are you sick?

What's happening?

And it took me a couple
minutes to realize,

it's like, this kid's doing
heroin.

He's doing drugs.

He's fucking high
as hell right now.

He's not withdrawing
'cuz he's not

a junkie yet.
- Right.

- He just got high.

He's new at taking
heroin 'cuz I was

already, I had been
already at a rehab

and stuff and sober
for a few years

and I was like, wow,
he was just starting,

so I thought for sure he
was getting high with Abel.

I was annoyed, I was
really mad at him.

I was, I think I was more mad at

the situation because
I knew how hard

it was for me and
I'm like, don't

go down this road.

You have all this
opportunity in front of you.

Why would you ever do this?

I was still pretty fresh, so,

and they're watching
Abel and it's like

this is what you wanna be?

This isn't like,
I'm a party animal.

I'm a Hollywood actor.

I've just become famous, I wanna

go out and part and
enjoy the high life.

This is, you must
really hate yourself.

Brad Renfro died
right out of Deuces Wild.

That was around the same
time period, I think,

that Lillo got in trouble,
so now, you

have these two really talented,

and Brad Renfro
was this gentle soul.

A mess, you know, so sad.

And Lillo and I
reconnected this year.

The reason why
I'm even here talking

to this camera,
because I asked him

if he would fill in
for me along with

a couple of other
friends of mine

who went through,
who had jail time

and came out on
the other end and

are trying to keep
their lives in

the straight and narrow
and trying to help people.

But that's when I
reached out to Lillo

and I said, will you go
talk at this conference.

So, my whole take
on all of this stuff

as much as it was
awful and there's

all this waste of
talent is that he's

turning it around,
so is it wasted

at this point?

He's taking this
experience and he's turning

it into something that
could help other people

and something that's gonna
work in his favor, I hope.

Put him on a different path.

I always tell,
I asked him to speak at

this thing, which was a,
it's a reentry program.

Kids coming out, people
coming out of jail, not kids.

People coming out of jail
and not having a chance.

They're scarred for life by
that, so what other options?

I mean, just go get
fucking high again, like I

can't even be a
part of society now

because I fucked up?

I see it a different way.

I see a lot of people
who had drug problems

as being highly
sensitive people.

People who forget about
even their problems,

it's how you carry your problems

and how you handle them
and people like us handle

them in this very self
destructive kind of way,

but you can turn that
into something magical.

I believe that,
I really believe that.

- You finished?

[guzzling]

[thuds]

- Thank you, T.

- Was that sugarless,
motherfucker?

The last fuckin' drink
you're ever gonna have.

[sobbing]

- For the sake of God, Marty.

[shouting]

- [Steve] There was
speculation and rumors

that James Gandolfini
actually took you

to the side on the
site of Sopranos

and gave you some words
of wisdom, some advice.

Can you elaborate
on what that was?

- Basically just told me that,
"you have

"something really
good going for yourself,

"being given the
opportunity to be

"in such TV shows and
films, it's a blessing."

And you know, "you
should be really careful

"in the decisions that you make

"and the life that you
live, to not squander this."

And you know, I guess
since back then I

hadn't reached that
moment of clarity, I

kind of brushed off what he
said and I shouldn't have.

But now that I can
look back in hindsight,

wow, that was some
pretty great advice

from a legend.

- I met Lillo when he was
shooting Renaissance Man

with, through Mark Wahlberg
who was a friend of mine.

I met with him and Randy,
who introduced me to him.

- [Steve] And how did
you guys become tight?

- Me and Lillo were
tight from the beginning.

We just were naturally
very, became friends.

A lot of similar interests
and we just

always find him an
interesting guy to talk to.

It's a very interesting
commentary,

especially about
acting and stuff.

It's interesting,
the first year he

was in prison,
he was just as messed up

as he was before and
I was really angry

at him and we had
a lot of conversations

where I really, really, we had

some tough conversations
where I,

'cuz as much as I'm
his friend, as much

as I want to be there
for him as a friend,

it was, I was very
angry because of

the loss of life.

I knew he didn't shoot the guy.

I knew he was in the wrong place

at the wrong time, but
he's still responsible

for being there.

You know, I always knew,
I was always afraid Lillo

was gonna hurt himself.

I really, I thought
he was gonna die.

I knew he was gonna
die if he didn't stop

and I kept telling him
and that I kept, I did

everything in my
power to convince him

that he's on a road
where he's going

to die, so I always
expected that.

I never expected him
to hurt somebody else.

That was the shocking thing

and of course,
when the truth came out, he

certainly didn't
hurt anyone else.

He was there,
but even being there

was upsetting for
me and it made me, I

was very disappointed in him.

I love the guy,
he's an old friend,

but you know,
someone loses their life.

A police officer.

Just, it's heart breaking

and I was really angry with him

from the first time.

- [Steve] What was the
reaction from friends

and family that knew
you were close with him,

that's after the
incident happened.

- Most of my friends called me

and said you gotta
get away from this guy.

He's gonna be nothing but
trouble for you.

Some people put a lot of
pressure on me

to get away from,
some of my family

and a lot of other people.

He really was a pariah.

But you know,
the way I look at it, he's

my friend and he
was my friend when he

was a movie star.

He's still gonna be
my friend when he's

in his worst point in his life.

That's what friends are for.

I wouldn't have left him.

As a friend, I would
never leave him.

- [Steve] Did you lose
friends because of him?

- I did lose some friends
because of him.

- [Steve] Did you lose family
members because of him?

- Yes.

- How did I meet Lillo?

Just with the Rat Pack
we used to run with

in the city.

Lillo was the hottest
young actor on the scene

right then and running
with our little A-listers,

here comes Lillo out of
nowhere in the Bronx Tale

and just took New York
by storm and

met him down at Scores.

[laughing]

Gentlemen's club
also and one day he

was like, hey, you wanna give me

a ride home?

I said, naw, man,
I've been drinking,

but here goes, "my car keys"

and he took the
car keys and he went

in a brand new 600 Mercedes.

Young 18 year old
kid and we bonded

right after that.

Lillo was two different people.

See, we have a
disease that tells us we

don't have a disease.

So when Lillo
was sober, Lillo was

the best person in the world.

When Lillo was
getting high, then Lillo

was a whole different
person and I

could tell you
stories with, when we'd

be at a hotel room
and have a bunch

of women and you're
partying and Lillo

will start doing drugs
and you could

just see the demon
just taking Lillo on.

Not where he's violent, but
when paranoia would set in.

Between you and I, bro,
I see how sick you are

and sick I was, we gotta
keep each other accountable.

You know?

[Lillo mumbles]

You know I love you, man.

- I love you, too.

I think also, if I
didn't go out that night,

my life wouldn't have
been saved, you know.

- Right, but you know,

we wouldn't have
cost two lives, you know.

And we gotta look at it where,

and you know we talk about this

all the time,

on the phone and doing
devotionals and stuff.

We know it's not all about us.

We ain't self centered
about it no more.

If we could take this all back

and bring back our victims,
we definitely will.

All we can do right now,
we apologize.

We're sorry and God is not
a God of second chance.

He's a God of another chance

'cuz we've been through
our second chances.

- Right.
- Just hope our family

and their family be
patient with us

and know that we're sick.

Lillo, when Lillo
did cocaine, he

would take a picture
off the wall,

look for a microphone,
look for a camera,

go under the bed, go everywhere,

just like you never seen before.

Just almost like he
was allergic to cocaine

and nobody on the party scene
had it worse than Lillo.

I could tell you this,

we had a photoshoot at
my house for charity

and Lillo,
during the day, sober,

great human being.

A lot of energy, a lot of
compassion.

A lot of empathy
toward the foundation

and toward the people.

People loved him and
then as the night

went on, he started drinking and

the cocaine would
come in, Lillo would

right away, go into
something else.

It was so bad that
I had a large house

right out in this area and I
came home,

maybe three days
after the function,

went into a bedroom downstairs.

We had a big place, 16 bedrooms.

I don't know why
I went down there.

I opened up the
closet to get something.

I don't know why
I was down there.

'Cuz I opened it up and
Lillo was still here.

- How many years sober are you?

- I can probably say that on

this past November 18th,
2017, celebrated 11 years.

- [Steve] How's that feel?

- It feels tremendous.

I mean, it's not
something I can say

that gets easier
every day, but it

gets more rewarding every day.

While I was away,
one of the best things

that I learned is how
to manage my emotions

and what I learned from
experience

was that no matter how
bad a situation gets,

either your ability
to deal with it

will get better
or the situation itself

will get better.

And then I came to a realization
that I don't need drugs.

That God has equipped
me with what's necessary

to overcome pretty much anything

and that is one
of the biggest tools

that I use to keep
sober until this day.

- Before I bet Lillo,

an actor by the
name of Phil Barbarino

had the part of C
and I was going

in for Mario and then
Jill Greenburg told us

unofficially that
it was, Phil was

gonna play C and I was
gonna play Crazy Mario

and I think she said,
I think Joey had

the part maybe even before us.

Joey from Goodfellas, so
Joey was gonna play Slick.

And she told us this
unofficially

that we were those characters.

- [Steve] Now, how did
you guys feel knowing

that this guy just
came out of nowhere.

- Well at first, we,
I was on Phil's side.

At first, so I
was like, this kid.

Don't worry, Phil, I said, he
doesn't have

a shot, but I
knew he had a shot.

- Right.
- And then when I saw

him act, I thought
he was fantastic.

I thought he was fantastic

and I believed that
he was from the Bronx

and he had that Bronx accent.

I don't know if Lillo put it on

or if he just, maybe it's a
Yonkers accent

that was close to the Bronx,

but he also spoke,
he also speaks Italian

and Spanish and stuff like that,

so he was able to do the
Bronx accent perfect.

I'm from the Bronx
-Right.

- So, I know a Bronx
accent when I hear it.

He had it.

After Bronx Tale
we actually did,

we worked again together.

We knew each
other's families, also,

from being on set,
so I knew his mom

and dad and he knew my
mom and dad, my brothers.

And Lillo has
amazing memory, too,

'cuz he saw me
years later and asked

my family by name,
which was impressive.

But after Bronx Tale,
we had done,

we had done a
show called Falcone

about, it was a spin
off of Danny Brasco

and it was James Russo.

Titus Welliver was in it.

It was a, Bobby Moresco,
I think, directed it.

Anyway, it was gonna
be a big series

and I was playing Nicky,
the kid.

He was playing one
of the wise guys.

And he was a regular in it.

I was gonna be, I think, a
recurring.

Something like that,
but he was a regular.

And then they killed him off

and I was surprised that
they killed him off.

I don't know the real story, you

can ask Lillo about it.

But I remember him coming, if we

had a six or seven
o'clock a.m. call time,

he'd come in wired
from the night before,

not sleeping, he had
the black under his eyes

and I knew he was out
from the night before.

He looked terrible and that's
when I knew

and then we met out
a couple of times.

We didn't go out
together, but I'd

go to a club or an
opening for something

or an event and he'd be there

and he was with these kids.

I forgot their names,
they're just weirdos.

I mean, this kid Rob
used to wear

these contact lenses
that were just so weird.

Terrible piece on his head.

They were just all around him.

They were obviously
enabling him.

His family were
builders in Yonkers.

They had a lot of money and they

did very, very well.

His father worked
like, I've never seen

anybody work
like his father, like a bull,

until he had the heart problem,

but his father was a great guy.

Worked really, really hard.

I remember Lillo
always looked great.

He always drove cool cars

and stuff like
that and then I saw him

in the club once, he had
a hole in his sweater.

He had mangled shoes on

and he asked me for $20
or something like that

and I said, you're asking me.

I should be asking you.

[high pitched shouting]

- Hugs and smiles during the
homecoming this afternoon.

Three and a half
hours after his release

from an upstate
prison this morning,

former actor Lillo
Brancato arrived in Yonkers

a free man.

- It's a very big day.

Thank you all for coming.

I just wanna spend some
time with my family.

- When you turn this corner,

what goes on in your mind.

- A lot of memories, you know.

I grew up here.

A lot of good memories

that all become the bad
memories.

A lot of guys that I knew

from this
neighborhood died, drugs.

Guys I was really,
really close to.

I remembering taking
care of my friend, Jimmy.

They used to call him Aruba.

He passed away in 2009

and he used to smoke crack

and I did also, but I wasn't,
you know,

doing it every day.

He told me, he said,
"Li, you know what.

"You keep messing
with that crack pipe,

"one day it's gonna get you."

I remember the
day that it got me.

It was in this very, very,

this very parking
space right here,

this parkin' spot.

I was walking into the store

to get cigarettes
and this guys parked

in this car and
was speaking loud,

that they wanted me to hear it.

They guy said,
the guys said, he goes,

"oh, Lillo's a good guy.

"He never forgot
where he came from."

So automatically, I'm curious.

I didn't, I've seen him around.

I knew who they were,
so I walked over

to the car and I remember
I looked in the car.

I said, hey guys, how you doin'.

The guy's lookin' at me,
said, "yeah, I'm alright."

And sitting down,
pulls out a crack pipe

and he looks at me.

He didn't raise it up so high

so we could see it from outside.

It was down here and he said,
he said, "you interested?"

and I knew what
that was gonna be.

Once I take that
first hit of crack, I

could be out for
two days, a week.

And I said, yeah,
yeah, I'm interested.

I got in the back
seat of the car.

I remember we took
a ride up this street

and we came around
and the crack pipe

was full of resin,
- Right.

- So I said to the guys,
I said, no, no, no.

He was ready to
put a rock in there.

And I said, no, no, no,
it's fine.

I'll just, he goes no, no, no.

He said, "if you're
gonna do it, you do

"it the right way."

I remember he put a $20
rock inside the pipe

and I remember when
I took that hit,

that was it.

That was it.

From that day in July of 2005

until the day I got arrested,
December 10th, 2005,

I did not miss one day.

I smoked crack every single day

and that crack pipe
got a real hold on me

to the point where I
used to be in my room,

look at the mirror and I
was a shadow of myself.

I was about 135 pounds.

I looked like a skeleton

and I would literally like,
so powerless,

and I used to look
in the mirror crying.

Please God, please help
me, help me please.

- [Steve] So when you
see this neighborhood,

does it bring back more bad

or more good memories?

- I would say more bad memories,

but now that I have reached

the moment of clarity,
I kinda deal

with it a little bit better

and just am so thankful that

that I did make it
out and that I am

safe and sound and I am a,

that I am in a
better place in life.

And thank God for that.

- Right.
- Because without Him,

none of that would
have been possible.

- [Steve] The iconic, the
working man is a sucker.

What are your thoughts on that?

- Well, my old thoughts,

I would probably have to say

that I believe
the exact opposite.

That the working
man is not a sucker.

My father's a Mason, a builder

and worked really, really hard

and I can tell you this.

He's far from a sucker.

- Well, my relationship
with Lillo

was like my relationship
with a lot

of young studs coming
up in New York.

Gettin' in the movie game and

the early '90s to
mid '90s when I

was running an big
gossip column in

the New York Daily News,
I was in contact

with all those guys,
all the young bucks,

and you know, I remember
the movie premier

specifically for Bronx Tale,

because it was a big to-do.

It was in Tribeca.

Bob De Niro directing.

I remember there was a big thing

with, a lot of people
couldn't get in

and you know, Lillo was about to

be crowned as this
new actor that

was gonna make some
noise for a long time.

And frankly, you left that
screening

or the premier saying
this kid fucking held

his own with Bob De Niro
and Chazz Palminteri,

heavyweights, he's
gonna be around forever.

Lillo didn't make me an enemy.

I never sought, I never
went after him.

'Cuz you gotta understand,
as an Italian guy,

there's a certain amount of
movies,

a certain amount of
movie us Italians see

that come on TV and
you put the remote

and you can throw
the remote away.

When you turn on Rocky or
Godfather

or Goodfellas or Raging Bull

or Bronx Tale, Casino even,
you're done

for the next two hours.

And when you're one of the stars

in those movies, you're
like royalty to us.

So, I would never
go out of my way

to write something
bad about Lillo,

but it was getting
increasingly harder not to

because there were
altercations and fights

and arguments
that warranted attention

in the columns.

There was a club
uptown called Rouge

that a lot of the
monsters stayed at

and big time guys.

Genovese guys, Gambino guys.

They all converged there.

These are fuckin' killers.

They don't take shit.

Polito would have
worked in there

with the same attitude like he

was running his own
show and those guys

wouldn't have it.

And again, he's treated
a certain way

because he's from a
certain movie

with a certain actor and
they put kid gloves on,

but there came a time
when he wasn't allowed

back in that club and
that's a big blow

to a kid like that.

I think he has a shot
to break in again

because he had some
talent and I'm sure he

still has some talent.

Up until recently,
everybody in this town

got a second chance.

I don't care if your
were Mel Gibson

and started a race
war on the PCH

or Woody Allen who married
his adopted daughter.

I mean, you get second
chances in this town,

in this business.

Right now, the climate in
Hollywood is,

anything you did bad
as a man, you're done.

What Lillo did didn't
have anything

of a sexual nature to
it, so if it's simply

a matter of breaking the law,

it's a tough spot, but
I think he certainly

has the ability to come back

if he wants to.

That's why that movie
resounded in all of us,

because I've lived a life
where sometimes you're

not using the talent that God
bestowed you

and when you're not using it,

things go bad in life and you

can really expect to find
yourself on your ass.

When you accept that
you have this talent

that God gave you,
you make your living

with it, it's truly the gift
that God

gave you, good things
are gonna happen.

I think Lillo has a gift
and got a gift from God.

He fucked his life up,

but I don't think
that gift left him

and I think there's
somebody out there

that's gonna put their hands out

and allow him back
into the scene.

- When you start working in film

and TV business
and make a little

bit if of money,
you know for me, I

lived at home with my parents.

Went to boarding school.

I was very, lived in a
sort of insulated bubble

and never really had
to worry too much

about money, never had to worry

about buying stuff,
so I never had

a lot of cash on me.

Never had a bank account
or anything like that.

When I started working
a lot in New York City,

it's not just having, being
recognizable

or being the new hot guy
or whatever they call it,

but it's all the sudden having,

being 18 or 19 and having
$150,000 cash

in your bank account.

[laughs]

- [Steve] Right, could
have been at that point,

that's like 10 million
at that age.

- Right and you're
working on jobs

and you're making
50 here, 75, 100

and it's just growing in your
bank account

and really, you know,
when you have

that kind of cash and never had

that kind of cash
before, I just didn't see

there was no limit
to what I could do.

So, that and sort of the access,

really it's the money
that creates the access

and so, the drugs, you know,

all that stuff becomes
very available

because you're
supplying the drugs

and the alcohol for
a lot of the friends.

So, they'll be finding
stuff for you

'cuz you're footing the bill,

- Right.
- And it's,

it's constant and never ending.

- So, I would be
remiss if I didn't ask

the question that's probably
the most important question

in this whole documentary.

Do you feel like you
got away with murder?

- Well, I've always
taken full responsibility

for how my addiction
and my, you know,

decision making made a
contribution

in the death of the heroic
police officer.

But with that being said,

I don't feel that I was
directly responsible

for the death, so
therefore, no, I don't think

I was, or got away with murder.

- What were your
initial thoughts

when you first heard about

the whole incident?

- Before we even
knew who it was,

it was another cop murder.

- Were you working
the night of or no?

- I was off that night actually.

- Okay.
- But a few weeks

or months prior, another
officer was killed.

I think it was Officer Dylan
Stewart.

So, yeah, immediately,
just the initial reports

that another officer killed.

I mean, any officer killed
struck us,

but two almost back to back,

and then when we
heard who it was,

someone kind of
privileged who probably

had a lot goin' for him,

that struck an even deeper nerve

in pretty much all of us.

- What was the,
if you can remember,

what was the
initial reaction around

the precinct when,
you know, around

the funeral time or
right after it happened?

- Everyone in
general was mad, livid.

Not just because of what
happened,

but again, because of who it was

and that he was, what we view,

as a privileged person.

How could this have happened?

How could he been involved

and then kind of also a feeling

of like, almost being
backstabbed

because, I think, in general,

a lot of us liked Lillo from
Bronx Tale.

- Right.
- So, we liked the movie.

We liked him.

I talked to a few today,
actually,

about this and --

- [Steve] What were their
thoughts?

- Like it was yesterday.

He was a scumbag.

He's a perp.

He's a piece of shit.

You know, he should
still be in jail.

He should have
gotten the death penalty.

So on and so forth.
- Right.

- I've yet to find anyone in
NYPD

who has anything
positive to say about it.

- Do you think he
deserves a second chance,

if not why?

[siren blaring]

- I don't and I don't
because, I do believe

in second chances, but for me,

this was too egregious
to deserve

a second chance

and from interviews
I saw with people

who used to work with him,
Chazz Palminteri, I think.

I think I've seen
a few interviews

with him back then,
he said that he

had heard he'd been
involved in drug activity

and so on and he
tried to steer him clear

and he told him this is
gonna lead to trouble.

So, it sounded like there
were probably people

around him who
tried to steer him clear

from that bad
element he was getting into

and he didn't listen.

This, things like this happen

when you're
involved in that activity

and to me, this is
something that's not worthy

of a second chance.

- Why did you think
it was important

to do this documentary from
a cop's side of things?

- I figured the public
just needs to know

how the cops feel.

In particular NYPD cops.

That the feeling hasn't changed.

I hate to use the word
hate, but I'm gonna use

the word hate.

Everyone that I
know at NYPD that

had mentioned Bracato's
name, they hate him.

Still consider him a scumbag.

Piece of shit, worthless.

And wouldn't see
any movie or a project

with him in it and I felt

it was just important
to make that known.

- Well, you know,

this is Saint Ann's Church.

This is where I
did my first communion

back in 1984.

It's where I did my
confirmation in 1990.

I don't live too far from here.

Maybe like two
minutes down the street.

And you know,
this church has a lot

of meaning to me.

I mean, it's like
part of my childhood.

It's part of who I am.

And you know,

and really, only
after I was incarcerated

did I really realize the
importance

of having God in
your life, you know,

because of the bad mistakes and

the choices that
I made in my life

and what they resulted in.

A lot of people left my side.

A lot of people that
were near and dear to me.

People that I loved.

They just weren't there for me.

Not everyone.

But one person
who never left my side

was God, He was always there

and I now know
because of what I went

through and the
changes in my life

of who I was and
then who I became

the day that I was released.

Funny how life works itself out

because, you know, 25
years later at least,

right next door to this church,

which is part of this church,

is where they have
parties and stuff,

is where I attend Narcotics
Anonymous meetings.

God does exist.

This is why I try
to go to church

as much as possible and
I thank God every day.

Every day of my life before
I do anything, I pray

for at least 10
minutes to thank Him

for giving me the
strength to become

the person that I am today.

You know, it's,
I owe it all to Him.

So, here I am.

[somber organ music]

- I feel as though
he got the right amount

of time just because
he did do a robbery.

There was a weapon involved

and knowing the laws and
actually having

an ex-boyfriend
who went to jail for

the same thing,
that's what he got.

He got 10 years and
did 85% of his time

and I feel as though
that was fair.

- It's so easy to get bored

and so then, the next
thing is, what's next.

I've got everything.

Like, what else is there?

And so, drugs and
alcohol and whatever

comes into the
picture inevitably,

and it almost always,
it's so hard

to navigate yourself through
that world.

- I think that Lillo
is a great artist

and wanted to keep
working and you know,

at the end of the day,

I think it does,
it does put a bit

of a shadow over
all the amazing work

that he has done.

- [Steve] Somebody's
watching this documentary

who didn't know Lillo
or don't know him

obviously personally
or don't know much

about him, what would you like

them to know about him that
maybe somebody

wouldn't know?

- That's he's a
different person.

He's dedicated to his, you know,

to his job and his career

and he's a good kid.

He's a really good kid.

He got great heart, you know.

What he's did,
whatever happened to him,

it was just, it was from
the drugs, nothing else.

[applauding]

- Thank you.
- Thank you, thank you.