Paradise Cove

Released after years in juvenile hall, The Kid (Jacob Nathaniel) begins asking questions about the murder of his father, Duke Mantee (Ben Gazzara), a small time gangster working for local Mafia boss, Ma Delaney (Karen Black). As he digs into the shadows of the past, he learns that Duke was hired to kill Johnny Blue Cloud, owner of the Cove’s Indian casino. Having a change of heart, and wanting to spare his old friend, Duke tells Blue Cloud of a list of names that Ma Delaney has compiled: names of prominent politicians she has been black-mailing over the years. Searching through Duke’s things, The Kid discovers the list. Tempted to sell it to the highest bidder, and run away with his girlfriend, Angel, he finds himself trapped in Paradise Cove: a deranged FBI agent hounds him to be a snitch and a manic street preacher calls him the biblical David, come to slay the Goliath of oppression. The Mafia wants him dead. As he struggles to survive, The Kid must take charge of his own fate. Will he go straight and testify against the Mob, or sell out to the gangsters and run? —Paracove.com