The time is pre-Giuliani New York, when crack rules the city and hundreds are murdered every month. Michael Forsythe and his lads tumble through the streets, shaking down victims, drinking hard, and fighting block by bloody block. Soon Darkey White anoints Michael his rising star.
Cuban cop Hernandez has a score to settle, on behalf of a deadbeat dad, a 'traitor' who skipped free from Castro's control to set up a new life working illegally in Colorado. He settled in a ski resort popular with the Hollywood set, where the facade is maintained by the immigrant cleaners and labourers who work for below minimum wage.