"LADS"        
screenplay by
Lorenzo DeStefano

    This is the world of young Irish illegals during the "Celtic invasion" of Los Angeles in the mid-1980's, a highly urban, largely nocturnal place full of immigrants with white faces. Through DeStefano’s enduring friendships with the group of young Irish people whose lives inspired this project, the story has evolved into a dramatic ensemble piece dealing with fear, risk and the dreams of the six main characters for a better future.

    “LADS” chronicles the Tom Jones-like adventures of young EDDIE HANLEY. A native of Limerick, Eddie has ventured to America in 1985 to collect on the age-old promise of a better life. What he finds are tens of thousands like himself drifting between Boston, New York, Florida and, increasingly, Los Angeles. Fast evolving into Ellis Island West, L.A. is overwhelmed with newcomers from many nations, welcomes them all with less than open arms.

    Eddie and his three childhood friends, COLIN, NEILL and BRUISER, decide to hang tough in the city of lost angels. They work the fringes of this long-faded tinseltown, lead us on a dynamic ride through brutalizing demolition jobs, clever immigration scams and epic pub-crawling. They earn most of their money as cogs in the criminal machine of Limerick-born UNCLE TERRY LEASON, an affable gay mobster with a nasty habit of preying on his own. EDDIE wants out of this world. With cash hoarded from his jobs as a security guard and day laborer, he thinks he’s ready to break free of Uncle Terry and move out on his own. "THE LIMERICK CLUB" is his dream project. The latest entry in a crowded jungle/rave/house music scene, this is Eddie’s first venture in the risky business of unlicensed clubs. It could make or break him and the network of people who rely on him for financial help and inspiration.

    Like their male counterparts, MEAGAN CARTER and SIOBHAN DWYER are in active pursuit of anything different than what they know. College-educated, they work at less than capacity as nannies for overachieving Hollywood yuppies and cocktail waitresses at the current L.A. pub of choice, “The Cat & Fiddle” on Sunset Boulevard.

    The sharply drawn ensemble cast also includes LT. OSBORNE. an Irish-American police detective who’s tough on crime but conflicted about how to deal with these rowdy countrymen of his, and SAUL PINE, a hyperactive INS agent on a mission to rid his district of all illegal aliens.

    The potential of the “LADS” soundtrack to reach out to a wide audience could be particularly strong. In addition to Irish, English and contemporary American popular music of the period, New York-based and Irish bred BLACK 47 will be featured on the soundtrack and on-camera. Black 47 songwriter and founder, Larry Kirwan, has lent his support to the project and to the eight minute FILM PROMO put together by DeStefano. Featuring Black 47's "LIVIN IN AMERICA", it evokes on a modest scale the highly charged and vibrant feature we envision, one that powerfully illuminates previously unseen aspects of modern immigrant life.

    With the continuing global enthusiasm for solid Irish-themed films and the still-fierce controversy in the States over foreign immigration, the time seems right for a gritty, well-told tale like “LADS”. In the smoggy urban streetscape of Los Angeles, a bruised and battered American Dream plays itself out against a backdrop of danger, isolation and powerful unity.  

Lorenzo DeStefano

writer/director  

©/®2001                                                                                   Lorenzo DeStefano / Productions À-Propos