At 32 years old, Tommy Russo's dream of becoming a famous actor is fading fast, and he is splitting his time between gambling during the day and working nights as a bouncer at a Manhattan bar. When an opportunity comes along to join a smalltime horse-owning syndicate, Tommy jumps at the chance. Suddenly, he has a new dream - he could be a famous horse owner, in the winner's circle at Hollywood Park. The only problem is that he needs ten thousand dollars to join the syndicate. What begins with white lies and petty crime, quickly esculates to robbery and murder.