Little Italy

Little Italy is a 2018 Canadian-American romantic comedy film directed by Donald Petrie, with a screenplay by Steve Galluccio and Vinay Virmani from a story by Virmani. The film stars Emma Roberts, Hayden Christensen, Alyssa Milano, Adam Ferrara, Gary Basaraba, Linda Kash, Andrew Phung, Cristina Rosato, Danny Aiello, Andrea Martin and Jane Seymour. The film features one of Aiello's final film appearances before his death in 2019. Plot Nikki and Leo both grow up in Toronto's Little Italy neighborhood, where their families are running a pizza business together. After winning a pizza competition together, a feud developed between Nikki's father Sal and Leo's father Vince which caused them to dissolve their partnership and start separate restaurants next door to each other. The pair have never told anyone what started the feud between them. Nikki eventually leaves her family to go to London to become a chef, while Leo remains in Toronto to work at his father's restaurant. After several years, Nikki is given the option to compete for the chance to run her instructor Corinne's new restaurant. Corinne gives Nikki two weeks off to prepare her menu and return home to Toronto. Leo still works at his father's restaurant but has moved out of his parents' house and lives with his friend Luigi above Luigi's bar, where Leo also bartends. The feud between Vince and Sal has escalated over the years, with Vince having Sal investigated for tax evasion and Sal attempting to have Vince's Indian employee Jogi deported. Upon arriving home in Toronto, Nikki meets Leo at the bar and they drunkenly play soccer in a midst of a thunderstorm. Nikki passes out and spends the night at Leo's, while he sleeps on the couch. The next day, she is welcomed by her family on her arrival. Vince and Jogi are arrested after Sal and his Indian employee Jessie replace the oregano at Vince's restaurant with marijuana, but are soon released. Jessie and Jogi share a mutual unspoken attraction, despite working for the rival restaurants. Additionally, Leo's grandfather Carlo and Nikki's grandmother Franca have been dating in secret as they only outwardly participate in the feud. Nikki's mother and friends try to set her up with several single men from the neighborhood, but she is uninterested. She grows closer to Leo as they cook together at his apartment, and is impressed with his creativity and cooking skills.