Crime drama to use city as film backdrop

By Dominic Konareski

Voice Writer

New England has more than its share of mafia and crime lore, stories and history. From New Haven’s Wooster Street to Little Italy in New York, the northeast is one of the richest areas of Italian-based mobster stories and stories of true crime. The Mafia genre for both TV and movies is something that is one of the hardest genres to crack, but also a genre that can make a career for anyone involved. The Godfather trilogies, James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano and Francis Ford Coppola with Martin Scorsese when it comes to directing. 

The month of September will feature an Italian Mafia movie being filmed in West Haven. The film, No Loose Ends, a 1990s-inspired crime proof of concept film. No Loose Ends is being directed and produced by Bobby Garrafa, with the film sporting several known mafia movie and TV show actors.  

Filming will take place on parts on the West Haven shoreline, along with areas in New Haven with the main filming focus in Connecticut being West Haven, with multiple filming locations. The West Haven Police Department will be featured in the film, along with West Haven Mayor Dorinda Borer participating as well. 

The project will feature two actors that were in The Sopranos, along with an actor who appeared in The Irishman and Law & Order. Featured actors include Ralph Bracco, John Fiore, Robert Funaro and Pauly Poplizio, with Bobby Garrafa himself also taking up a lead acting role.  

Bracco acted in a role as a Tony Pro Mobster in The Irishman, with Fiore bringing over 4 decades of acting experience with his notable role coming as “Gigi Cestone” in The Sopranos. Robert Funaro was one of the starring actors in The Sopranos, playing as “Eugene”, with the role of “Johnny” in The Irishman. Popolizio has acted in 14 productions since 2013, such as Making Bones (2023), and She Cries Murder (2026). 

Bobby Garrafa is directing, producing and acting in No Loose Ends. 

Garrafa, a Massachusetts native, got into both the arts of directing and producing after acting and working on different sets, and was inspired into acting from the likes of Jim Carrey and Leonardo DiCaprio. 

“I wanted to build something from the ground up and help shape the full vision–the story, tone, characters, and atmosphere.”. 

Garrafa emphasized that each character has his own history and individual weight on the story, with the plan to get into every character personally.

“I want the audience to get to know who these people are and why the consequences unfold.” The ultimate goal of the movie is to create a fresh, original story while “carrying the classic 1990s crime drama feel without pushing it,” said Garrafa. 

The No Loose Ends project came about from Garrafa’s love of the old-school crime drama atmosphere into a larger world with room to expand. Garrafa said casting was one of the most important parts of the process,

“I wanted actors who felt like they truly belonged in that world,” with him adding “I feel like we found exactly that,” he said. 

With filming scheduled to take place throughout various points in September, the production will bring a piece of that classic crime-film atmosphere to locations familiar to West Haven residents and residents of nearby towns. For local viewers, the movie showcases an opportunity to see recognizable parts of the city presented in a completely different way whilst in cinematic style. 

Filming in West Haven also highlights Connecticut as a backdrop to professional filming productions. 

For Garrafa and his star-studded cast, No Loose Ends represents much more than simply being another crime film. The proof of concept intended to establish the characters, tone and overall world of the project opens the door for a much larger story than regular crime movies have had. The experienced actors, local involvement and the classic crime genre will undoubtedly bring a notable movie to any box office.