It marked Diesel's feature film directing debut and takes a hard look at his own adolescence and upbringing in New York City.

Like his testosterone-tweaked buddies, Rick is a stray looking for a traditional family structure and wrestling unconsciously with his own father's absence.

Trying to assimilate into Heather's world, Rick takes heat from his perpetually adolescent cohorts whose ambitions are restricted to riding fast, toking slow, and ditching hard.

Though the chemistry between the couple is immediately charged, Rick's street chic and volatile aggression threaten to extinguish their relationship before it has ever begun.

[3] The film helped Diesel secure a role in Saving Private Ryan after director Steven Spielberg viewed it.