New Gangster Movie 'Diamond Ruff' has Connecticut Roots

A new gangster movie, which was shot in 2011 but is making its big-screen debut this week, should have a familiar look to many in the state.

While the bulk of the movie “Diamond Ruff” was filmed in Hartford, portions of the film (mostly interior and exterior shots) were shot in Cheshire, Manchester and Willimantic, according to the Hartford Courant.

The cast and crew is filled with local talent.

Diamond Ruff was written and produced by Joe Young of Bloomfield, who based the movie on his book of the same title, according to the Courant.

It is directed by Alec Asten of Mystic and features local actors Dean Yalanis of West Hartford as a Mafia boss and Durham native Michael Barra as a store clerk. The Courant reports other area actors include Hartford attorney Jeffrey Dressler in a key role early in the film, Hartford native Lenise Smith as a mother, Greg Nutcher as the cop-in-question, newsman Scot Haney in a nonspeaking role and Young himself in a few small roles.

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The movie stars Felicia “Snoop” Pearson from HBO’s The Wire and Fredro Starr of the rap trio Onyx.

According to the Courant, it tells the story of a Hartford boy, Diamond Ruff, whose parents were killed when he was a child and who grows up to be mastermind of the Hartford underworld.

The official storyline, from IMDb.com, reads:

Orphan, con artist, crime boss and millionaire, Diamond Ruff has seen it all. In prison for a murder he did not commit, he meets the Reverend Trek Woods, who overwhelms him with kindness, character and faith in God. Falling in love with April, a young woman with a terminal illness, Ruff is again challenged to grow and change. Will he be redeemed? There are no easy answers.

The movie made its big-screen debut Thursday (Jan. 8) morning and the red-carpet premiere is Thursday night and it will run for a week.

It will be shown at Parkade Cinemas in Manchester for a week starting with a 10 a.m. school-groups-and-public screenings, according to the Courant. It will then be shown in Springfield, Massachusetts on Jan. 10 and then in Atlanta on Jan. 15.

Diamond Ruff will be released on DVD and VOD on Feb. 10.

Read more about the making of the movie at the Hartford Courant here.