Frank, Dean und Sammy tun es

Most of us of a certain age will remember the events in this movie as newspaper headlines. I have no idea how much fictionalisation there is but the film does capture the mood of the time and the sleazy blend of Las Vegas show business, gangsterism and American politics. There is no attempt to get look alikes for the main roles but their personalities are suggested rather cleverly. In the smaller roles I thought Dan O'Herlihy was a standout as the evil, conniving Joe Kennedy. The musical numbers are well integrated into the plot and nicely done.

The Rat Pack Review

As my wife is a Sinatra fan, it was only a matter of time before I ended up seeing this. And since it was somehow only $4 at Wal-Mart, you can bet that matter of time just happened. Ray Liotta, Don Cheadle, and Joe Mantenga star in this film, portraying their counterparts (Sinatra, Davis Jr., & Dean Martin respectively) rather convincingly.

This film is not so much about the Rat Pack as it is about Sinatra and the help he offered to get John F. Kennedy elected as President of the United States. JFK is portrayed by none other than Gil Grissom from CSI. At any rate, the rest of the Rat Pack is only lightly touched upon as Sinatra is followed around almost constantly. But then, what do you expect? He practically owned the other guys.

Here's the breakdown:

The Good:

--The acting is superb, Liotta is a mind-blowingly convincing Sinatra.

--Good story and nice focus on character development.

--Based on actual events, always makes for a good movie. Complex story.

--For a lot of people, this music will be right up their alley. Not my taste, personally, but not bad stuff. If you like it, you'll love it here.

--Generally good cinematography and atmosphere.

Didn't Hurt It, Didn't Help:

--The music appears to be lip-synched from actual performers rather than our actors. I haven't yet double-checked whether or not this is so, but it didn't hurt anything.

--Only mild violence, mostly culled from Sinatra's attitude.

--A lot of focus on Sinatra helping get Kennedy elected and the consequences of his doing so in his life and in relation to the attack against Mobsters.

--The opening seemed a little needless, and the conclusion never again revisited it.

The Bad:

--A bit too much character development just on Sinatra, quite a bit on his relationships that get him involved with the Kennedy's, and some focus on Sammy Davis, Jr. Everyone else, however, is hardly touched upon. Might as well have been titled the "Sinatra Pack." And yes, I am aware of how big a role he played in everything, I just think we could've gotten to know the other guys a bit more.

--With all the women out there that can so perfectly reflect Marilyn Monroe, why did they settle with the woman they picked here?? She's about the only real disappointment.

The Ugly:

--One would be quite surprised at the level of racism Sammy Davis Jr. had to endure for his position.

Memorable Scene:

--Whenever you see those less-than-respectable bits of JFK. No wonder he was on his way to impeachment before his assassination.

--When Nixon was referred to as "Hip."

Fun Fact:

--Don Cheadle stars in this as Sammy Davis Jr. who eventually stars in "Ocean's 11." Don Cheadle also had a role in the remake of "Ocean's 11."

Acting: 9/10 Story: 8/10 Atmosphere: 8/10 Cinematography: 8/10 Character Development: 8/10 Special Effects/Make-up: 0/10 Nudity/Sexuality: 3/10 Violence: 3/10 Gore: 0/10 Dialog: 9/10 Music: 9/10 (The Rat Pack's tunes, mostly) Direction: 9/10

Cheesiness: 1/10 Crappiness: 0/10

Overall: 8/10

Overall, this is a pretty solid film, but not without it's missteps. It has a pretty wide-ranging story set in the late 50's and 1960 mostly. A decent drama for the rest of us, helped along by its factual history, and a piece any Sinatra fan will likely love to have. Recommended.

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There is a lot to like about "The Rat Pack", the HBO production of Frank Sinatra and his legendary cohorts during the wildly glamorous 'Camelot' days of the Kennedy administration. They were gifted, rich, and idolized, could have anything or anyone they wanted, ruled Las Vegas as demigods, and for a brief moment in history, they shared, with John Kennedy, a pinnacle that no one, before or since, has achieved.

Each performer had a clearly defined role in the 'Pack', in 1960; Joey Bishop, 42, was the 'Jester', heralding arrivals, and content with the reflected glory of the 'Pack'; Peter Lawford, 37, was the 'Ambassador', official 'go-between' for Sinatra and the Kennedys (who would swallow his pride, and accept often being little more than a glorified 'pimp' for his more successful friends); Sammy Davis Jr., 35, was the 'Pet', tiny and extraordinarily talented as a singer and dancer, yet still treated as a 'less than equal' novelty act, even by the enlightened Sinatra; and Dean Martin, 43, was the 'Crown Prince', tall, handsome and charismatic, possessing all the qualities Sinatra lacked, and completely hiding a deep-set aloofness by a quick wit and 'way cool' persona. Sinatra, 45, was, of course, the 'King', undisputed leader of the 'Pack'. Short, skinny, and balding, the middle-class kid from Hoboken, N.J. had never truly grown up; while his voice would revolutionize the music industry and make him legendary, his personal life was a continuous elevator ride of highs and lows, with an Oscar, two broken marriages, three children, and a never-ending supply of "booze and broads" masking a child-like need to be liked and accepted.

The success of the actors in 'capturing' these legends is a mixed bag. Bobby Slayton, as Bishop, is forgettable in little more than a cameo; Angus MacFadyen's Lawford is, however, very good, capturing the spirit of a man who had 'sold his soul' to both Sinatra and the Kennedys; best of all is Don Cheadle, as Sammy Davis, acutely aware of the patronizing attitude Sinatra demonstrates towards him, but too happy having his friendship to speak up.

As for Joe Mantegna and Ray Liotta...Besides sharing wavy black hair, a Roman nose, and oval head, the short, stocky Mantegna barely resembles 'Dino', but he captures the Martin 'attitude' and double life extremely well; Liotta looks even less like Sinatra, but the blocky, very powerful GOODFELLAS star is brilliant as the mercurial star, far closer in spirit to the man than Philip Casnoff, in the family 'approved' TV-movie, "Sinatra" (1992).

With flashy supporting roles by William L. Petersen, as a shallow, whoring JFK, and Deborah Unger as earthy, alcoholic pragmatist Ava Gardner, "The Rat Pack" is a 'Who's Who' of the movers and shakers of the times, easily incorporating the Mafia, Ku Klux Klan, and Marilyn Monroe, as well as the transitional 'feel' of the era, as the stodgy conservatism of the fifties was replaced by JFK's dynamic yet ultimately superficial new optimism...until November, 1963, when 'Camelot' would collapse, replaced by a far less idealistic new order, where Sinatra's 'Rat Pack' would be a passé joke.

As Montegna's 'Dean Martin' would remark, "Enjoy the ride while it lasts, because nothing lasts forever."

"The Rat Pack" is a GREAT ride!

I enjoyed watching it quite a bit. Best actor there-Don Cheadle, was prob the most miscast though it was fun to watch him play Sammy. Deano was done alright by Montengna, while Lawford was shown to be a real wuss. Joey Bishop well he was just a cameo so who can say? Now Sinatra-Liotta has the attitude and manner down, but sure doesn't look like him. He's also over 6 foot while Ol' Blue Eyes was 5-9 maybe and skinny. But as Sinatra, Liotta wasn't a bad choice.

You get a crash course in familiar faces/big names here: Sam Giancana, JFK, Joseph Kennedy, RFK, Marilyn, Joltin Joe, Johnny Rosselli, Ava Gardner, hmmmmm I am sure I'm leaving someone out but you get the idea. All this and some Hoover eavesdropping too! You even have allusions to J. Edgar and that infamous blackmail pic of him and Clyde Tolson, Mickey Cohen, a ludicrous scene of Sinatra trying to phone Nixon to concede the election(!) and of course, Dan O'Herlihy(from Robocop etc etc) running everything too. And yes the Klan shows. O and don't forget May Britt...Oh the buying of West Virgina primary votes and the Chicago votes by the mob too. That we all heard of as well.

So was this any good?! Sure. Did I buy into it? Well...mostly. I got a kick outta Sinatra's tantrum when he found out that BING of all people was getting to host JFK instead of himself in California, and he starts to bash apart the half-finished additions to his Palm Springs mansion. Quite funny.

The woman playing Ava was beautiful though Marilyn wasn't so convincing. Judith Campbell/Exner well that came off okay. Momo was shown w/ Rosselli tossing around the idea of 'whacking Frank', which hadda be a twist on things if ever there was one. This I did actually buy.

Overall you will enjoy it though it did need some more of JFK's time in office, the CSI guy as JFK was a hoot. I liked their sailing scene together him and Sinatra.

You won't go wrong with this if you just sit back and take it with a grain of salt.

*** outta ****

I missed this on HBO and was delighted to pick it up recently. With the possible exception of Ray Liotta, the physical casting was truly well done. Liotta plays Sinatra reminiscing towards the end of his life about his golden years, his old friends in the 'Rat Pack' and his aspirations to be loved universally by helping John F Kennedy into power.

What made this stand out for me is not only the wonderful recreations of the legendary on stage horseplay the Rat Pack indulged in, but also some of the private agonies, particularly those of Sammy Davies Junior, in another superb performance by Don Cheadle, who is given his own solo spectacular scene in a face off against the Ku Klux Klan.

The Kennedy and Lawford association is also covered in some depth, and the Sinatra character is well rounded - we feel for him much of the time, but his personality is far from sugar coated. As a film character, he is compelling, although Ray Liotta makes little attempt to emulate Sinatra in voice or mannerisms.

Joe Mantegna IS Dean Martin physically, and this helps the authenticity of the piece, but he is sadly underwritten, Gone is the hell raiser and womaniser of legend. In his place is a laconic 'Fonz', smooth with the ladies, but sleeping alone.

William Petersen nails Kennedy in spite of physical differences, and the scenes with him and Sinatra seem consistent with their characters. Angus McFadyen plays a nervous Lawford, caught between using his Kennedy connections to become part of the Rat Pack and keeping Frank out of the White House. Ava Gardner also makes a brief appearance in the form of Debra Kara Unger. Aside from the unusual casting of it's lead (Aidan Quinn would have been a much more realistic choice), my only real gripe is how suddenly it all ends, while you wait for a proper conclusion. This is a wonderful glimpse into the intertwined lives of some of the highest profile people on the planet.