John Wayne Peel I just HAD to chime in on this movie. Besides having lived through this period of history, I read so many books and articles about the Kennedys in particular and much about film and show biz history as well as the sixties.But before I get into that, let's review the movie and its stars. Ray Liotta as Sinatra is so awful , I'm embarrassed for him, frankly. (No pun intended, but you have to admit it is a good one.) It made me wonder how this man got into the acting profession let alone this movie. He is basically, from my point of view, doing a redo of his character from "Goodfellas" and without the great direction and supporting cast of that film.Joe Mategna as Dino is very good even though he only bears a passing resemblance to Dean Martin, but captures much of his laid-back charm. I only wish he had more of the smiling Dino I saw so many hours on TV and in films. (Don't get me started on those awful Matt Helm movies. I still haven;t completely forgiven this late crooner for those.) Don Cheadle is a standout as Sammy Davis Jr. and I would wear out my typing fingers if I went on. I just could have done without that imaginary scene with the giant "N" word as he dances around the letters. Anyway, suffice it to say that Cheadle earned the award and accolades.Also amazing was the actor Angus Macfadyen as Peter Lawford who also did a great job in yet another biopic about Richard Burton and Liz Taylor. He is dead-on right here. Although I am not so sure that Lawford ws such a loser.As for William Petersen as JFK, here's where I have more than a few problems. The man CAN ACT. and he even does an OK job as our 34th President, but he follows in a succession of vague resembling actors with varying degrees of charisma and acting talent. Here is where the facts get in the way. Instead of going for the truth, the writer and filmmaker rely solely, it seems, on tabloid gossip and negative and unsubstantiated accounts in some revisionist books on the subject of his life. Kennedy had a very bad back from his early football days at Harvard and further aggravated by his part in the whole PT-109 adventure. The man wore a corset for it and also used the famed rocking chair in the White House so it is entirely unlikely at this point in his life that he had a lot of sexual conquests. But people want to believe the scurrilous fabrications that persist in film and literature.Getting back to the movie, the singing of the songs by people who should have let the original recordings stand on their own. They are (and I'm being polite here) damned awful. Nuff said there.So folks, do your homework and read as much as you can about the whole period. Just don't relegate it solely to the revisionist junk that's out there. You will thank me later.All in all, this film is slightly entertaining but an insult to all that were the actual participants in this story.I give it a generous 4 out of 10.

Ben Burgraff (cariart) 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!

Leofish The fascinating thing aboutThe Rat Pack film is that director Rob Cohen treats it almost like a Greek tragedy, with an impressive rise and a truly mournful downfall. That these characters are real people and larger-than-life in their swagger and impact on a nation only adds to this movie's effect. The casting is awe-inspiring, with Cheadle, Liotta, and Mantegna really becoming their parts, not just aping mannerisms and voices of the real people but catching the effect of their styles and personalities. Liotta's is a very difficult part, for the real Sinatra was a turbulent, conflicted man, capable of rage and powerful anger and yet love, loneliness and tenderness, and it's great compliment to Liotta to say that he nailed the part. However,the film is most effective in showing the tragedy and lost hope of the Kennedy Years, the flawed but beautiful "Camelot" myth. William Peterson is great as Jack, coming across as a devilish, womanizing politician who wants to conduct himelf as a Rat Packer yet finds himself constrained by his Presidency, which ultimately hurts Sinatra, in scenes so emotional that the viewer feels very sorry for the wounded crooner, wanting love and respect from his poweful friend and yet getting rejected for the way he (and Jack Kennedy)has lived his life. The final scene, set to the tune of "One for My Baby" is haunting both in its revelations, its sad reflection on its characters, and the horror in what it leaves unsaid. A lesser film would've shown the Rat Pack's reaction to the Kennedy assassination and ended there, but instead Cohen ends with a shot of Peter Lawford standing solemnly outside the Kennedy Family Home in Hyanis Port, looking out to the sea, as if waiting for something. Then comes the end of the song,and there is a brilliant shot of the needle coming off the record and the familiar dull thud, then silence. A perfect metaphor for November 22, 1963, and the true end of the Rat Pack.

unfound "The Rat Pack" was a fairly good film. There were some squabbles over the casting but there's only so far that you can go with a film. Ray Liotta does a fairly good portrayal of Old Blue Eyes by playing him off as a cocky, brash, fast living human being with a penchant for being connected. The always good Don Cheadle portrays Sammy Davis as a human torn apart by bigotry during those days. Angus MacFayden, despite the fact that he looks like Peter Lawford when he was a teenager, is good at playing Lawford as an adulterer and reluctant political confidant to Sinatra. Joey Bishop lookalike Bobby Slayton has all the mannerisms and the look of Bishop himself. Joe Mantegna once again delivers portraying Dino as the real confidant to Sinatra who kept the middle ground between Sinatra and everything else. The film focuses on the Rat Pack's glory days as well as it's tie to the Kennedy family. It's very good despite how short the film is. The only problem I have is that it stops abruptly and doesn't continue on about the Rat Pack, how it's days ended and what not. Other than that, The Rat Pack is a satisfying rental for any fan.