Wonderfully offbeat film!

Plot so thin, it passes unnoticed.

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

The story is good and certainly made me think about maybe why and by whom John and Bobby Kennedy as well as Marilyn Monroe were killed! But that's a side point. Not a bad film but the casting director needs to be shot! Don Cheadle, as Sammy Davis is probably the most convincing and I am sure it was no easy task to capture the highly talented Mr Davis Jr, especially the dancing. The racism and the obvious pain of Sammy really came through. Angus MacFadyen's Lawford is not too bad and is second to Don Cheadle's performance. From there the casting goes really off....Joe Mantegna captures something of Dean Martin's character but is not as handsome or charming enough. William L. Petersen, looks and sounds nothing like JFK and portrays him as a shallow, weak character.Then we come to the worst casting in the whole film. Ray Liotta looks not even close to Sinatra, he is much too tall, and even worse he fails to carry himself like him and his speaking voice is just awful, he sounds like a squeaky teenager most of the time. this would not be so bad if it wasn't for the fact that he is the main character in this film and at times you even forget that he is supposed to be Sinatra.So with a better cast this could have been a superb film but it is not.

The Ratpack is directed by Rob Cohen and stars Ray Liotta, Joe Mantegna, Angus McFadyen, Don Cheadle and William Peterson.The film focuses on Frank Sinatra and his gang of showbiz friends nicknamed The Ratpack. The film focuses on them during the time leading up to President Kennedy's election when they were all at the height of their fame from 1959 through to the early 1960's.The Ratpack stars Ray Liotta as Frank Sinatra,Joe Mantegna as Dean Martin, Don Cheadle as Sammy Davis Jr and Angus McFadyen as Peter Lawford.It mainly looks at the relationship between the group and their involvement in the presidential campaign of Senator John F.Kennedy(William Peterson).Mantegna, Cheadle and McFadyen give the best performances as Dean, Sammy and Peter they captures their personality perfectly and all bear quite a strong resemblance to the men they are playing .William and Ray are sadly miscast although you believe Ray as Frank more than William as Kennedy. It's a shame that more time wasn't devoted to the groups friendship and the films they made together.What's here though is an entertaining and well made film that is not quite as perfect as it could have been. Well worth a watch though for fans of Sinatra, Martin, Davis Jr and Lawford.

The Rat Pack chronicles the period from 1959 to 1963, when Frank and the Boys were king, baby! And before Las Vegas became Disneyland! I must say, 20 minutes into this movie, and it's very easy to get caught up in its tabloid sense of fun. Some of the performances stand out, while others lapse into caricature. Ray Liotta plays Frank Sinatra (a favorite crooner of mine) as a volatile, charismatic hot-head. And aside from the jarring fact that he looks NOTHING like Sinatra, it's an intense performance. Joe Mantegna is enigmatic as Dean Martin, at times inscrutable, at other times lapsing into sketch impression. Don Cheadle, as Sammy Davis Jr. walks the fine line much more nimbly than the others in the cast. His Sammy Davis is a three-dimensional character; full of pain, pathos and courage. Never lapsing into the Billy Crystal-variety, "you're beautiful, babe"-type of portrayal. Barbara Nivens as Marilyn Monroe is a bit overdone (a little bit drag-queenish), fitting in with the caricature-level of some of the other performances. William Peterson as JFK is somewhat better, but still wading in the shallow end of the performance pool. Angus MacFayden as Peter Lawford, is another standout. Like Cheadle, there is some nuance to his Peter Lawford. But the writing paints Lawford as a Sinatra punching bag/panty-waist; a comic relief, of sorts. One of the many saving graces of the film is that it wallows in its own sense of yellow journalism fun, never taking itself too seriously. I suppose if you wanted the facts, you could watch a Biography channel documentary (and they've done some great Rat Pack specials). This film, however, is made in the spirit of fun, glitz and sleaze, with a healthy dose of tribute thrown in (somewhat akin to, but not as silly as GREAT BALLS OF FIRE). PAT PACK shows you the reasons why this team so owned this unique period of history (on the cusp between the dull '50s and the swinging '60s). In the talent phase of the movie, Cheadle is (again) simply amazing; bringing Davis' multi-level abilities to vivid life. Throughout the film, though, it is Ray Liotta as Frank who holds the group together through sheer force of his (considerable) will. In one of the final scenes, depicting a furious Frank lashing out at Lawford for a post-election snub by Peter's new brother-in-law JFK, you see the full wrath of Sinatra (and it ain't pretty!). Afterward, you can almost feel the cold chill of Peter's subsequent banishment from the warm, crazy heat of the RAT PACK. Despite its manic energy, the movie (accurately or not; at this point, who cares?) invites you into the fold, and like Peter, you hate to leave.

I loved this movie with a passion. I think that the writers and actors came together to truly bring the legend of the pack to life again. The events followed history to a tee, and there was little beefing up of plot. I would like to know where I can get a copy of the soundtrack for this movie. If anyone knows, I would love to hear from you!! Thanks guys.. and keep watching all those great movies!!!