Directed by:
Jerry ZuckerScreenplay:
Andy BreckmanCinematography:
Thomas E. AckermanComposer:
John PowellCast:
Breckin Meyer, Cuba Gooding Jr., Seth Green, Vince Vieluf, Whoopi Goldberg, Jon Lovitz, Kathy Najimy, Rowan Atkinson, John Cleese, Dave Thomas, Amy Smart (more)VOD (1)
Plots(1)
A very loose remake of the classic multi-star comedy It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963), this madcap comedy is directed by Jerry Zucker, one third of the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker comedy team and director of Ghost (1990). John Cleese stars as an eccentric casino owner who devises a contest pitting six teams against each other in a race to claim two million dollars from a locker in New Mexico. The competitors are Owen (Cuba Gooding Jr., who ends up driving a bus full of Lucille Ball imitators, a foreigner (Rowan Atkinson) who hitches a ride in an organ donor vehicle, and a recently reunited mother and daughter (Whoopi Goldberg and Lanei Chapman) who anger a "squirrel lady" (Kathy Bates) -- much to their regret. There are also two con artist brothers (Seth Green and Vince Vieluf), the upright Nick (Breckin Meyer), who gets a lift from cute but psychotic pilot Tracy (Amy Smart), and the eccentric Pear family, headed up by Jon Lovitz. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Reviews (4)
A very pleasant surprise. Some of the gags are lethal, in particular the Barbie museum and buy a squirrel. Rowan Atkinson is surprisingly bland, but given how much humour the film offers, it doesn't matter. I had a lot of fun, even though I don’t like comedies much.
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After a long time, a comedy that really made me laugh out loud. The "Barbie museum" and "veterans reunion" jokes are brilliant. I'm sure there are a few things the film could be faulted for, but the fun makes up for any potential shortcomings.
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A very crazy and quite effective comedy that only leads to a terrible conclusion. Jerry Zucker has humour in his blood, and here he’s helped in fulfilling his fantasy by a great cast whose stellar brilliance is unprecedented for a film of this type. Most of the attention is, of course, drawn to Atkinson, who performs another insane variation on Mr Bean, but the rest are also worth mentioning, led by the exuberant Whoopi Goldberg and the irresistible Lovitz, whose foray into a gathering of war veterans had me laughing hysterically. Yet, though the entertainment was very varied, the film flew by quite quickly, and some scenes will stay in my memory for a long time, the messed up ending just doesn't deserve more than an average rating from me.
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An average plot, a repertoire of jokes (perhaps just the heart and Hitler's car are worth mentioning), but still quite watchable, at least thanks to all the actors, who do a routine but good job. Only John Cleese disappointed me, because taking such a bland role is completely unnecessary for such a distinctive appearance. I'm sure you'll find tons of better comedies - but on the other hand, there are tons of worse ones. Rat Race is a nice thing to watch when you have some spare time.
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