Review of "Rat Race" by

Its a throw-back to the screw-ball comedies of the 1930's with an all-star cast including John Cleese, Rowan Atkinson, Whoopi Goldberg, Cuba Gooding jr., Jon Lovitz, Kathy Najimy, Wayne Knight, Dave Thomas, and Seth Green. The story takes a dozen people who have never met and sends them on a sort of no-holds-barred scavenger race with a million dollar prize. John Cleese is an eccentric casino-owner who sets these people at each other's throats in order to give his filthy-rich clientele a new thrill. The oft-cited similarity to Stanley Kramer's "Its A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" is a bit overdone, but not beyond reason. This is a great summer escape movie that also makes for a great evening's rental. The laughs are non-stop with nary a clinker in the lot. Virtuoso performances by Rowan Atkinson, Jon Lovitz, and Cuba Gooding.

The humor can be a bit rough, as you'd expect from Director Jerry Zucker. The picture deserves its PG-13, but you won't be sorry you spent your time watching this movie. The DVD's extras include some fun deleted scenes, but the section where director Jerry Zucker and writer Andy Breckman call the actors is a waste of space.