Rat Race

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Rat Race

PG-13,

2001,

1h 52m,

Comedy/

Action

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Watchlist

Watchlist

45%

123 Reviews

Tomatometer

64%

250,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

45%

Tomatometer

123 Reviews

64%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

In an ensemble film about easy money, greed, manipulation and bad driving, a Las Vegas casino tycoon entertains his wealthiest high rollers -- a group that will bet on anything -- by pitting six ordinary people against each other in a wild dash for $2 million jammed into a locker hundreds of miles away. The tycoon and his wealthy friends monitor each racer's every move to keep track of their favorites. The only rule in this race is that there are no rules.

Critics Consensus

Rat Race moves from one sight gag to another, but only a handful of them are genuinely funny.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Dec 28, 2010

4/5

Vulgar and lowbrow, but very funny.

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Jane Crowther

BBC.com

Jan 8, 2002

4/5

A genuinely hilarious belly-acher.

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Rita Kempley

Washington Post

Jan 6, 2002

3.5/5

Fitfully amusing farce.

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Mar 19, 2026

3/5

while not the best example of the road race genre, it’s a guilty pleasure that does have some genuinely surprising bits of business.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Sep 1, 2025

1.5/4

Most of the episodes replace comic invention with shrill mimicry and random chaos.

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

Jan 23, 2021

2.5/4

...the film stands as a frequently gut-busting comedy that falls just short of greatness (or, at the very least, consistency).

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Han S

Mar 15, 2019

Watching it made me realize it was a spiritual remake to It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World but the film had me laughing throughout and has a big cast including comedic legend John Cleese who I loved in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

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Finn L

Jan 11, 2019

Great, silly, over the top cartoony humor

Dec 1, 2018

Hilarious ?? loved it.

Harry S

Sep 29, 2018

I hadn't seen this for 17 years. Its still as zany and crazy funny as when I saw it for the first time. Best scenes: The Brothers with the cow , hot air balloon and monster truck. Whoopi and Lanai in the speed rocket car. Amy Smart / Breckin the helicopter scene. Cuba and the Lucy ladies. Jon Lovitz and the Hitler car. Weak links: Rowan Atkinson. Very irritating in this and not funny. None of his scenes were humerous and the scene with the heart was revolting. All in all this madcap zany comedy is still great. Loved it.

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Poe M

Jul 21, 2018

A solid movie. Plot was entertaining, comedy was there, and it was pretty loaded in terms of the cast. I think the conclusion fell flat though and it had it's corny moments.

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Anakin S

Jun 29, 2018

Non sarà sicuramente il film più intelligente che io abbia mai visto, ma la storia divertente e l'umorismo generale mi hanno fatto apprezzare la pellicola più di quanto mi sarei aspettato. C'è un'alternanza contrastante tra scene esilaranti e convincenti e altre scene piuttosto ridicole, che rovinano parzialmente l'intrattenimento generale. Agli svariati personaggi viene dato il giusto tempo in scena, in modo da creare sequenze coerenti e mai noiose. Nel complesso non è certo un capolavoro, ma grazie ad uno strano tocco innovativo il film riesce a funzionare, portando una buona dose di buon umore ad una qualunque tipo di pubblico.

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Jerry Zucker

Director

Rowan Atkinson

Mr. Pollini

John Cleese

Donald Sinclair

Whoopi Goldberg

Vera Baker

Cuba Gooding Jr.

Owen Templeton

Seth Green

Duane Cody

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Synopsis

In an ensemble film about easy money, greed, manipulation and bad driving, a Las Vegas casino tycoon entertains his wealthiest high rollers -- a group that will bet on anything -- by pitting six ordinary people against each other in a wild dash for $2 million jammed into a locker hundreds of miles away. The tycoon and his wealthy friends monitor each racer's every move to keep track of their favorites. The only rule in this race is that there are no rules.

Director: Jerry Zucker
Producer: Sean Daniel, Janet Zucker, Jerry Zucker
Screenwriter: Andy Breckman
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Seven Arts Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Rat Race USA Inc., Alphaville Films
Rating: PG-13 (Language|Crude Humor|Partial Nudity|Sexual References)
Genre: Comedy, Action
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 17, 2001, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $56.6M
Runtime: 1h 52m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Surround, Dolby A, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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