Rat Race, the new comedy from Airplane and Ghost director Jerry Zucker, marks a return to a genre that was popular in the 60s – the big-event, ensemble chase comedy – for better or for worse. In this case, the big event is an challenge by casino tycoon Donald Sinclair (Monty Python’s John Cleese) to eight randomly-picked gamblers to find a way to get from Las Vegas to Silver City, New Mexico, where a bag of $2 million is sitting in a train station locker. The first one there wins it all. And the only rule is that there are no rules. But what the racers don’t know is that this is a game created by Sinclair to amuse his rich customers, who are betting on the outcome and tracking every move the racers make.

The ensemble is an impressive one, with such comic heavyweights as Whoopi Goldberg, Jon Lovitz, Wayne Knight, Rowan Atkinson, and the afore-mentioned Cleese, plus other well-known stars like Cuba Gooding Jr. and Seth Green (of Austin Powers fame). The problem is with the chase. While there are several really funny moments (including one with Kathy Bates in a great cameo), overall there are more misses than hits. Zucker keeps switching from one character to another in an effort to keep us interested, but sometimes he doesn’t switch soon enough. And while the characters are likeable, we don’t get to know them enough to really care about them. In short, Rat Race is entertaining, especially for those who like physical comedy, but it’s not worth racing to be first in line.