The Rat Pack hits the disc

With Steven Soderburg’s new big-budget remake of the classic crime-comedy Ocean’s 11, Warner Brothers Home Entertainment has decided to dust off the original and two other Rat Pack Classics, Four for Texas and Robin and the Seven Hoods for new DVD release this November.

“Ocean’s 11” tells the tale of Eleven friends who know each other from World War II service plan to rob five of the biggest casinos in Las Vegas in one night. They develop a master plan but after the whole thing is over, something goes wrong..

The new DVD will contain an anamorphic widescreen transfer with Dolby Stereo Sound. Two audio commentaries will be included; the first with Frank Sinatra Jr. and Angie Dickenson, the second with remake director Steven Soderburg. An animated photo gallery will contain fifty pages of photos with five minutes of audio. Other features include an interactive map of Vegas with five vignettes, and the brief featurette “Headlining at the Sands”.

“Robin and the Seven Hoods” takes place in prohibition-era Chicago, where the corrupt sheriff and Guy Gisborne, a south-side racketeer, knock off the boss Big Jim. Everyone falls in line behind Guy except Robbo, who controls the north side. Although he’s outgunned, Robbo wants to keep his own territory. A pool-playing dude from Indiana and the director of a boys’ orphanage join forces with Robbo; and, when he gives some money to the orphanage, he becomes the toast of the town as a hood like Robin Hood. Meanwhile, Guy schemes to get rid of Robbo, and Big Jim’s heretofore unknown daughter Marian appears and goes from man to man trying to find an ally in her quest to run the whole show. Can Robbo hold things together?

Frank Sinatra plays a tough guy in “Four for Texas” whohooks up with fellow rat packer Dean Martin to open a casino in this western. A series of increasingly bizarre obstacles make the duo wonder if the casino was worth the effort.

Both “Four for Texas” and “Robin and the Seven Hoods” will be presented with new anamorphic widescreen transfers. Both will feature brief behind the scenes featurettes and “Robin” will also include a still gallery and an audio commentary by Frank Sinatra Jr..

November 20th is the day when The Rat Pack comes back in style. All three DVDs will be priced at $19.98.

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