Sinatra (1992)

A young singer (Philip Casnoff) from Hoboken, New Jersey rises from band vocalist with the Harry James and Tommy Dorsey orchestras to one of the most iconic entertainers of the 20th century. The life of Frank Sinatra from an adolescent in 1920s New Jersey to his comeback from retirement in the 1970s at Madison Square Garden crammed into four hours is an almost impossible task to do properly and it isn't. It's more like great highlights (and low points) of his life. Sinatra is such a fascinating figure that despite its flaws, the film can't help but be entertaining. But there are problems. One, the film is produced by one of Sinatra's daughters (Tina Sinatra) and so is kinder to Sinatra than a more objective film maker would be. Two, Sinatra was a great Star with a potent presence whether in a nightclub or on a movie screen. Philip Casnoff  who plays him is more than decent in the part but, and it's a big but, he lacks everything that made Sinatra a Star. Casnoff's "Sinatra" would never have made it and it doesn't help that he's lip syncing to a Sinatra impersonator rather than ol' blue eyes himself. The same problem with Marcia Gay Harden as Ava Gardner. Harden is a better actress than Gardner ever was but she's not a Star. Gardner was a Star. So there's no heat between Casnoff and Harden when playing Sinatra and Gardner, none of the sparks they apparently gave off in their professional as well as real life. Directed by James Steven Sadwith, who won an Emmy for his direction. With Olympia Dukakis as Sinatra's mother, Gina Gershon as Nancy Sinatra (the wife, not the daughter), Nina Siemaszko as Mia Farrow, Bob Gunton as Tommy Dorsey, David Raynr as Sammy Davis Jr., Joe Grifasi, Jeff Corey and Rod Steiger as mobster Sam Giancana.