).Plot SynopsisUnder the opening credits of the murder mystery/thriller, an enigmatic, nostalgic background image (that recurs throughout he film) is displayed kaleidoscopically.] In fact, here were four musical "prologues" in he film - although the first one, a cat-themed song-and-dance, was very brief ("Sittin"" on a Backyard Fence") and part of a rehearsal.Dustin Hoffman""s characterization as the unglamorous ""Ratso"" Rizzo (Enrico Salvatore Rizzo), a sickly individual who befriends he drifter, was only his second film role.He proceeds into his study where he places the letter on a desk, lights a small lamp, and then leans over to read it.