 |  | The Pink Panther (original) |  |
This is the original one that set the stage for the sequels. I was mildly disappointed after seeing this for the first time in many years. It's so different from the sequels. It's a great caper film, more subdued than what the series would later become. There are hi-jinx galore, some of it bordering on slapstick. DVD quality is great & there are bonus features; the main one being a trivia track that informs the viewer of many things that go on or went in the movie, a la what AMC used to do on cable.
November 21, 2007 | | Classic British/American comedy which spawned a franchise | |
One thing not mentioned by other reviewers is that this film, and Peter Sellers' character of Inspector Jacques Clouseau (sounds like someone else, right?), had been meant as a one-off. My understanding is that Sellers was contracted to play a featured part, but not steal the film! Nor was his character slated to develop into a whole film series, resurrecting the physical comedy of the silent masters and emulating the deadpan of the Monseur Hurlot films. Instead, Blake Edwards' hip 60s comedy exploded with Sellers' incarnation of Clouseau, and an even more wacky "Shot In The Dark" (co-written by the Exorcist's William Peter Blatty) was the immediate follow-up. In American TV, we know about "spin-off" series, and that's really what the Clouseau films are: a spin-off of this first classic. The Pink Panther is a must for fans of the swinging 60s comedies like its sequels, like "Casino Royale", "Under The Yum-Yum Tree", "The Graduate", the Flint movies, and others. Favourite scene? The bedroom scene, with David Niven (later of "Casino Royale") and Robert Wagner (of recent "Austin Powers" fame) hiding from the inept investigator. In fact, you can't watch my favourite Blake Edward movie, "Victor/Victoria", without seeing similar classic sight gags and situations from just that bedroom scene! Buy this movie!
July 28, 2007The great Blake Edwards inaugurated the farcical "Panther" series in 1964 with this zesty comedy caper starring David Niven as a covetous, Cary Grant-like jewel thief. But it was Peter Sellers's brilliant performance as clumsy Inspector Clouseau--the very opposite of Niven's refined, urbane criminal--that made this a madcap classic. Goofy and fun, with an indelible, Oscar-nominated score by Henry Mancini.
July 2, 2007I never got the DVD in the mail. You sent it to the wrong address and it was lost. Please send me another one at the correct address which is 8132 Hickory St, New Olreans, LA 70118.
June 8, 2007| | | Not Very Funny, But Worth Watching. | |
Everyone is familiar with "The Pink Panther" series, everyone knows about the bumbling Inspector Clouseau, but if you've never seen the original "Pink Panther" and the first in the series you may be surprised. First off, Peter Sellers (who plays Clouseau) isn't in the starring role. That's David Niven as Sir Charles. The other thing that might surprise you is that this first entry isn't very funny. It's got a couple chuckles here and there and only one REALLY funny scene, if you ask me. Anyway, the movie takes place in Rome where Princess Dala (Claudia Cardinale) arrives at a posh resort with her legendary Pink Panther diamond which has a an image of leaping panther within it. Once there, she meets Sir Charles who arranges to have her dog stolen but whose motives seem at once unclear. Meanwhile, there's Inspector Clouseau who's at the same posh resort with his wife Madame Clouseau (Capucine). Inspector Clouseau is there to look for the legendary jewel-thief The Phantom, whom he fears may attempt to steal the Pink Panther. As irony would have it, Sir Charles is having an affair with Clouseau's wife...In another turn of events; Sir Charles' nephew George (Robert Wagner) arrives and seems to attract the attention of both Princess Dala and Madame Clouseau. The film had two hilarious scenes. The first was when both George and Sir Charles are in Madame Clouseau's room (unbeknownst to George) and than Clouseau arrives and Madame is forced to hide everyone from, well, everyone. The other scene comes at the costume party where Inspector Clouseau is waiting for The Phantom to show up and a detective dressed as zebra begins to drink from a bowl on a table. Does that sound funny? Probably not, but it's one of the scenes that made me laugh the hardest. "The Pink Panther" is still a legendary film that was probably much funnier years ago. If anything, it proves that Peter Sellers was a genius (with really low self-esteem, if you've read about him) and Blake Edwards was a great director of comedies. David Niven is also terrific as Sir Charles. This is worth seeing, but don't expect to laugh a lot.
GRADE: B
May 21, 2007More reviews at Amazon.com ...
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