(Review originally written at 3 May 2008)
This is just one of those movies that, no matter how many times I've watched it, is an hilarious comedy that genuinely makes me laugh.
What I often love about Blake Edwards' comedies is his almost cartoon like approach of it. This is like a life action road runner/Wile E. Coyote movie. Along with "The Great Race" this is perhaps his most cartoon like comedy. The slapstick and timing of it in this movie is amazing and it of course also obviously work out due to the comical brilliance of Peter Sellers.
Out of all the Pink Panther movies this is the one with the most laughs and classic comical moments in it. Great moments such as the slow motion fight between Clouseau & Cato (it's the best Clouseau vs. Cato fights out of the whole series), in which Dreyfus also somehow gets involved, the Oktoberfest sequence, the questioning of the staff, Clouseau trying to enter the château, Clouseau disguised as a dentist and I'm sure I'm forgetting many more great sequences. It are all moments that just bound to make you laugh, even if you really don't want to.
For the comedy and the story itself is actually quite lame and predictable. You can often see things coming from miles away but this seriously doesn't make it any less funny to watch. Perhaps its even somehow part of the reason why it works out so incredibly hilarious. It's obvious that Blade Edwards and Peter Sellers both were lovers and inspired by the slapstick comedies of the '20's and early '30's. This movie features the same type of comical approach but not in an old fashioned way. The Clouseau character is still 'modern' and the approach original, even if it all has done somewhere else before.
Of course most credit goes to Peter Sellers. He was a brilliant comedian who never tried to be funny but simply just was funny. The way he handles all of the comedy within this movie is just brilliant. It are not just the antics but also the accent and other small subtle things that made him great and turned Chief Insp. Jacques Clouseau into an absolute classic comedy character. Even if you've never seen a Pink Panther movie you still know who Jacques Clouseau is.
But also the other actors deserve credit. Especially Herbert Lom, who just as Sellers doesn't try to be funny and instead plays a mean hateful character, who at the same time is of course totally hilarious. He is especially great in the scenes with Sellers, the two of them had some great interaction and chemistry together.
If you've never seen a Pink Panther movie and you have to see just one, be sure to watch this one. It's the absolute best and most hilarious one!
9/10
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