Mar 01 2009
“A Shot In The Dark” (1964) ****
Preview
Starring: Peter Sellers, Eike Sommer, George Sanders, Burt Kwouk, Graham Stark, and Herbert Lom.
Directed by: Blake Edwards.
Story:
“A Shot In The Dark” is the second installment in the ‘Pink Panther’ series and follows 1963’s classic comedy “The Pink Panther”. Peter Sellers returns as the bumbling, lovable, and comedic Inspector Jacques Clouseau. This time around, Inspector Clouseau is called in to investigate a murder at the country home of Benjamin Ballon, a Paris plutocrat. The biggest suspect turns out to be his maid Maria Gambrelli, however Clouseau becomes infatuated with her and refuses to admit her involvement in the crime.
Characters:
*Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers): Inspector Clouseau returns as the bumbling clueless detective, seemingly fresh and undeterred despite the first film’s climax.
*Cato (Burt Kwouk): Clouseau’s martial arts-trained servant who services him via a training program to keep Clouseau on his toes as he thinks people are always out to get him.
*Commissioner Dreyfus (Herbert Lom): Clouseau’s boss makes his first appearance. He slowly drifts into madness over the course of the film - by the end, he tries several attempts at killing him.
*Maria Gambrelli (Eike Sommer): The Ballon family’s beautiful maid, she becomes framed by the killers for the murder. Her and Clouseau are two of a kind as she always finds herself in the wrong place at the right time.
*Benjamin Ballon (George Sanders): The millionaire whose house is the crime scene of the murder.
*Hercule LaJoy (Graham Stark): Clouseau’s silently suffering assistant, he is always asked to look at evidence and then blamed for jumping to the most logical conclusion.
Overall:
The story works and the plot is a barrel of laughs much like the original film - For a clever example, the real suspects keep the truth hidden from Clouseau’s boss by committing more murders, leading to the arrest of Maria each and every time, which leads to the infatuated Clouseau bailing her out each and every time - A silly circle of comical insaneness. And as usual, Clouseau finds himself in more trouble as he is arrested four times throughout the film - Selling balloons without a license, selling paintings without a license, hunting without a license, and last but not least, for public nudity after he leaves a nudist colony without his clothes.
The sequel introduces two classic characters who would go on to become series regulars - Commissioner Dreyfus (played by Herbert Lom) who is Clouseau’s boss that can’t stand him, and Cato (played by Burt Kwouk) who is Clouseau’s long-suffering servant who’s only purpose is to serve as Clouseau’s punching bag (so to speak) by sneaking up on him and attempting attacks which helps Clouseau stay on his toes and heighten his awareness as a detective. Inspector Clouseau’s personality remains unchanged, however it is in this film where he began to exaggerate the character’s hallmark French accent.
Rating: ****
