Steve Martin has made several very funny movies during his movie career. I've seen and enjoyed many of his movies. Some have been very silly at times, so they are some people that won’t like them. I will see just about anything he is in anymore and I'm glad that his movie career has picked up again in the last few years. I've been wanting to see The Pink Panther ever since I first read that Steve Martin had been cast in it. Thankfully my work schedule started to slow down some in time for me to see this movie.
The French soccer coach, Yves Gluant, was murdered on the soccer field in front of a crowd of thousands. He’d been wearing the Pink Panther diamond, a huge pink diamond, that was missing after he was murdered. The crime received a lot of press attention and Chief Inspector Dreyfus decided on a unique way of solving the crime. He would put an incompetent officer in charge of the case that would distract the press. While that was going on, Dreyfus would be conducting his own investigation and he’d take over once he solved the case so he would get the credit. Dreyfus had heard about an officer in a small town, Jacques Clouseau, that seemed perfect for his plan. Dreyfus got Clouseau to Paris, made him an inspector, and put him in charge of the case. Dreyfus assigned Gendarme Gilbert Ponton to work with Clouseau and report back on the progress of the investigation. Clouseau bumbled his way through the investigation and even managed to solve another case. Clouseau was focused on solving Gluant’s murder, though he did seem to get distracted by Xania, the famous singer that had been dating Gluant.
Most people probably have at least heard of the original Pink Panther movies staring Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau. I have seen at least some of those movies and may have seen all of them. It has just been so long since I last saw any of them that I can’t remember for sure now. I don’t remember anything specific about them though I do remember that I enjoyed the movies. I lot of people really liked those movies and may not be happy about a new moving being made. The new movie is actually a prequel to the original movies, showing how Clouseau became an Inspector. I really enjoyed the movie and do think it is worth seeing at least once. The well known Pink Panther theme that was written by Henry Mancini was used during the opening credits along with cute animations of the Pink Panther and Clouseau. I thought that sequence was well done and it did make me laugh a few times. If I remember correctly, the original movies had similar animated opening sequences.
The Pink Panther was meant to be a funny movie and I do think it succeeded at that. There were many things throughout the movie that made me laugh. Clouseau said or did most of the things that I thought were funny. He bumbled his way through the investigation and seemed to have no idea what was actually going on most of the time. He was clueless about many things, but I thought that worked for the character. He had an exaggerated accent and it was a bit difficult to understand him a few times. At one point, Clouseau got the idea to see someone to help him speak with an American accent. I thought the way he mangled a rather simple phrase was funny. Dreyfus and Ponton also did some things to add to the humor. Physical comedy was used in several scenes and usually involved Clouseau in some way. Several of the things done for humor were a bit silly. That didn’t bother me at all because I expected that before going to see the movie and was actually in the mood for a silly movie. The movie might be too silly for some people. In one scene the movie did resort to some gross humor.
The majority of The Pink Panther focused on Clouseau’s attempts to solve Gluant’s murder and find the missing diamond. The crime was shown early in the movie and the rest of it followed the investigation. There were several suspects who all had motives and Clouseau did mange to uncover clues. He even managed to close another well publicized case. During the investigation, someone else was murdered which did make the case more complicated than it seemed at first. The movie really wasn’t suspenseful even though I didn’t have any idea about who the killer was. I thought that the mystery part was interesting. It could have been a bit stronger though. People in the mood for a suspenseful movie with a strong mystery should find something else to watch. I did notice one thing very early in the movie that I thought was a goof that turned out not to be. An explanation was given late in the movie that cleared it up.
Xania and Gluant had been involved for a while before his murder. Clouseau thought it would be a good idea to question Xania, which is how he met her. Xania was a young, beautiful woman and Clouseau seemed to be taken with her immedately. The fact that she was wearing a somewhat revealing outfit at the time may have contributed to that. Clouseau and Xania met up again later in the movie and she seemed to be returning his feelings of attraction. They did end up in a sexual situation even though there wasn’t an actual sex scene in the movie. One sequence of events that I did think was funny revolved around Clouseau dropping his last Viagra. Clouseau and his secretary Nicole also shared an attraction. Clouseau did get the chance to share a kiss with one of the women. There wasn’t any nudity in the movie, though some skin was shown by a few characters. When Clouseau first talked to Xania, she had her shirt completly unbuttoned to show off her lacy bra. In another scene, one of the soccer players that Gluant had coached was shown wearing only a towel. That was it for any sort of nudity. A few of the things done for laughs were a bit suggestive but they shouldn’t offend anyone. I don’t remember there being any swearing used in the movie. It was rated PG, so there really wasn’t anything in it for parents to worry about. Younger children just may not be interested in the plot.
Jacques Clouseau was dedicated to his job and determined to solve whatever case he was assigned. He was oblivious of the fact that so many people thought he was a bumbling idiot. He did do a lot of silly things, but he was smarter than many gave him credit for. His accent caused him some trouble when his investigation took him to New York City. I loved Steve Martin in this movie and think he fit the part very well. The accent he used for Clouseau was a bit exaggerated but I thought it worked for the character. Martin didn’t try to play the character like Peter Sellers did in the original movies. Martin made the character his own in a way that I think worked well. I liked getting the chance to see Martin do some slapstick type of comedy again. Fans of the original movies that think Martin should have played the character just like Sellers will be disappointed. Martin was also involved in writing the screen play of the movie.
Chief Inspector Dreyfus had visions of his own greatness and thought he should be the one to solve the Gluant murder case. He didn’t want the press following his every move, so he came up with the idea to find a clueless officer to put in charge to distract the press from his true investigation. Dreyfus seemed to think he deserved all the attention and did have a high opinion of himself. He thought that Clouseau was an idiot that would get nowhere with the case. Dreyfus was furious when Clouseau actually made some progress and tried to sabotage the case. Kevin Kline was very good in the part. I would have liked it if he had more scenes. I have seen many of his movies and I tend to enjoy them.
Dreyfus assigned Gendarme Gilbert Ponton to work with Clouseau to report back on the progress of the case. Ponton looked like he was confused by some of the choices Clouseau made in the investigation. Jean Reno was very good in the part. I’ve mostly only seen him in a few more serious parts before this. He and Kevin Kline did worth together on the romantic comedy French Kiss. Nicole seemed to work for Dreyfus when Clouseau first arrived and then later it seemed like she was his secretary or assistant. She didn’t really understand his methods either, but she believed in him. Emily Mortimer was good in the part.
Xania was a well known singer that had been dating Gluant before his murder. She had been involved with one of the suspects as well and seemed to be hiding something from Clouseau. She was a rather flat character and really didn’t add much to the movie at all. I didn’t think that Beyonce was anything special in the part. She was all right though I do think that the part could have been handled better. Something seemed a bit off about her in her scenes. I’m glad her part wasn’t any bigger.
Gluant was only shown briefly in the beginning of the movie. Things about him were shared throughout the investigation. Jason Statham had very little to do in the part. He didn’t even have any lines. He has had much bigger parts in many other movies. Kristin Chenoweth had a small part as Cherie, Gluant’s secretary. She only had a few very short scenes, so she really didn’t have anything to do. Chenoweth is probably best known for some of her roles in Broadway musicals. She had a slightly larger part in Bewitched. Roger Rees had one scene as a man that Gluant owned some restaurants with. Rees has had small roles in other movies. He’s probably most known for playing Robin on Cheers. An actor that has been well known in the last few years had a small cameo during one sequence that was very entertaining.
Main Cast
Kristin Chenoweth - Cherie
Kevin Kline - Chief Inspector Dreyfus
Beyonce Knowles - Xania
Steve Martin - Inspector Jacques Clouseau
Emily Mortimer - Nicole
Roger Rees - Raymond Lebarge
Jean Reno - Gendarme Gilbert Ponton
Jason Statham - Yves Gluant
Shawn Levy - Director
I really enjoyed The Pink Panther and think it is worth seeing for people in the mood for a funny, somewhat silly movie. It probably is a bit too silly for some people. Fans of Steve Martin or Kevin Kline should give the movie a chance. The movie is different from the original Pink Panther movies, so people should keep that in mind.
I would give the movie three and a half stars if I could. Since I can’t, I’m rounding up to four stars.
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