Cheap A Shot in the Dark (Widescreen Edition) (Video) (Peter Sellers, Elke Sommer) (Blake Edwards) Price

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Customer Reviews of A Shot in the Dark (Widescreen Edition)

Inspector Clouseau Benchmark
This is by far the wittiest and amusingly the funniest of all the Inspector Clouseau and Pink Panther films. The last time we saw Inspector Clouseau he was on his way to jail as the convicted notorious "The Phantom" jewel thief at the close of THE PINK PANTHER. Happily he is out and reinstated. Besides the perseverance of Peter Sellers as Clouseau this films introduces the regular members of the series that thrived even after the loss of Sellers. Herbert Lom as Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus, Burt Kwouk as Kato, Andre Maranne as François and Graham Stark as Hercule Lajoy all acted as a counterpoint to Sellers' Clouseau which greatly bolstered and defined the various and curious qualities of the Inspector. It's interesting how Blake Edwards returned to the original format of THE PINK PANTHER for the rest of the series yet he retained these regular characters introduced here in A SHOT IN THE DARK. The other great contribution to the series is Henry Mancini's score once again present here and in all Pink Panther films directed by Blake Edwards. This is a great movie.

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A SHOT IN THE DARK
Blake Edward's halarious comedy A SHOT IN THE DARK saw the return of the bumbling french Inspector Clouseau, played by the brilliant Peter Sellers. Not so much a sequel to the story started in the first one as a character-based continue, this is the funniest film in the series, followed closely by THE PINK PANTHER STRIKES AGAIN. This one centres around a "who-dunnit" murder mystery, and Closeau is signed to the case. Also invloved in an increasingly-complex plot are Burt Kwouk as Kato and Herbet Lom, who would continue the (Blink, blink) character of Cheif Inspector Dreyfuss throughout the entire series. Watch out for the brilliantly sustained seduction sequence in Clouseau's apartment (complete with a "beumb" and Kato interruptus), the wonderfully ridiculous watch synchronising sequence with Sellers and Graham Stark, and of course, the wit and comedic brilliance of the drawing room finale where Clouseau attempts to flush out the killer only to completely lose the plot when he finds out they all did it. Not only the best in the Pink Panther series, but also one of the most laugh-out-loud funniest films ever made.

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"I Seem To Have Stabbed Myself With A Letter Opener."
This is one of the very rare films where the sequel is better than the original. This movie is absolutely a letter perfect comedy: suave yet silly; understated yet over the top; pompous yet reserved. You get the idea. A perfect film. I wouldn't change one thing about this movie, even if I could. Peter Sellers defines the bumbling Clouseau as an individual better here than in the original, and I think the supporting cast is stronger as well. Elke Sommer is perfect as the beautiful, naive murder suspect who Clouseau goes to any ends to defend, while George Sanders is wonderful as the great scoundrel millionaire, Benjamin Ballon. Introduced for the first time in the series are Bert Kwouk as Kato (later spelled 'Cato'), Graham Stark as Clouseau's (extremely) patient assistant, Hercule, and my favorite of all the Panther supporting characters, the great Herbert Lom as Inspector Dreyfus. Watching Lom go through the phases of psychosis in this film is one of the greatest experiences and delights a person can have as a movie viewer. (I particularly like his performance in the closing scene, and when reading the newspaper with trembling hands and twitching eye.)

The plot concerns Clouseau's infatuation with a wrongly accused murder suspect, and the chaos that develops from that unlikely situation. The film is filled with a degree of nuance seldom seen in a comedy, and is probably the best crafted of all the Panther films (although I have to admit that the way over the top "Pink Panther Strikes Again" is my personal favorite.) The physical comedy that Sellers could make totally natural (watch the "spinning globe" scene for an excellent example) is still unrivalled, and the nuanced interplay with other cast members is better than in any other comedy that I can think of (to see what I mean watch the "curved pool cue" scene and the interaction of both Monsieur Ballon and the butler.)

I highly recommend this film. The DVD print is good, though there are few extras (the original trailer is very amusing and a tad on the weird side.) It is slapstick, but it is very refined slapstick done by the master, Peter Sellers. If only they still made movies like this today. I give it five stars only because Amazon won't allow more!