Long pauses between individual instalments are often bad news for a film series. But there are always exceptions, and there are sequels that feel very fresh after time has allowed wells of creative energy to be refilled. One such example can be found in the Pink Panther series. Its third instalment (fourth, if we count Inspector Clouseau, the obscure 1968 film starring Alan Arkin) brought its crucial talents together more than a decade after A Shot in the Dark. The result was The Return of the Pink Panther, a 1975 comedy directed by Blake Edwards, an immensely successful film that rejuvenated the careers of its director and its main star, Peter Sellers.
The plot represents a direct sequel to the first film, the 1963 comedy The Pink Panther. It begins in the fictional country of Lugash, where a daring but highly capable burglar steals the Pink Panther, a priceless diamond and national treasure, from the museum. Meanwhile, the inept French police inspector Jacques Clouseau (played by Sellers) has been demoted to a uniformed street policeman by his long-suffering superior, Chief Inspector Dreyfus (played by Herbert Lom). He is, however, forced to reinstate him after the Lugash government, convinced that Clouseau played a crucial role in recovering the stolen jewel years ago, demands that the French authorities send him to Lugash to assist the investigation. Clouseau, after seeing some very obvious clues, becomes convinced that the thief is the infamous “Phantom”, a.k.a. the retired cat burglar Sir Charles Lytton (played by Christopher Plummer), who lives a quiet life in the South of France with his glamorous wife, Lady Claudine Lytton (played by Catherine Schell). Lytton, however, has not stolen the diamond and, knowing that someone has framed him, travels to Lugash to set things straight. Clouseau thinks he can get evidence against him by following Lady Claudine while she is on holiday in Switzerland. As he investigates, his life is threatened by an unknown assassin.
A Shot in the Dark was a successful film, but Edwards and Sellers had a difficult relationship during its production and did not want to work together again. However, after a decade they buried the hatchet, and this allowed their creative talents to mix, resulting in another excellent comedy. Other ingredients for the formula were Richard Williams, the animator who provided inventive opening and end titles, and Henry Mancini, whose soundtrack proved he could adapt to 1970s trends. A modern audience would, on the other hand, have some trouble connecting with a film that starts very slowly and, at times, feels like two different films fused into one – the first is a light-hearted heist film with Lytton as the protagonist and some very obvious references to Casablanca; the second is a slapstick comedy with Clouseau as the protagonist. Whenever he appears on screen, the film becomes incredibly funny. Perhaps the best proof of Sellers’ talent is in the scenes that feature him in the company of Lady Lytton; he was so funny that Catherine Schell, despite all her professionalism, could not keep a straight face on set, so Edwards decided to use this as an element of the plot. Christopher Plummer, as a replacement for David Niven from the original film, is very good, but the more memorable performances are Herbert Lom as the increasingly psychotic Dreyfus and Burt Kwouk as Clouseau’s karate-practising manservant, Kato. The scenes featuring the latter are also a nod to the kung fu films that were popular at the time. While starting slowly, The Return of the Pink Panther picks up pace near the end, where the two separate plot threads finally connect in the scenes shot at the luxurious Gstaad Palace hotel. The result is a film that would ultimately entertain even an audience that has had plenty of opportunities to see quality comedy in recent decades.
RATING: 7/10 (++)
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