Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau: “But these aren’t normal times. Cato. Someone just tried to kill me.”
Cato Fong: “That’s normal.”
Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau: “Ah, but this time, he thinks he has succeeded.”
Leaning heavily into some outrageous sight gags best described as over the top slapstick, co-writer and director Blake Edwards reunited with star Peter Sellers for this, the fifth feature of their illustrious comedy franchise, titled Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978).
As always, Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Sellers – Being There) continues to be a thorn in the side of the criminal underworld – despite his klutzy ways. Infuriating Philippe Douvier (Robert Webber – 12 Angry Men), a French businessman as well as the secret head of the largest drug conglomerate in the country, as the New York Mafia feels like their Parisian counterparts aren’t pulling their weight, he decides to okay the assassination of Clouseau.
Always returning to the old saying it’s better to be lucky than good, you can’t say that the Chief Inspector is great at his job, but he sure does have a streak of fortune on his side that makes him luckier than a cat with nine lives. In a sense almost similar to Leslie Nielsen’s Frank Drebin from The Naked Gun trilogy, he bumbles his way though the dark underbelly of Paris (often in one of his many disguises), always assisted by his sneaky manservant Cato Fong (Burt Kwouk – Goldfinger).
Fortunately for Clouseau, on his travels he bumps into Douvier’s all-service secretary, Simone Legree (Dyan Cannon), who now needs protection after their affair (and her job) have been terminated by his furious wife. . . and simply put, she knows too much. In another form of bumping into, perhaps the most clever plot line finds the old Chief Inspector, Charles Dreyfus (Herbert Lom reprising his role), reinstated after hearing the faulty news that Clouseau has died. . . ironically, Clouseau’s death is the cure for Dreyfus’ insanity from the previous features. Of course, Clouseau hasn’t passed on, meaning his face keeps popping up in the newly sane man’s life. . . leading to ever growing fits of comedic madness.
Filled with a number of quirky gimmicks that leads to some jet-setting, the main narrative follows the detective as he attempts to solve his own murder. Forcing him to have to impersonate a one legged Swedish sailor on the Seine docks, a Marlon Brando like Godfather while on a drug bust in Hong Kong (which involves a wild chase scene), as well as having to convince his trusty sidekick Cato to believe he is not actually dead – a funny sequence featuring a memorable cameo from two time Bond girl and six time Carry On regular Valerie Leon as a dominatrix hired by his manservant after turning his abode into a brothel (thinking he owns the property now), one thing is for sure, this wouldn’t be an easy mission even for the most suave Frenchman.
Filmizon.com’s Nikolai Adams with Valerie Leon, who has a memorable cameo as Tanya the dominatrix in Revenge of the Pink Panther
Sadly, this was the last pairing of Edwards and Sellers – as well as the last true Pink Panther movie, as the latter passed away just two years later (in fact, Sellers struggled making this film, as he had suffered a heart attack not long before production). Romance of the Pink Panther, which was already written by Sellers and was planned to be the next sequel sadly never came to be, instead, Trail of the Pink Panther came to fruition in 1982 – a patchwork effort comprised of Edwards using deleted scenes and outtakes from previous efforts to make a full length feature. . . but, as you might imagine, it failed miserably both at the box office and with critics.
A silly, fun, and frivolous farce, Revenge of the Pink Panther might not be the best of the flighty franchise, but it still carries plenty of the same charm, charisma, and kooky comedy brought to life by this dream team of laughter. Plus, its score is a real treat, again backed by the jazzy (and in this case, also a bit of disco) stylings of Henry Mancini. So, give this film the honour of tracking it down, for I can’t say it any better than the cotton-cheeked imitation Godfather himself – “Mamma Mia. Spagettino. Al Pacino, and Viva Zapata”.