Starring: Peter Sellers, David Niven, Robert Wagner, Claudia Cardinale, Capucine
Director: Blake Edwards
Studio: MGM/Fox M112454
Video: 2.20:1 anamorphic/enhanced for 16:9 color, 1080p HD
Audio: DTS HD Master Audio 5.1; English Mono; French, Spanish, DTS 5.1
Extras: Audio Commentary, Featurettes, Trailer
Subtitles: Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, Cantonese, Mandarin,Thai
Feature Length: 115 minutes
Rating: ****
The Steve Martin remakes of the Pink Panther movies look absolutely dreadful to me; I just don’t see how anyone could improve on the Blake Edwards originals, starring Peter Sellers and featuring Henry Mancini’s classic soundtrack. And the animated title sequence, featuring the Pink Panther cartoon character, of course, took on a life of its own as a truly entertaining and highly successful cartoon feature for years afterward. For those who might not be familiar with the story, the “Pink Panther” of the movie is the world’s largest diamond (500 carats), owned by Princess Dala (Claudia Cardinale). A brazenly successful jewel thief, “the Phantom,” is on the loose, who also happens to be international playboy Sir Charles Lytton (David Niven), and he definitely has designs on the diamond and is trying to swindle it from the princess. Sir Charles’ nephew George (Robert Wagner) also plans to steal the diamond and blame the theft on the Phantom; he’s totally unaware that his uncle is, in fact, the Phantom. Bungling French Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Peter Sellers) is hot on the Phantom’s trail, and unbeknownst to him, his wife (Capucine) is Sir Charles’ lover and accomplice. Of course, sheer bedlam ensues.
For a forty-plus year old film, The Pink Panther looks incredibly good, with brilliant use of color, sharp and highly detailed images, deep blacks and superb contrast. Some film grain is present, but it isn’t excessively obtrusive. The original mono has been remixed into DTS HD Master Audio 5.1, and while the resulting soundtrack doesn’t offer anything approaching reference quality, it does sound significantly more robust than the original mono. The Blu-ray contains a considerable collection of bonus materials, including an interesting HD featurette about diamonds, and an equally informative short that chronicles the creation of the Pink Panther animated character. Did you know that the very first Pink Panther cartoon won the Academy Award for animation that year? Director Blake Edwards says the success of the cartoon features were directly responsible for his continued success with the movie franchise. There’s also a commentary track by Blake Edwards filled with tidbits about the production and the actors involved.
Not everyone is completely enamored with Peter Sellers’ brand of slapstick, but if you’re a fan of this movie franchise, this first installment in Blu-ray definitely offers the finest incarnation this classic comedy has ever seen on home video. Very highly recommended!
— Tom Gibbs
