This film hardly has a plot, the only plot is that Dovier, a French buisnessman, wants Clouseau out of the way, just to impress the godfather. They actually think that Clouseau has been killed after a robber(mentioned earlier in the movie)sticks poor Clouseau up and steals his car and clothes. But the robber pays for it by being the the victim of the mafia instead of Clouseau! Oddly enough, Clouseau wants revenge for his murder attempt, and goes for it. This film sounds pretty good doesn't it? Well it's not what you'd call a good film, but a mixed bag. A good amount of the jokes just didn't make me laugh as much as they did in "The Pink Panther Strikes Again". The film lightens up during the chase scenes with Clouseau, Dreyfus, the police, and the mafia! The funniest thing about it is, Dreyfus started it! His main target: Inspector Clouseau! Overall, this film is on the halfway mark between the best Pink Panther film, and the worst.

Watchable but flawed (Rating: 2.00)
Review : "Revenge of the Pink Panther" is probably the weakest of the original five Panther movies. Considering it was the fifth installment in the franchise, it simply may have been too much. This time around, the story finds Inspector Clouseau in the sights of a drug lord named Philippe Douvier. Douvier wants to prove to his American counterparts how tough he still is and this is how he wants to do it: by killing Clouseau!! After several failed attempts (which include a bomb and sending out a superhuman assassin) Douvier and his goons think they have succeeded and the entire world thinks Clouseau is dead (upon hearing this news, Dreyfuss regains his sanity!!). But Clouseau is actually alive and is now sneaking around incognito in the hopes of finding his "killers" and bringing them to justice. There are quite a few problems in this film. First off, the writing in "Revenge of the Pink Panther" is inferior to the previous films. I mean, there isn't much of a plot; Douvier just wants to prove he's still strong. This wasn't a problem in the other entries which all had decent story lines that kept things a bit interesting. I think the writers would have done well to have made a better head bad guy as well; Douvier wasn't particularly engaging or interesting. And one more thing. I mentioned Dreyfuss is in the film. Wasn't he incinerated in "The Pink Panther Strikes Again"? I guess they chose to ignore that movie (makes sense considering it was so bizzare). But on comic side of things, you can still get a few decent laughs out of this one. Clouseau dons some pretty wacky disguises here, some of which include a peg-legged Swedish pirate (thar she blows!!), dwarf painter Toulouse Lautrec, and even a godfather disguise. There are some other scenes you'll like but I won't spoil them for you here. When all is said and done, "Revenge of the Pink Panther" isn't bad but it still falls short of its predecessors. I'll give this 2.5 stars. See it if you like but don't expect this reach the heights of the previous "Pink Panther" films.

"Inflatable Goiters? Yes, The Valentine's Day Collection." (Rating: 4.00)
Review : I am an enormous Peter Sellers fan, and love the whole "Pink Panther" series, but while still funny, this is not one of my favorite outings. Sellers is back as Jacques Clouseau, and this time is taking on "The French Connection" crime organization in the midst of a huge heroin transaction that takes them from France to Hong Kong. Robert Webber plays Philippe Douvier, chief of the organization, and while he is smooth, the interactions are more forced and formulaic than in the other "Panther" films. This time the beautiful vixen is played by Dyan Cannon (as Simone Legree), and series stalwart Burt Kwouk returns as the always helpful Cato (who starts his own business for a new twist...)

Also returning (somehow) is the wonderful Herbert Lom as Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus, although some suspension of belief is needed for the continuity to work inasmuch as he was last seen in "Strikes Again" being atomized by the doomsday machine. Notwithstanding that continuity gaffe, Lom gives the best performance of the film, and in fact single-handedly rescues this installment from a three star rating by virtue of the sublime funeral scene in which he has to give the giggling eulogy for "Clouseau" in what must be one of the funniest scenes ever caught on film.

Here the plot seems very contrived and the screenplay devolves frequently to only modestly amusing puns. Clouseau's disguise designer, for instance, is named "Auguste Balls", and you can see the hilarity that can result. Pretty grade school level, I'm afraid. Also devolving into tedium is the seemingly eternal chase scene at the close of the film, which looks like something the Three Stooges would have done, and set to extremely repetitive, annoying, whistle-laden vaudeville slapstick music. I remember seeing this a long time ago and thinking this scene lasted too long, but this time I actually started thumbing through a magazine to pass the time until it was over.

This movie is funny, and I do recommend it, with a couple of caveats. First, it is recommended only to people who are already fans of the series, and second, it is recommended only to those with patience to muddle through a bit more tedium than is typical of the rest of the "Pink Panther" films.

Montezuma got his revenge. Now it's the Pink Panther's turn! (Rating: 4.00)
Review : While I enjoyed this movie, I felt it just wasn't as strong as the previous ones. Maybe the series was running out of gas, as I felt it just didn't have the same level of hilarity as the previous movies, but a half funny Pink Panther movie is still funnier than most. Anyway, this one involves the inspector going up against the French connection. In a effort to show that they still have muscle, the syndicate decides to assasinate Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau. To do this, they hire a sort of martial artist super assasin. I would have liked to seen more done with this part of the story, as they seemed to set it up really well, but the follow through just didn't seem that strong. Well, the assasin is unable to complete his mission, and the French syndicate tries another method. In a comic mishap, they end up killing the wrong man, and, thought to be dead, Chief Inspector Clouseau goes underground to try and flush out his would be killers. My favorite scene in this movie is when Chief Inspector Clouseau goes back to his apartment after he was thought to be dead, only to find that his manservant, Cato, has turned it into a 'Chinese nookie factory'. His 'meeting' with Lotus Eater Tanya, played by Valerie Leon, was really funny. A side note, Valerie Leon can also be seen in such movies as Never Say Never Again, The Spy Who Loved Me, Queen Kong, and Blood From The Mummy's Tomb...whotta babe! Anyway, Chief Inspector Clouseau eventually trails the French syndicate to Hong Kong with the movie basically culminating in a fireworks factory. Herbert Lom is also back, playing Chief Inspector Dreyfus. On hearing that Clouseau is dead, he makes a miraculous recovery and is released from the asylum. He is given is old position back as chief inspector and tasked to find and arrest Clouseau's killer, but given their past relationship, he would like nothing better than to thank them. There are a number of funny scenes where he sees Clouseau, who is presumed to be dead, and thinks he is having a relapse. One of my biggest perceived flaws with this movie was Dyan Cannon. While she is very attractive, and a capable actress, I just felt like she didn't fit in properly with the movie. She plays Simone Le Gree, one time secretary and lover to the head of the French connection. She gets mixed up with Clouseau when the French syndicate decides she's more of a liability alive with her intimate knowledge of their operation. Again, this was another storyline that could have been expanded more, but was glossed over. So, in closing, while not the best in the series, it certainly provided a number of laughs.

Sellers On The Loose Again (Rating: 4.00)
Review : Peter Sellers returns as Chief Inspector Clouseau in this fifth and final installment of the "Pink Panther" series, in "Revenge Of The Pink Panther," directed by Blake Edwards. This time around, Clouseau becomes the target of a drug lord, Douvier (Robert Webber), who finds it necessary to prove to colleagues that he is still "strong." When the assassination attempt is summarily pronounced successful, it affords Clouseau the edge of pursuing the criminals through the use of disguise and the deft application of stealth as only Clouseau could effect. Meanwhile, former Chief Inspector Dreyfus (Herbert Lom) is pronounced fit, and returned to his position at the department. And, as would be expected, it all adds up to a bad time for the criminals, as well as the hapless Dreyfus. Edwards does a good job with this film, though it's not on a par with the previous outing, "The Pink Panther Strikes Again," which was arguably the best (and funniest) of the series. There are scenes involving behind-closed-door meetings of the criminal element that seem to bog things down a bit, but with Sellers on hand they seem almost insignificant, for as soon as Clouseau arrives on the scene they're up and running once again. And Sellers has some classic moments in this one: Trying on new disguises at the establishment of Dr. Auguste Balls (Graham Stark), a veritable haberdashery for undercover surveillance; posing as a rotund "Godfather" and insinuating himself into the mob; and a foray as a peg-legged pirate with an inflatable parrot on his shoulder. The story line in this one may be considered thin-- Edwards gives it just enough to serve as a setting in which to showcase the talents of his star-- but there's nothing wrong with that; it's funny stuff, and watching Sellers work is worth the price of a ticket alone. One of the most memorable moments in the film, however, is courtesy of Herbert Lom, as Dreyfus gives the eulogy for the "late" Chief Inspector Clouseau and can barely contain his mirth, with his tears of joy construed, of course, as grief. And for the first time in the series, Clouseau's faithful manservant, Cato (Burt Kwouk) accompanies the Inspector during his investigation, which adds to the merriment, but is not necessarily a boon to getting the case, as Clouseau would say, "solv-ed." The supporting cast includes Dyan Cannon (Simone Legree), Robert Loggia (Marchione), Tony Beckley (Algo), Andre Maranne (Francois), Charles Augins (Vic) and Douglas Wilmer (Police Commissioner). With "Revenge Of The Pink Panther," Edwards delivers an above average comedy that is good for a lot of laughs, and he finishes it off with an extended, slapstick finale that really gives some sock to the overall movie. What will stay with you forever, however, is the image of Clouseau, and recalling his antics will provide you with some chuckles for a long time afterwards. In the end, this film stands as a tribute to the great Peter Sellers, as proof positive that NOBODY does it better.