Overall Rating: ***
The Pink Panther @ IMDB
Synopsis:
When Yves Gluant (Jason Statham) is murdered during a national soccer game and the coveted Pink Panther diamond is stolen, Chief Inspector Dreyfus (Kevin Kline) calls in the bumbling Inspector Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin). With the help of his trusty sidekick, Gendarme Gilbert Ponton (Jean Reno), Clouseau must track down the killer and save the jewel. But the beautiful Xania (Beyonce Knowles) proves to be dangerous distraction. Can Clouseau crack the case and prove himself worthy of the rank of Inspector or will he shame is country with failure?
Review:
I was pleasantly surprised with this movie. It was not nearly as bad as I anticipated. I was most looking forward to Jean Reno’s performance and I was concerned that Steve Martin’s may be a little over the top. Reno wasn’t as good as I thought he would be and Martin wasn’t as bad as I thought he would be. Others indicated this movie would be horrible, I didn’t think that was the case at all. It wasn’t mind-blowing, but then I don’t think it was trying to be.
This was a comedy-mystery, but as is usually the case with this combination, it was very light on the mystery. The culprit’s identity seems to be almost randomly selected from the cast of characters with a motive to commit murder. That’s not a huge flaw, like I said comedy-mysteries tend to be light on the mystery. It was alright with the comedy. There were some highly amusing sequences and some that just didn’t elicit the laugh they were looking for. As I mentioned before, Jean Reno wasn’t that amusing. The truth is that Ponton doesn’t have much of a role in the film. He helps things move along but he doesn’t do much. This is something I didn’t appreciate. Reno is talented and could do much more. On top of that, Ponton was a true source of comedy in the cartoons.
I gues that brings me to the final point, Peter Sellars, the original Clouseau did an excellent job. He made the original series classics. There is something lacking in this new incarnation that doesn’t quite compare to the originals. Then again, remakes rarely do compare. Overall, this movie is a relatively entertaining family comedy. I don’t think it is quite worth a matinee showing, but wouldn’t be a bad rental. Definitely worth a watch, but not necessarily for $7.50.