Product Details

• Actors: David Niven, Peter Sellers, Robert Wagner, Capucine, Brenda De Banzie
• Directors: Blake Edwards
• Writers: Blake Edwards, Maurice Richlin
• Producers: Dick Crockett, Martin Jurow, Walter Mirisch
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, HiFi Sound, Original recording reissued, NTSC
• Language: English, Italian
• Rated: Unrated
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
• VHS Release Date: July 8, 1997
• Run Time: 115 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (101 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0792834879
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #207,495 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential video

The history of film comedy would have been much altered if Peter Ustinov had stayed in the role of Jacques Clouseau, the bumbling French police inspector in The Pink Panther. But Ustinov dropped out, the role went to Peter Sellers, and a classic character was born: suspicious, blundering, with a pompous little mustache and a sometimes impenetrable accent, Clouseau was always one step behind everybody else in the room. The Pink Panther introduced Clouseau hot on the trail of a famous jewel thief (David Niven), who may be planning to make off with an expensive gem known as the Pink Panther. Set in a European ski resort, this bubbly comedy is a wonderful dose of '60s style, from the famous Henry Mancini theme music to the presence of two of Europe's top sex symbols of the era, Claudia Cardinale and Capucine. The film also introduced the popular cartoon Pink Panther, slinking around to Mancini's music in an animated credits sequence. The film's success brought a follow-up, A Shot in the Dark, also released in 1964; after 11 years, Sellers and top comedy director Blake Edwards (10) returned with three more sequels. --Robert Horton

Amazon.com

The history of film comedy would have been much altered if Peter Ustinov had stayed in the role of Jacques Clouseau, the bumbling French police inspector in The Pink Panther. But Ustinov dropped out, the role went to Peter Sellers, and a classic character was born: suspicious, blundering, with a pompous little mustache and a sometimes impenetrable accent, Clouseau was always one step behind everybody else in the room. The Pink Panther introduced Clouseau hot on the trail of a famous jewel thief (David Niven), who may be planning to make off with an expensive gem known as the Pink Panther. Set in a European ski resort, this bubbly comedy is a wonderful dose of '60s style, from the famous Henry Mancini theme music to the presence of two of Europe's top sex symbols of the era, Claudia Cardinale and Capucine. The film also introduced the popular cartoon Pink Panther, slinking around to Mancini's music in an animated credits sequence. The film's success brought a follow-up, A Shot in the Dark, also released in 1964; after 11 years, Sellers and top comedy director Blake Edwards (10) returned with three more sequels. --Robert Horton

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No! Not The Stradivarius!, July 1, 2004

By 

Robert I. Hedges - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Pink Panther (DVD)

This, the first of the exquisite Pink Panther series, is an amazing film. To know that originally Peter Ustinov was cast to play Jacques Clouseau as a straight, inept French detective is a sobering thought. After Ustinov dropped out, of course, Peter Sellers got the role and after consultation with Blake Edwards, decided to make him not only inept, but also bumbling and accident prone, a characterization that defines how we think of Clouseau today. This film is interesting in that since it is the first of the series it is interesting to see the origins of the character, and how different he is here than in later 'Panther' films. Here is clumsy and prone to pratfalls, but is less flamboyantly slapstick than in the later films.

The film also stars the wonderful David Niven, who plays the perfect suave English thief, and a very young Robert Wagner as his equally debonair nephew. Female stars are the beautiful Claudia Cardinale and Capucine, two of the top European actresses and models from the era.

The movie is a bit more sedate than the later films in the series, but still is one of the funniest movies of the sixties. 'A Shot In The Dark', also released in 1964, as the first sequel, began the transformation to the later formulas with additions such as the wonderful Herbert Lom. 'The Pink Panther' does introduce the animated 'Pink Panther' short for the first time, as well as the often imitated, never duplicated title theme. Other viewers will have their own favorite scenes, and the costume party is surely one of the highlights of the film, but for my money the best scenes in the film revolve around Clouseau trying to woo his wife by playing his Stradivarius violin, over many protestations. The look of pain on David Niven's face during his playing is worth the price of the film alone

If I were doing it today, I would buy this DVD as part of the multi DVD 'Pink Panther' set, where it also includes a few interesting bonuses such as a 'trivia track', which adds great tidbits about the film.

Peter Sellers was a comic genius, and the world still waits for another genius of his stature. I think we will be waiting a long, long time.

26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars deliciously funny, December 17, 1999

By 

Kosmos - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pink Panther (DVD)

This first Pink Panther movie is as good as the next "A Shot in the Dark." Both are excellent films, with a sound story, a creatively hilarious and smart screenplay, a well-developed set of characters, and a unique style of filming that elevates "slapstick comedy" to the highest level of sophistication. there are so many quotable lines that are well-worth to write them down as you watch the movie. The soundtrack song "Meglio Stasera(It had better be tonight)"is excellent and written to fit perfectly into the theme and mood of the film. Fran Jeffries sings it very well to a crowd of people by a fireplace, and she is as delightful as this scene itself. Claudia Cardinale and Capucine show style and charm in their roles. The title sequence runs over 7 minutes and it is as good as the movie itself. The 60's represent, in my opinion, the highest point in fashion and general pop culture which truly reflects the highest level of sophistication and taste; in this context, this movie is one of the movies that best represent the 60's. I agree with the other viewer that this movie should figure in the 100 Best movies of any list. The DVD is great with the finest picture quality; check the trailer because it is hysterically comical and very original, not the case of modern movie trailers. This movie is ideal for a cozy evening with friends and your favorite martinis. I just wish there were a special DVD edition with Director Blake Edwards' commentary on separate track, and of others involved in the making of this masterpiece.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blu-ray vs. DVD, February 26, 2011

By 

Michael Secour (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Pink Panther [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)

Another reviewer has correctly observed that the Blu-ray has been produced not in the expected 2:35.1 ratio, but 2:20.1. (The review at Bluray.com noted that the aspect was 2:20.1, so this was not a surprise to me.) I own both the DVD and, more recently, the Blu-ray versions of this wonderful film. Doing a random comparison of scenes, it is clear that the Blu-ray version has been cropped very slightly at the top and/or bottom and at the sides. I did not detect any vertical stretching (noted by the other reviewer)in the scenes I observed. The Blu-ray is a handsome step up from the DVD in quality. IMDB indicates that Pink Panther prints were produced in both 2:20.1 and 2:35.1 Perhaps MGM had a reason for using a 2:20.1 print for the Blu-ray. In any event, I don't believe that it affects any critical content and the images are not distorted. This great comedy looks better than ever on Blu-ray.