Ein Schuß im Dunkeln

When a murder occurs in the house of millionaire Benjamin Ballon, Inspector Clouseau is put on the case. When he makes a real pigs ear of it, Commissioner Dreyfus takes him off the case until political pressure forces him to put him back on it. The maid, Maria Gambrelli was found in a locked room with a gun in her hands and a body at her feet - all the clues appear to point to her, but Clouseau is too taken by her beauty to believe it could be her. He pursues a more complex theory, much to the chagrin of Dreyfus - but could his bumbling have brought him onto the right track.

In terms of cinema, 1964 was one of the best years of Peter Seller's career; not only did he make his best film with several great performances (Dr Strangelove) but he also made the best of the Pink Panther films with this entry. The two films are quite different - Strangelove is very much an all round performance(s) whereas Shot In The Dark displays his physical comedy to great effect. The basic plot is a murder mystery but it doesn't really matter who did what to whom as the focus of the film is the bumbling investigation of Clouseau. This is as funny as the character got and the material is pretty good. It depends a great deal on your personal taste as to how much you are laughing at this film. I found it funny but not as funny as I had hoped I would. The reason for this was that the film relied very heavily on Clouseau. The problem with this is that the comedy around Clouseau usually requires a small build up and hence a lag before the laugh - hence the laughs are spaced rather than consistent.

Of course, basing the film around Sellers is not a bad thing in itself, it's just the material that needed to be sharper and funnier. Although I like Sellers better in other things (namely Strangelove and The Goons) but he is the only man who could do this role and he does it very well indeed. Sommer is actually pretty good and manages to add to the laughs. Sanders is a nice addition even if he plays it straight most of the way; Lom on the other hand is increasingly funny as he breaks down - he is better here than in other films. Kwouk is given a small role but he shows that he has a flair for comedy (a flair that he has continued to show recently including his series with Harry Hill).

Overall, those hoping for a rip-roaring spoof may well be a little disappointed as it is not a laugh a second, even if it is still funny. The plot doesn't really matter and the material could have been sharper and more consistent, but it still stands out as the best of the Pink Panther films. All in all, 1964 and these two films is as good proof of Sellers' abilities as you could ask for and he carries this film here.

Although "A Shot in the Dark" is really the second film in the Pink Panther series, in many ways it is a beginning, as the first film to showcase Peter Sellers' bumbling Inspector Clouseau as the highlight of the film, overcoming the first film's occasional shortcomings due mainly to devoting too much screen time to David Niven's jewel thief, when what audiences really wanted was more Clouseau. Well here, their wish came true as there are virtually no scenes in the film without Clouseau present, and it is all the better as such. There can be no doubt that Peter Sellers is one of the greatest comedic actors of all time, and he is the primary reason the film is so enjoyable.

Director Blake Edwards is wise enough to latch onto this fact, and indeed, the entire premise of the film is essentially just a series of opportunities for Sellers to make full use of his brilliant physical comedy skills wrapped around a twisty murder mystery, as Clouseau struggles to prove that the prime suspect, the beautiful maid Maria (Elke Sommer) is not guilty, despite an increasing load of evidence proving otherwise. Introduced here are also Pink Panther regular characters Commissioner Dreyfus (Herbert Lom) and Clouseau's lethal assistant Cato (Burt Kwouk), instructed to attack him when he least expects it to keep his guard up. (said instances including when in the bath, and in bed with Maria)

The storyline is admittably simple, with only a few basic twists to conceal the murderer's identity until the end, and mainly does exist to give Peter Sellers full reign to do what he is so very skilled at doing - evoking laughs out of the most ordinary situations or what would have been deemed immature and juvenile if attempted by another actor. (the primary reason Steve Martin's latest re-hash is almost certain to flop - he can never hope to compare to Sellers in his iconic role) And of course, Henry Mancini's unforgettable jazz theme music is a welcome addition to an already great movie.

It may seem strange that the only film in the series without the words "Pink Panther" should turn out to be the best in the series, but such is the case here. The film may seem somewhat dated, and perhaps not quite as witty as it would have been back in the 1960s, but Sellers' unique comedic talents assure that the entertainment value of the movie remains classic, even 40 years on.

-8/10

The germination of the "Pink Panther" series of comedic mystery films is a complicated one. The first film in the series, "The Pink Panther", was actually the second one to be filmed! This film, "A Shot in the Dark", was originally intended to be the adaptation of a stage play, but director Edwards and actor Sellers refit the main character to accommodate the persona of Inspector Clouseu, which they were developing for "The Pink Panther". However, when the film was completed, it wasn't released and was deemed unfunny. Then when "The Pink Panther" was a hit, the studio released "A Shot in the Dark" as a sequel and a series was born. This explains why elements from the first film are absent from the second (Mrs. Clouseu anyone?) and why the second (actually first!) set the tone for the following films more than the first (actually the second! Confused yet?) Here, Sellers is front and center as the hapless and ever-clumsy Inspector. Freed from sharing screen time with a higher billed co-star (David Niven in the previous film) and without a particularly coherent plot to follow, he is allowed to engage in pratfall after pratfall and scenario after goofy scenario. Today's audiences may not completely go for the subtle, meticulously timed method of comedy shown here with emphasis on set up and repetitiveness, but patient and observant audience members should still find the film funny. By now, so much of the material has been cribbed or expanded upon, some of the edge is lost, but enough of the humor and situational gags are amusing enough to make the film worthwhile. Sellers insists upon the innocence of curvy stunner Sommer, a maid who has been found in a locked room with a dead body and a smoking gun in her hand. Time after time, he lets her out of prison and the body count increases. His thorough incompetence drives his superior (Lom) to insanity. Sommer's employer Sanders, a man of great wealth and taste, is also appalled by the bumbling Sellers, never more so than when he manages to practically trash a billiard room during a friendly game. One famous sequence has Sellers tracking Sommer down in a nudist colony. The modest Inspector navigates the idyllic hideaway using any available object to cover himself as the campers frolic behind shrubs and other props. Reed glams it up, but gets little to do as Sanders' bitchy wife. Another memorable sequence has Sellers and Sommer on a date with victim after victim falling prey to an assassin that's after Sellers. It's all a farcical enterprise that one must be in the mood for to fully enjoy. Otherwise, it becomes a little tiresome, but fans of physical comedy ought to lap it up. The remaining sequels were all sort of hybrids of "The Pink Panther" mixed with "A Shot in the Dark" and had fair success until the death of Sellers made it difficult to continue (but continue they did, using outtakes and other footage of the man! Anything to make a buck!) Henry Mancini provided some nice music, notably over the animated title sequence.

The first sequel to "The Pink Panther" and still arguably the finest film of the entire series, "A Shot in the Dark" is a funny and very intelligent piece of entertainment. Peter Sellers returns once again as a bumbling French detective who this time unwittingly stumbles upon a group of murders that keep piling up right under his nose. Could love interest Elke Sommers be the culprit? Well it appears so, but Sellers is not buying it just because he has the hots for her. George Sanders is among the cast of several other possible suspects and of course we also have the first appearance of Sellers' superior (Herbert Lom). Co-written by William Peter Blatty (of "The Exorcist" fame!) and Blake Edwards (who also directed), "A Shot in the Dark" remains one of the better comedies from any cinematic era. 4 stars out of 5.

A Shot in the Dark saw the great Peter Sellers reprise what is probably his most iconic role as the inept Inspector Clouseau. It's always obvious why Sellers is so well remembered for this role, as he's absolutely great in it. His mannerisms and quirks help to add to the personality of the character, and despite the fact that this man is overblown to comic book proportions, Sellers succeeds in making the role believable and, more importantly, very fun to watch. The majority of the humour in the film is of the slapstick variety, and while that can be very funny if done the right way; it's not my favourite type of humour. That being said, A Shot in the Dark does many of it's gags correctly, and while the film isn't consistently hilarious; there's enough good humour to ensure a good time to whoever's watching it. Also abundant in this film is classic Brit-flick style, which is great in my opinion. From Hammer Horror to Ealing comedy, I'm a big fan of classic British movies and so this film fits into that nicely.

The plot follows the accident-prone detective as he investigates the case of 'a shot in the dark', which resulted in the death of a man at a country house. The facts add up rather quickly to the maid, Maria (Elke Sommer), who was found at the scene of the crime with a smoking gun in her hand. Things are never that simple when Clouseau is on the case, however, and, convinced that she is a decoy to protect someone higher up the food chain, he proceeds in investigating this open and shut case. Aside from Sellers, this movie also features the talents of Herbert Lom, Elke Sommer and George Sanders, among others. This makes up a good support cast for yours truly, as I'm a big fan of horror and all of these are names in the British section of that genre. The plot of A Shot in the Dark is relatively simply done, but it always manages to find time for gags and humorous set pieces, and even when it appears to be slowing down; you can always count on another laugh being just around the corner. I don't love this movie, but it's definitely very good and marks a highlight in British comedy during the sixties.