A Shot in the Dark (1964)

That was an excellent one.

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

A SHOT IN THE DARK is a crime comedy about new hilarious adventures of inspector Jacques Clouseau. It is the second installment in "The Pink Panther" series. This film is a very strange combination between a black and sexy humor.Inspector Clouseau is called to the country home of millionaire Mr. Ballon to investigate the murder of his chauffeur. A chauffeur was shot and killed in her bedroom. His mistress Maria, a maid in the Mr. Ballon home, is found with a gun in her hand at the crime scene. All evidence points to Maria as the killer, but Clouseau is convinced of her innocence, because, a confused maid is a very attractive young woman. A tragic-comic struggle for a hopeless case, truth and love can begin...A well developed farce, which constantly moves from funny to tragic, stands out from all mentality. The case of a murder,later more of them, is so intricate and yet so obvious that it becomes hard to watch. Our "capable" Inspector constantly runs away from each cue and clue, which would help him in his investigation.Mr. Edwards has succeeded to include all the characters in this hilarious criminal-comedic game, where no one knows who kills and who is trying to kill.Peter Sellers (Jacques Clouseau) brings a strange kind of monotony in the story, through a combination of his dignity and clumsiness. I think he is, nevertheless, aware of his incompetence, but he is convinced to do his job perfectly at the same time.Elke Sommer as Maria Gambrelli is confused beauty, which perfectly accepts comic effects by Mr. Sellers. Herbert Lom (Charles Dreyfus) is somewhat stole the show as a nervous and crazed commissioner, on the other hand he is a counterbalance to inspector Clouseau. George Sanders as Benjamin Ballon is a calm rich man and jealous lover. Graham Stark as Hercule Lajoy is a crumb of intellect that circulates around inspector Clouseau. Burt Kwouk as Cato is a Chinese assassin until a phone rings in a residence.This is a frivolous, colorful and enjoyable experience.

(90%) Perhaps the most funny murder mysteries to hit cinema featuring Peter Sellers in brilliant form as the world's most clumsy police officer. Out of all the Pink Panther movies this is the most playfully cartoonish (in a good way) with visits to a nudist colony leading to Clouseau to wander around in the nip with only a guitar to cover his modesty, and the part in which he is undercover as a hunter is strait from the animated series; and it all works so well. The romantic elements are also very well handled giving Cluseau another layer of character rather than simply keeping him as simple, foolish clown. This one of the very best comedy movies out there, and a high mark in the series.

Not so much a sequel to "The Pink Panther" as a continuation of the adventures of Jacques Clouseau, who this time is investigating a murder that involves him with the beautiful Elke Sommer. Features the debut of Herbert Lom as frustrated Chief Inspector Dreyfuss, and Burt Kwouk as Cato, Clouseau's servant.Very funny outing has some inspired gags and scenes, as the crazy plot unfolds in a hectic manner, leading to a twist ending. Despite not having the "Pink Panther" in the title, the actual title of "A Shot In The Dark" is still appropriate, though it would be 11 years until Peter Sellers and the panther would return...

"A Shot in the Dark," which followed "The Pink Panther," is considered the second of the popular series. It focuses not at all on the Pink Panther diamond or the Phantom or on Mancini's original music score, but solely on the antics of Inspector Jacques Clouseau. That bungler cannot get through any day without causing some kind of mayhem. Peter Sellers' bumbling but likable inspector always delivers laughs in buckets. In this movie, the Spanish chauffeur of Benjamin Ballon (George Sanders) is found shot to death in Ballon's mansion with the gorgeous maid, Maria Gambrelli (Elke Sommers) literally holding a smoking gun. Miss Gambrelli was having an affair with him. When Clouseau arrives at Ballon's house, he falls into a small pond as he exits his vehicle. As he walks into the house we hear the "squish squish" sound of wet shoes. But he tries to interview folks with his stubborn decorum. All signs point to Maria's guilt, so Inspector Clouseau naturally thinks she is innocent! "We must have the facts, Hercule! We must have the facts!" Naturally he feels that she is "protecting someone." After Miss Gambrelli is allowed to leave jail on several occasions, Clouseau tries unsuccessfully to follow her in various disguises, and concludes getting arrested each time. Meanwhile chaos ensues as the bodies multiply, and Clouseau's actions unknowingly ensure more trouble. Clouseau's immediate superior, Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus (Herbert Lom) is slowly driven insane by Clouseau's antics. Clouseau even winds up in a nudist colony, where Maria and he must drive away without a stitch of clothing! In the film we are introduced to Kato (Burt Kwout), who is Clouseau's housekeeper. One of Kato's duties, is to "attack" Clouseau using judo when the inspector least expects it, to keep his reflexes fresh. So, it should come as no surprise when Kato assails Clouseau even in his bathtub! In the confrontation scene in the end, the feckless Clouseau summons all of the murder suspects in Ballon's spacious Parisian house to reveal the killer(s). Either fracturing the English language or being tongue-tied, Clouseau says a suspect "killed ... in a rit of fealous jage!" George Sanders plays it straight as opposed to the whacked-out Clouseau, making for laugh after laugh. When Peter Seller's created Clouseau, madness reached a new high! There would be sequels.