The Pink Panther

Directed by Shawn Levy, The Pink Panther follows Steve Martin’s bumbling Inspector Clouseau as he’s tasked with solving a murder and recovering the priceless title object. Filmmaker Levy, armed with a script by Len Blum and Martin, delivers an erratic yet mostly affable endeavor that benefits substantially from Martin’s agreeable (and frequently hilarious) turn as the iconic central character, with the actor’s go-for-broke work here going a long way towards ensuring that the movie remains quite watchable even through the narrative’s frequent bumps and lulls. (It’s clear, as well, that the movie’s entertaining atmosphere is heightened by the top-notch efforts of such agreeable periphery players as Kevin Kline, Emily Mortimer, and Jean Reno, with, especially, Clouseau’s irresistible chemistry with the latter’s Ponton remaining an ongoing highlight within the proceedings.) And while the picture rarely achieves the side-splitting heights one might’ve anticipated given the series’ history, although there are admittedly a few exceptions (eg Clouseau attempts to perfect his American accent), The Pink Panther nevertheless (and for the most part) comes off as an engaging (and periodically laugh-out-loud funny) comedy that fares just about as well as the viewer might’ve anticipated based on Levy’s less-than-consistent filmography.

**1/2 out of ****