Curse of the Pink Panther

Curse of the Pink Panther is a 1983 crime comedy-drama film and a continuation of The Pink Panther series of films created by Blake Edwards in the early 1960s. The film was one of two produced concurrently following the death of the series' star Peter Sellers. Whereas the previous film Trail of the Pink Panther made use of unused footage of Sellers as Inspector Clouseau and starred Joanna Lumley as journalist Marie Jouveat, Curse attempted to relaunch the series with a new lead, Ted Wass, as inept American detective Clifton Sleigh, assigned to find the missing Inspector Clouseau.
== Plot ==
In Lugash, the fabled Pink Panther diamond is stolen. A mysterious woman looking to procure the priceless gem has a tête-à-tête with a man regarding price. Clouseau, who had disappeared inexplicably on a plane flight, as depicted in Trail of the Pink Panther. bursts in. The woman shoots the man, then points the gun at Clouseau. His fate is a mystery. Meanwhile, his former superior, Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus, is pressured to oversee Operation Paragon and utilize Interpol's fictitious Huxley 600 computer Aldous to find the world's greatest detective to solve the crime.
Anxious never to see or hear from his nemesis Clouseau again, Dreyfus sabotages the computer to select the world's worst detective. This turns out to be Sergeant Clifton Sleigh, an incompetent officer of the New York Police Department.
Sleigh sees the case as an opportunity to prove his worth. Dreyfus and his long-suffering assistant, Sergeant François Duval, soon find that the sabotage has worked a bit too well: while slightly more intelligent and capable, Sleigh is just as clumsy as Clouseau. 
As he sets out on the case, Sergeant Sleigh encounters many people who prefer Clouseau not return: these include the Inspector's former manservant, Cato, who attacks Sleigh when he breaks into the Clouseau Museum Cato now operates; Dreyfus, who attempts to kill Sleigh numerous times like he tried to kill Clouseau; and Bruno Langlois, the mafia boss from the previous film. Ultimately, Langlois, along with his henchmen (including Mr. Chong from Revenge of the Pink Panther) have a final showdown with Sleigh in a dark alley in Valencia, Spain, during Carnival. Juleta Shayne, an employee of the enigmatic Countess Chandra, comes to Sleigh's rescue.
Eventually, Sleigh's trail leads to a health spa run by Countess Chandra. There he meets famous British film star Roger Moore. Seeing a photograph of the Inspector, Countess Chandra tells Sleigh that Clouseau visited her several months ago but claimed his name was Gino Rossi (a thief who had previously stolen the diamond in the last film and was seen fencing it to Countess Chandra at the start of this film when the real Inspector arrived on the scene). 
This leads Sleigh to conclude (albeit, incorrectly) that Clouseau stole the Pink Panther, had his face changed and then took the name Gino Rossi; and that he was a good cop gone bad who was killed for the diamond. Francois adds that the man killed had been idenitified as a John Doe, and suggests having the body exhumed to be sure it really is Clouseau. However, anxious to be rid of Sleigh, Dreyfus declines, claiming to have identified the dead man via fingerprints and officially closes the case, though it is clear that Dreyfus does not believe that this is what happened. Dreyfus attempts to destroy any last reminders of Clouseau by burning the documents containing Sleigh's findings. Dreyfus heaves a sigh of relief, believing that he is finally free of Clouseau; however, Clouseau still gets the last laugh as Dreyfus's office catches on fire. 
Out at sea in a boat it is revealed that Sir Charles Litton had stolen The Pink Panther diamond from Chandra and Roger Moore (who is heavily implied earlier to not actually be the real Roger Moore, but a very much-alive Clouseau, having indeed changed his face and identity for reasons unknown), claiming he was missing his phantom glove, while he, his wife Simone, and their nephew George share a toast.
In a pre-credits scene, the animated Pink Panther is shown stealing the Pink Panther jewel. Realizing it's heavy, he slips out of the shot and drops the diamond offscreen, shattering it. The credits roll shortly afterwards.
== Cast ==
* Ted Wass as Sgt. Clifton Sleigh
* Herbert Lom as Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus
* David Niven as Sir Charles Litton
* Robert Wagner as George Litton
* Capucine as Lady Simone Litton
* Robert Loggia as Bruno Langlois
* Joanna Lumley as Countess Chandra
* André Maranne as Sgt. François Chevalier
* Burt Kwouk as Cato Fong
* Harvey Korman as Prof. Auguste Balls
* Leslie Ash as Juleta Shane
* Ed Parker as Mr. Chong
* Bill Nighy as ENT Doctor
* Roger Moore (billed as Turk Thrust II) as Inspector Jacques Clouseau
* Liz Smith as Martha
* Michael Elphick as Valencia Police Chief
* Hugh Fraser as Dr Stang
* Joe Morton as Charlie
* Denise Crosby as Denise, Bruno's moll
* Peter Arne as General Bufoni
Category:1983 films
Category:American comedy-drama films
Category:American crime comedy-drama films
Category:American sequel films
Category:British comedy-drama films
Category:British crime comedy-drama films
Category:British sequel films
Category:1980s English-language films
Category:Films scored by Henry Mancini
Category:Films directed by Blake Edwards
Category:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films
Category:Films shot at Pinewood Studios
Category:United Artists films
Category:1980s comedy-drama films
Category:Films with screenplays by Blake Edwards
Category:1983 comedy-drama films
Category:American films with live action and animation
Category:1980s American films
Category:1980s British films