by Daniel Cummings

Created on: May 20, 2007

One of my favorite comedy films of all time is A Shot In The Dark staring the great Peter Sellers and Directed by Blake Edwards. The duo of course worked together six times; five of them being apart of the Pink Panther series including A Shot In The Dark. The other film they worked on together was The Party.

Moving right along, A Shot In The Dark was the second movie in the Panther franchise and in my opinion the overall strongest and funniest. Peter Sellers was the co-star in the original Pink Panther alongside David Niven but Sellers stole the show as Bumbling French detective Jacques Clouseau. So inevitably the sequel that followed put Sellers in the leading role and for me this resulted in a classic comedy being born; also that rarity of a follow-up outdoing its predecessor.

A Shot In The Dark's success meant another three sequels were released with Sellers; another three sequels without him also have been released since as well as last years re-make of the original Pink Panther picture.

I always go back to A Shot In The Dark because it showcases a true comic genius at his best, something that sadly didn't happen enough. Seller's character is now rightly so considered one of the funniest ever created on the big screen.

However it's not just Peter Sellers who makes A Shot In The Dark a classic comedy. Herbert Lom's turn as chief inspector Charles Dreyfus is almost equally brilliant. It was his debut in the series and he would return for all the sequels alongside Sellers as well as one without him. Herbert perfectly played off Sellers as his character gradually goes insane because of Sellers bumbling detectives antics.

A Shot In The Dark is now 43 years old but for me it has very rarely been bettered since its release in 1964; a majestic film that will still continue to make me and lots more people laugh for many more years. If you haven't seen this one yet, I highly recommend you do.

Learn more about this author, Daniel Cummings.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.