The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)

After escaping from an insane asylum, former Chief Inspector (Herbert Lom) of the Paris Surete kidnaps a scientist (Richard Vernon) and his daughter (Briony McRoberts). He blackmails the scientist into building a doomsday weapon that he will use against the world ..... unless they turn over Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers) to him. Directed by Blake Edwards, this was the 4th entry in the Pink Panther franchise. It has a threadbare plot (if you could call it that) that is really just an excuse for slapstick and gags galore. Fortunately, most of the gags are quite funny and if in the end, the film is uneven, it works more often than it does not. The first two PANTHER films are still my favorites because they have a stronger narrative and structure to hold the humor together. This slapdash approach is more hit and miss but I laughed often so I can't really complain. The title credits are hilarious and once again, Henry Mancini provides a slick underscore. With Omar Sharif, Lesley Anne Down, Leonard Rossiter, Colin Blakely and Burt Kwouk.