On DVD: June 23, 2009

The Pink Panther 2 is one of the few movies debuting on DVD this week

The Pink Panther 2
Fox
$30
Blu-ray: $40

Plot: That defective detective Jacques Clouseau (Steve Martin) is back on the case, investigating the latest theft of the priceless Pink Panther diamond.

Opinion: I never bothered to see Steve Martin’s first Pink Panther flick.  Aside from the fact that the ads looking generally terrible, I didn’t see the point of watching Martin—a once great comic talent who has been coasting on his rep for decades now—take over a character that was created for a very specific actor, Peter Sellers.  Audiences didn’t agree with me though, as Martin’s Panther grossed close to $100 million and it looked like the franchise was back in business.  But then The Pink Panther 2 brought the series to a screeching halt when it earned a meager $35 million during its theatrical run last February.  So now that we won’t have to worry about any more new Pink Panther movies, I figured there was no harm in checking out Martin’s second and final outing as Clouseau.  Since I skipped the first movie, I can’t tell you if this is an improvement or more of the same, but I can say that, based on this entry, I have little desire to go back and see what I missed.  It’s not that Martin is a terrible Clouseau; he’s no Sellers obviously, but he’s always been a good physical comedian and performs the film’s numerous slapstick-heavy set-pieces well.  The problem is that the filmmakers have made the mistake of trying to turn Clouseau into a real human being, saddling him with a love interest (Emily Mortimer, a charming actress trapped in a terrible role) and a long-suffering best friend (Jean Reno).  The appeal of the original Pink Panther movies though is that Sellers never cared about getting the girl or proving himself to the rest of the world.  He existed on his own plane of reality and everyone around him had to work to keep up.  Martin’s character may be more likable than Sellers’ version, but he–and the movie–are far less funny.

Bonus Features: A short gag reel and two uninformative featurettes.

Verdict: Skip It

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Also on DVD

Two first quarter box office disappointments quietly slip onto DVD this week, beginning with Inkheart (Warner Bros., $29), a family-friendly fantasy adventure about a father and daughter (Brendan Fraser and Eliza Bennet) who discover that they have the power to make their favorite books literally come to life.  Confessions of a Shopaholic (Disney, $30) isn’t technically a fantasy, but in this post-Wall Street meltdown environment, the idea of dropping $10,000 on designer clothes definitely seems as out there as anything in Lord of the Rings.  Also debuting during this otherwise quiet week is the George Lopez vehicle Mr. Troop Mom (Warner Bros., $28) and the indie documentary Our City Dreams (First Run, $25), a fascinating profile of five New York City female artists that centers around how they’re work—and the city itself—has evolved over time.