MOVIEmeter
SEE RANK
Up 1,161 this week

A Shot in the Dark (1964)

Approved  |   |  Comedy, Mystery  |  23 June 1964 (USA)
7.6
Your rating:
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 -/10 X  
Ratings: 7.6/10 from 18,407 users  
Reviews: 108 user | 45 critic

When rich M. Ballon's spanish driver is found shot dead, Inspector Jacques Clouseau is the first official on the scene. All evidence suggests Maria Gambrelli, the maid, to be the murderer. ... See full summary »

Director:

Writers:

(screenplay), (screenplay), 2 more credits »
0Check in
0Share...

Watch Now

From $2.99 on Amazon Video

ON DISC

10 Best Action Heroes

We consulted IMDb's Highest-Rated Action-Family Films to came up with 10 scene-stealing action figures your kids can relate to, look up to, and be inspired by.

Visit our Family Entertainment Guide

User Lists

Related lists from IMDb users

a list of 27 titles
created 14 Apr 2011
 
a list of 37 titles
created 09 Jan 2012
 
a list of 41 titles
created 10 Jul 2013
 
a list of 48 titles
created 15 Dec 2013
 
a list of 43 titles
created 8 months ago
 

Related Items

Connect with IMDb


Share this Rating

Title: A Shot in the Dark (1964)

A Shot in the Dark (1964) on IMDb 7.6/10

Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.

Take The Quiz!

Test your knowledge of A Shot in the Dark.

User Polls

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 2 nominations. See more awards »

Videos

Photos

Learn more

People who liked this also liked... 

Comedy | Crime | Mystery
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.1/10 X  

Inspector Clouseau is put on the case when the Pink Panther diamond is stolen, with the Phantom's trademark glove the only clue.

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: Peter Sellers, Christopher Plummer, Catherine Schell
Comedy | Crime
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X  

Bumbling and conceited French police inspector Clouseau tries to catch The Phantom, a daring jewel thief whose identity and features are unknown - and is acting right under his nose.

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: David Niven, Peter Sellers, Robert Wagner
Comedy | Crime | Mystery
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6.7/10 X  

To prove that he still is strong and powerful, Philippe Douvier decides to kill Clouseau. Once news of his "death" has been announced, Clouseau tries to take advantage of it and goes undercover with Cato to find out who tried to kill him.

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom, Burt Kwouk
Comedy | Crime | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X  

Charles Dreyfus threatens to destroy the world with a doomsday device if Inspector Clouseau is not killed. Naturally, this is far harder than it sounds.

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom, Lesley-Anne Down
Comedy | Crime | Mystery
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4.9/10 X  

Inspector Clouseau mysteriously disappears and a journalist attempts to uncover the mystery. New scenes are interspersed with old footage of Peter Sellers from the previous films.

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: Peter Sellers, David Niven, Herbert Lom
The Party (1968)
Comedy
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X  

A clerical mistake results in a bumbling film extra being invited to an exclusive Hollywood party instead of being fired.

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: Peter Sellers, Claudine Longet, Natalia Borisova
Comedy | Crime | Mystery
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4.9/10 X  

A string of robberies has occurred in Britain and it's up to Inspector Clouseau to catch them.

Director: Bud Yorkin
Stars: Alan Arkin, Frank Finlay, Delia Boccardo
Comedy | Crime | Mystery
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 4.3/10 X  

Inspector Clouseau disappears, and the Surete wants the world's second best detective to look for him. However, Clouseau's enemy, Dreyfus, rigs the Surete's computer to select, instead, the... See full summary »

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: David Niven, Robert Wagner, Herbert Lom
Comedy
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 3.7/10 X  

Charles Dreyfus encounters Jacques Gambrelli, who reminds him painfully of Inspector Clouseau, the man who drove him insane. With good reason: Gambrelli is Clouseau's son.

Director: Blake Edwards
Stars: Roberto Benigni, Herbert Lom, Claudia Cardinale
Comedy | Mystery | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X  

Five famous literary detective characters and their sidekicks are invited to a bizarre mansion to solve an even stranger mystery.

Director: Robert Moore
Stars: Peter Falk, Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers
Comedy | Crime
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X  

Five diverse oddball criminal types planning a bank robbery rent rooms on a cul-de-sac from an octogenarian widow under the pretext that they are classical musicians.

Director: Alexander Mackendrick
Stars: Alec Guinness, Peter Sellers, Cecil Parker
Being There (1979)
Comedy | Drama
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8/10 X  

A simple, sheltered gardener becomes an unlikely trusted advisor to a powerful businessman and an insider in Washington politics.

Director: Hal Ashby
Stars: Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Melvyn Douglas
Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
...
...
...
Dominique Ballon
Graham Stark ...
Moira Redmond ...
Simone
Vanda Godsell ...
Madame LaFarge
Maurice Kaufmann ...
Pierre
Ann Lynn ...
Dudu
David Lodge ...
Georges
André Maranne ...
Martin Benson ...
Maurice
...
Reginald Beckwith ...
Receptionist at nudist camp
Edit

Storyline

When rich M. Ballon's spanish driver is found shot dead, Inspector Jacques Clouseau is the first official on the scene. All evidence suggests Maria Gambrelli, the maid, to be the murderer. But Clouseau, being attracted to the beautiful girl, is convinced that she is hiding something. So, he has her released from jail and tries to follow her secretly. Things do not work out the way the inspector wanted and people keep being murdered, and each time innocent Maria seems to be the killer. But with someone important wanting Clouseau and nobody else to cover this case, his tolerance-challenged boss Charles Dreyfuss is close to losing his mind when casualties keep turning up. And Clouseau keeps on causing trouble without knowing it... Written by Julian Reischl <julianreischl@mac.com>

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

... The Picture That Gets Away With Murder! See more »

Genres:

Comedy | Mystery

Certificate:

Approved | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
Edit

Details

Country:

|

Language:

|

Release Date:

23 June 1964 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Quand l'inspecteur s'emmêle  »

Filming Locations:

 »

Company Credits

Production Co:

 »
Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

(Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1
See  »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to the liner notes of the film's first DVD release (before The Pink Panther (1963) box set), the audience enjoyed the Inspector Closeau cartoon that played over the credits so much that the entire preview audience applauded and gave the cartoon a standing ovation, to which the theater had to stop the movie until everyone settled again. See more »

Goofs

When Clouseau walks up to the bench where Dudu is "sitting" while at the nudist colony, it is obvious that Peter Sellers is wearing dark-colored swim trunks while holding the guitar. See more »

Quotes

Clouseau: There is something... personal... in this?
Dreyfus: Yes, deeply personal. I hate you! Every little bit of you! Now get out!
Clouseau: You want me to leave?
See more »

Crazy Credits

The credits are presented in a cartoon sequence with wording appearing on pieces of paper held by the cartoon characters, and so on. See more »

Connections

Spin-off The Great De Gaulle Stone Operation (1965) See more »

Soundtracks

Shadows of Paris
Music by Henry Mancini
Lyrics by Robert Wells
Performed by Fran Jeffries
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.

User Reviews

 
"If I Had Ten Clousseaus I Could Destroy The World"
21 March 2008 | by (Buffalo, New York) – See all my reviews

The popularity of Peter Sellers's Inspector Clousseau from the The Pink Panther it warranted the bumbling French detective getting center stage in what turned out to be a series of films. For the rest of his life Sellers was assured of movie profits by just making another Clousseau film.

A Shot In the Dark also introduced two new characters to the series, Clousseau's supervisor Chief Inspector Dreyfus played by Herbert Lom and his houseboy/karate teacher Kato who was played by Bert Kwouk. Dreyfus became almost as popular as Clousseau himself. Herbert Lom's career had been spent playing mostly villains and pretty serious and deadly ones at that.

Inspector Clousseau can best be described as a human train wreck. The slightest motion on his part is a recipe for disaster. Best to be about ten feet from him at any given time and even that won't always work. His klutziness drives Lom to the brink of insanity here and in future films, he crossed over the line.

But he's got instincts which is why I'm sure he remains an inspector of the Surete. He draws a case involving a murder at wealthy baron George Sanders's house and it seems kind of open and shut that the maid, Elke Sommer did it. But Sellers listens to his hormones talking and refuses to make the arrest. And as more dead bodies keep piling up around Sommer, the more Sellers listens to that voice south of the Equator.

With Clousseau, Peter Sellers joins the ranks of such great cinema clowns as Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel. Sit back and don't eat while watching A Shot In The Dark, you won't be able to hold it down.


17 of 19 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
Funny? kevin-359
Anyone think The Pink Panther movies are great!!! charlessykwalk63
Who sings the song and what is the title? briankal
Which Clouseau film was this? IronRabbit
Has any one figured out who did what? ftgplus4
musical sound effect bimbim14
Discuss A Shot in the Dark (1964) on the IMDb message boards »

Contribute to This Page

Create a character page for:
?