Line #2 Film/SonOfThePinkPanther


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sonofthepinkpantherposter_6.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:He's clumsy and he's clever. He's courageous and he's commited. But most importantly, he's a "''Clouseau''"!]]
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4	->'''Dreyfus:''' I knew a man once named "Jacques". When he died ten years ago, I said "Thank god there can never, never be another one like him... and then I... I met your son!"
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6	''Son of the Pink Panther'' is a 1993 comedy and crime drama film and the final installment in the original ''Franchise/ThePinkPanther'' franchise, as well as the last film directed by Creator/BlakeEdwards. Just like the last one, this film once again tried to continue the series with a new bufoonish lead. This time, Creator/RobertoBenigni plays Jacques Gambrelli, the equally-inept son of Clouseau.
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8	In Lugash, the young Princess Yasmin is kidnapped by Hans Zarba and his crew, who demand that her father, King Haroak, renounce his throne. The case is assigned to the once-again-Commissioner Dreyfus, who unknowingly runs into Hans and his crew on the road. They’re both accompanied by a rather unexpected visitor; a dopey French gendarme named Jacques Gambrelli, prone to many familiar mannerisms and quirks that make Dreyfus tick. [[spoiler: After meeting with Jacques’ mother, Maria (Clouseau’s love interest in A Shot in the Dark), Dreyfus’s suspicions are finally answered;]]
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10	[[spoiler: Jacques is indeed the Illegitimate son of the famed Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau, a fact that neither father or son were allowed to know.]]
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12	When Jacques is assigned to the kidnapping case, filled with new-found determination, he must fill the shoes of his [[spoiler: infamous father’s bumbling legacy as “Detective Jacques Clouseau Jr.”]] to rescue Yasmin from the clutches of Zarba and his gang.
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14	Not to be confused with ''Pink Panther and Sons'', a spin-off of WesternAnimation/ThePinkPanther cartoons.
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16	----
17	!!This film provides examples of:
18	* ACappella: The opening rendition of the Pink Panther theme is sung this way by famed acappella artist Music/BobbyMcFerrin.
19	* AgonyOfTheFeet: The Pink Panther gets his foot crushed by a cutout of Jacques' face just before the credits roll.
20	* AnimatedCreditsOpening: 'Son' was the first film in the series to put a spin on the opening titles, having them be a animated and live-action blend with the animated Panther and Gambrelli interact in a recording studio to an [[ACappella acapella rendition of the iconic series theme tune]].
21	* AxCrazy: Subverted by [[spoiler: Charles Dreyfus. Unlike virtually every other film prior, Dreyfus manages to keep from going insane despite discovering that Jacques Gambrelli is really Jacques Closeau's son. This allows Dreyfus to finally get a happy ending.]]
22	* BroadStrokes: The film ignores the events of ''Film/CurseOfThePinkPanther'', as Maria mentions that Clouseau died 10 years prior to the film's events, but appears to have canonised a few aspects of [[TheOtherDarrin Alan Arkin]]'s version of Clouseau, specifically his "singing" style.
23	** Actually, Curse of the Pink Panther may not have been ignored; dialogue only ''states'' that Clouseau died, but he was only declared legally dead at the end of Curse due to Clifton being given a photograph of the man who was killed at the start of that movie and being told that's what Clouseau had his appearance changed to. Maria and Dreyfuss only assume he's dead due to Clouseau having been declared legally so. He may very well have still been with Countess Chandra during the events of this film.
24	* {{Catchphrase}}: Jacques' "That felt gewd!"
25	* TheCameo: The composer handing the conductor's baton to the Pink Panther in the prologue is Henry Mancini playing himself in an extremely rare on-screen appearance.
26	** Graham Stark, who appeared in several of the prior panther films playing roles such as Clouseau's partner, Hercule Lajoy, makes an appearance as Prof. Auguste Balls, reprising the role from Film/RevengeOfThePinkPanther.
27	** Played with with Burt Kwouk, who also returns as Clouseau's loyal manservant, Cato. He's got a bigger role than a cameo, but it takes awhile for the film to bring his character back, and he's definitely a smaller supporting role than the others in the film.
28	* CoolBike: In the beginning of the film, Jacques patrols the countryside on a blue motorbike. He loses it after falling off a pier and into a harbour.
29	* DroppedABridgeOnHim: [[spoiler: After being caught in the explosion, Dreyfus spends a good portion of the rest of the film in a hospital bed. He recovers towards the end.]]
30	* DarkerAndEdgier: This film has been noted for being slightly more darker than all the rest, due in part to the villains kidnapping of Yasmin, and the surprisingly-high body-count.
31	* EndOfAnAge: This would prove to be not only the final Edwards-directed film in the series, but also his last movie period as he retired after this film tanked, only directing a stage adaption of his 1982 film Film/VictorVictoria afterwards in 1995. This was also the final work of both composer Music/HenryMancini who died from pancreatic cancer the next year in 1994, and actor Creator/HerbertLom who didn't appear in anymore films until his retirement in 2009 and his passing in 2012, though he was in several episodes of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple in the 2000s.
32	* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Jacques
33	* ForgotICouldntSwim: Jacques crashes his bicycle into the river and shouts for help as he can't swim. Dreyfus immediately dives in, forgetting his own inability to swim and starts flailing about in the water. Jacques, who appears to be floating, says he can't swim either and Dreyfus asks why he isn't drowning. Jacques points out the water is shallow enough to stand in, at which point Dreyfus stands up and the two share a good laugh.
34	* HumiliationConga: [[spoiler: Dreyfus ends up in the water on his first meeting with Jacques. At his mother's house, after discovering Jacques is Clouseau's illegitimate son from Maria, Dreyfus goes into the kitchen and a bomb goes off intended for Jacques. He makes it out of the kitchen and Maria's dog humps his leg before he collapses unconscious. At the hospital, Jacques unintentionally puts Dreyfus through the ringer with his adjustable hospital bed. Then after things have settled down for the poor guy and he's married Maria and found happiness, Dreyfus gets introduced to Jacques' equally clumsy ''twin sister ''Jacqueline and more hi jinks ensue.]]
35	* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Considering his lengthy history with Clouseau, [[spoiler: Dreyfus takes the news that Jacques Gambrelli is Clouseau's illegitimate son about as well as you would expect. However, he's much more patient with Gambrelli than he was with Clouseau, and aids him as much as he can, even after Jacques' almost accidentally kills him trying to help him with his adjustable hospital bed, He even falls in love with Jacques' mother Maria, and makes the eyes wide open decision to marry Maria and thus become Jacques' stepfather, which is a huge development for the character, and shows that Dreyfus has finally made peace with his grudge over Clouseau.]]
36	* LastEpisodeNewCharacter: ''MANY'' new characters! And the audience is only familiar with around '''six-and-a-half''' of them!
37	* {{Leitmotif}}: Jacques is given a theme that very closely echos the original Inspector Clouseau theme, right down to the key.
38	* MythologyGag: Claudia Cardinale plays Maria Grambrelli. Claudia Cardinale had previously played Princess Dala in the original 1963 film and was cast as Maria instead of the role being reprised by Elke Sommer due to her not returning. This may have been because Sommer was working on a TV show and a movie while Son was in production, wasn't interested in reprising the role, or just plain wasn't asked to return.
39	** In Jacques' bedroom, he has two ceramic figurines of Creator/LaurelAndHardy as they appeared in the 1960s Creator/HannaBarbera cartoons. They were actually one of Creator/PeterSellers and Creator/BlakeEdwards' main inspirations for Inspector Clouseau.
40	* PetTheDog: [[spoiler: After being driven murderously insane and accidentally killing innocent people numerous times, getting fired from the force and institutionalized at least once, being vaporized by his own DoomsdayDevice, getting into a car accident, and sustaining dozens of injuries ranging from a rake handle smacking him in the noggin to ''accidentally shooting himself in the face'', Dreyfus finally gets a happy ending where he marries Clouseau's former fling. Even more stunning, he becomes the stepfather to Closeau's illegitimate son. Considering the history between Dreyfus and Clouseau in all the films prior, it cannot be overstated how big of a deal this is for Dreyfus to do. But, being Dreyfus, he still gets one last surprise.]]
41	* RearrangeTheSong: The Pink Panther Theme. What else?
42	** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbQDjAx0n3I The opening titles variant]], as mentioned above, have been given an ACappella treatment with vocals by Music/BobbyMcFerrin.
43	** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSXfHWRrkA8 The end titles variant]] returns to the traditional performance of the theme, with the classic swinging brass and tenor saxophone played by Phil Todd. It also includes a soft flute solo likely inspired by the arrangements from ''Trail''.
44	* RogerRabbitEffect: The opening titles of the film are animated this way, with the Pink Panther and Gambrelli caricature animated over live-action footage of a recording studio.
45	* TookALevelInKindness: Dreyfus is noticeably nicer this film than in the previous entries, not hesitating to dive into a river in an attempt to save Jacques from drowning despite his own inability to swim, immediately apologizing to Maria after an insult towards Clouseau slips out, and, despite Jacques mannerisms, not letting his experiences with his father cloud in his opinion of him.

Context Film / SonOfThePinkPanther