Restored in sparkling 4K, the film’s jet‑set glamour finally looks as expensive as everyone keeps insisting it is. From champagne‑drenched parties to slapstick disasters that should’ve required medical attention, every frame pops with color, charm, and Henry Mancini’s earworm of a theme. It’s the birth of an icon, the launchpad for a franchise, and proof that sometimes the funniest man in the room is the one who has absolutely no idea what’s going on.

Kino Lorber’s new 4K release of The Pink Panther is the kind of upgrade that makes you realize just how much champagne‑soaked, jet‑set absurdity Blake Edwards packed into this movie. The transfer is crisp enough to reveal every last bead of sweat on Peter Sellers’ brow as he tries to maintain Clouseau’s delusional dignity. Colors pop, the Italian and French locations finally look like actual places instead of postcard smudges, and the grain is preserved in that “yes, this was shot on film, deal with it” way that Gen X cinephiles secretly judge younger viewers for not appreciating. It’s a handsome disc — the kind that makes you want to pour a martini and pretend you own a chalet.

The film itself remains a fizzy, slightly chaotic caper about the legendary Pink Panther diamond, a jewel with a flaw shaped like a leaping cat and a habit of attracting thieves, aristocrats, and Inspector Clouseau’s professional humiliation. The plot is basically: glamorous people gather in glamorous places while a master thief (David Niven) tries to outwit everyone, including Clouseau, who is too busy tripping over furniture to notice his wife (Capucine) is actively sabotaging him. It’s important because this is ground zero — the moment the Clouseau character enters the cultural bloodstream, the moment slapstick gets re‑weaponized for the modern era, and the moment Henry Mancini’s theme becomes permanently lodged in humanity’s collective brainstem.

The defining moment — the one that still lands, still works, still makes you laugh even if you’ve seen it 40 times on cable — is Clouseau’s gloriously incompetent attempt to maintain authority while everything around him collapses. Whether it’s the globe gag, the fireplace fiasco, or the ski‑lodge pratfalls, Sellers plays Clouseau as a man who believes he is the smartest person in the room while the universe gently, repeatedly proves otherwise. It’s the kind of comedy Gen X grew up absorbing through osmosis: the hero is a fool, the fool is the hero, and the joke is that he never realizes he’s the joke.

Sellers is, of course, the gravitational center. His Clouseau isn’t fully weaponized yet — the accent is still evolving, the physicality still warming up — but the DNA is unmistakable. He moves like a man whose bones are made of rubber bands and misplaced confidence. Around him, the supporting cast sparkles: David Niven oozes suave criminal charm, Claudia Cardinale radiates regal mischief, Robert Wagner is peak early‑60s pretty‑boy energy, and Capucine steals entire scenes with a single arched eyebrow. They’re all playing in different comedic registers, yet somehow Edwards keeps the tone balanced, like a cocktail shaker full of farce, elegance, and mild marital treachery.

In the end, this 4K release is a reminder of why The Pink Panther still matters. It’s not just the birth of an iconic character — it’s a snapshot of a moment when Hollywood let itself be silly, stylish, and a little bit horny without apology. It’s a comedy that doesn’t care if you catch every joke because it knows the next pratfall is coming anyway. And in glorious 4K, the whole thing feels newly alive, like a vintage record cleaned and dropped onto a turntable. If you want a movie that still hits, still charms, and still makes you laugh at the sheer audacity of human incompetence, this is your diamond.

Slip this disc into your player and prepare for jewel heists, mistaken identities, and the kind of elegant chaos only the 1960s could produce. The Pink Panther has never looked sharper — even if Clouseau hasn’t.

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray Edition

Home Video Distributor: Kino Lorber
Available on Blu-ray - January 13, 2026
Screen Formats: 2.35:1
Subtitles: English SDH
Video: Dolby Vision
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Discs: 4K Ultra HD; Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set
Region Encoding: 4K region-free; blu-ray locked to Region A

A priceless diamond, a master thief with impeccable tailoring, and the world’s most catastrophically confident inspector collide in Blake Edwards’ fizzy caper classic. Peter Sellers makes his grand entrance as Inspector Jacques Clouseau, a man whose investigative technique consists mostly of tripping over furniture and assuming he’s brilliant. Meanwhile, suave criminal Sir Charles Lytton (David Niven) slinks through ski lodges and hotel suites, Claudia Cardinale brings royal chaos, Robert Wagner smolders in that early‑60s way, and Capucine quietly steals the whole movie with a single smirk.

VIDEO

The 4K transfer on Kino Lorber’s Pink Panther is the kind of glow‑up that makes you wonder how we ever tolerated the old discs. The native 4K scan finally lets the film’s jet‑set locations breathe — the ski‑lodge whites are no longer blown out, the Italian interiors actually have texture, and the color timing restores that early‑60s “champagne and cigarette haze” vibe instead of the flat pastel wash previous releases leaned on.

Grain is intact and beautifully resolved, giving the movie that tactile filmic shimmer Gen X purists will absolutely lord over anyone who thinks streaming is “basically the same.” Even the shadows behave now, revealing details that used to be swallowed whole on Blu‑ray. It’s crisp, classy, and just imperfect enough to remind you this was shot on real film by real humans wearing real turtlenecks.

AUDIO

The audio on Kino Lorber’s Pink Panther 4K release is one of those upgrades that doesn’t scream for attention but quietly reminds you how much a movie like this depends on its soundscape. The mix is clean, warm, and surprisingly full for a 1963 production — the kind of restoration where you suddenly notice how much Henry Mancini’s score is doing to carry the film’s entire vibe. That iconic theme slinks in with sharper brass, richer bass, and a clarity that makes you appreciate just how cheeky and precise the arrangement really is.

Dialogue sits comfortably up front, no longer muffled or buried under ambient noise, and Sellers’ muttered asides and wounded‑pride grumbles finally land with the timing they deserve. Even the foley — footsteps, pratfalls, clinking glasses, the soft chaos of ski lodge farce — feels more dimensional, giving the comedy a tactile presence it never quite had on older discs. It’s not a flashy overhaul, but it’s a respectful, well‑balanced one that lets the film breathe and sparkle without sanding off its vintage charm.

Supplements:

Commentary:

• The 4K disc comes with an audio commentary — and it’s the same Blake Edwards track that’s been floating around on earlier releases, now paired with a transfer that finally does the movie justice. It’s very much a “director reminiscing about a film he didn’t realize would become a cultural monolith” kind of commentary: loose, anecdotal, occasionally dry, but full of those little production tidbits Gen X film nerds love to drop into conversations like they discovered them personally. It’s not a fireworks show, but it’s a solid archival piece that plays nicely over the new restoration, especially when Edwards talks about Sellers’ early Clouseau experiments or the logistical chaos of shooting all that jet‑set glamour on a budget that wasn’t nearly as glamorous as it looks.

Special Features:

The special features package on Kino Lorber’s Pink Panther 4K feels like a curated time capsule — part film‑school primer, part nostalgia trip, part “oh wow, they actually dug that up.” It’s not overloaded, but what’s here is genuinely useful, especially if you’re the kind of Gen‑X viewer who still remembers when DVD extras were an event. The archival commentary gives you the production gossip, the featurettes sketch out how Sellers and Edwards built Clouseau from a one‑off supporting role into a full‑blown cultural phenomenon, and the vintage promo materials add that perfect whiff of 1960s studio hype. It’s a tidy, respectful set that complements the 4K restoration without padding the disc with filler.

• Audio commentary by Blake Edwards
• The Making of The Pink Panther featurette
• Vintage behind‑the‑scenes promotional materials
• Cast and crew interviews (archival)
• Theatrical trailer
• Image gallery with production stills and poster art

	Movie
	Video
	Audio
	Extras
Composite Blu-ray Grade

MPAA Rating: Approved.
Runtime: 115 mins
Director: Blake Edwards
Writer: Maurice Richlin; Blake Edwards
Cast: David Niven; Peter Sellers; Robert Wagner
Genre: Comedy | Caper
Tagline: You only live once... so see the Pink Panther twice.
Memorable Movie Quote: "Take your filthy hands off my asp!"
Theatrical Distributor: United Artists
Official Site:
Release Date: March 18, 1964
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: January 13, 2026.
Synopsis: The bumbling Inspector Clouseau travels to Rome to catch a notorious jewel thief known as "The Phantom" before he conducts his most daring heist yet: a princess' priceless diamond with one slight imperfection, known as "The Pink Panther"