THE PINK PANTHER 2 is the surprising sequel to the original Steve Martin movie which I thought would have done too badly to merit a follow-up. Apparently not. This one's as doleful as the first, as evinced by the shockingly ridiculous opening sequence of Clouseau parking his car with disastrous effect. This could have been a funny scene in the right hands, but the way they've shot it makes it just overblown and unfunny.

Our bumbling hero is on the trail of a diamond thief, with the biggest novelty coming from having rival detectives accompanying him (Andy Garcia is welcome in particular). Emily Mortimer and Jean Reno reprise their roles from the original while John Cleese takes over the role of Dreyfus. The slapstick is even broader than before while the plotless, set-piece narrative does Martin and co. no favours.

I didn't like the first movie either, but it had its moments. Apart from great music, a fun title sequence and Emily Mortimer and Jean Reno trying their best, there is little else to like about this sequel which both repeats and amplifies the mistakes of the first. The editing could have been tighter and less sloppy, the story is rushed and predictable, the script and gags are unfunny with a complete disregard for subtlety particularly the scene with the Pope and the ending, the chemistry between Clousseau and Dreyfuss is almost non-existent and the direction is bland. Alfred Molina and Jeremy Irons are fine actors but their (spirited) performances are hampered by the poor writing and badly written characters and Andy Garcia's stereotypical character rubs you up the wrong way. Once again, Steve Martin tries too hard and overdoes it,and I also noticed a bit of racism the part with the Chinese man being the worst offender. All in all, sorely lacking both as a sequel and film. 3/10 Bethany Cox

Tornado has stolen many of the world's treasures. A dream team of detectives is recruited to find the thief. Chief Dreyfus expects to be picked but they want Clouseau (Steve Martin). Gendarme Ponton (Jean Reno) is his sidekick and his assistant Nicole Durant (Emily Mortimer) is now his secret girlfriend. Dreyfus takes charge of the Pink Panther diamond and it gets stolen. The dream team with Italian Vicenzo Brancaleone (Andy García), British Randall Pepperidge (Alfred Molina), Tornado expert Sonia Solandres and Kenji Mazuto arrives in Paris. Mrs. Berenger (Lily Tomlin) tries to teach Clouseau some simple manners.

I've never found Steve Martin's fake accent that funny. The movie has even more fake accents than before. I don't find many things in this movie funny. I love Martin and I don't hate the attempt. I'm just disappointed. The new franchise still misses Cato. In this one, they try to replace him with two little kids. It's not the same thing. Jean Reno is still not funny. The unfunny parts of the movie are the only compelling things. The romance with Nicole and the actual investigation kept me watching but that's not the point of a Pink Panther movie. It's suppose to be funny.