To prove that he still is strong and powerful, Philippe Douvier decides to kill Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau. Once Clouseau's death has been announced, the former Chief Inspector, Charles Dreyfus, feels much, much better and is released from the mental hospital. Jacques Clouseau tries to take advantage of his "death" and goes under cover with Cato to find out who tried to assassinate him.
—Lars J. Aas



Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau is dead. At least that is what the world (and Charles Dreyfus) believe when a dead body is discovered in Clouseau's car after being shot off the road. Naturally, Jacques Clouseau knows differently, and taking advantage of not being alive, sets out to discover why an attempt was made on his life. But how will Dreyfus react when he finds out that his dream is really a nightmare?
—Graeme Roy



The French Syndicate has a pending deal with the Americans but the Americans want to pull out. But Douvier, the head of the French says that all the arrangements have been concluded. But the Americans feel that Douvier is no longer as powerful as he once was. Douvier then tells them that to prove that he is still powerful, he will do something to get their attention. He then consults with his asociates for possible acts he could perform. Then one of his people suggest that he eliminate Inspector Clouseau. He tries but Clouseau is just too difficult to kill. He then tries to ambush Clouseau but a thief took his car and clothes, so the thief was the one who was killed but everyone believes that it was Clouseau. Clouseau after being mistaken for a lunatic and being sent to mental hospital, escapes and tries to find out who tried to kill him.
—rcs0411@yahoo.com



Fifth of the Pink Panther series and the last to star Peter Sellers before his untimely death. French mobster, Phillip Douvier has got a problem - hardly none of the other crime families give his family any respect. To try and fix this problem, he gives orders to murder Chief Inspector Clouseau who everybody think is a genius and only a few like Chief Inspector Dreyfus know of his true stupidity. Thanks due to a mixup an escaping criminal dies in Clouseau's car, and it crashes and explodes. Chief Inspector Dreyfus is delighted (so much so that when at the memorial service he tries very hard not to laugh out in delight and everybody thinks he's crying), but Clouseau, wondering who's out to kill him gets the help of his oriental servant Cato and Douvier's secretary and ex-lover Simone Legree to help solve the mystery...
—Lee Horton





SYNOPSIS

A French businessman/mobster named Philippe Douvier (Robert Webber) is making a deal with a New York Mafia for a multimillion-Franc drug-smuggling operation, whose officers suspect Douvier of being too old and no longer strong enough to handle it. Douvier therefore attempts to prove his strength by assassinating Chief Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers).

Douvier's attempt to blow Clouseau up with a bomb fails, and the subsequent attempt by a Chinese martial artist called Mr. Chong (an uncredited appearance by Ed Parker) is thwarted when Clouseau accidentally knocks him out of a window, believing him to be his (Clouseau's) valet Cato, who has orders to keep his employer alert by means of random attacks. That night, Douvier anonymously calls Clouseau and poses as an informant to tell him the whereabouts of an important criminal involved in the French Connection. Despite being warned by Cato (Burt Kwouk), Clouseau drives toward the location, but his car and clothes are stolen at gunpoint by a transvestite criminal named Claude Russo. Russo drives into the trap and is killed by Douvier's men. Subsequently, the majority of people believe Clouseau to be dead.

As a result of this assumption, Clouseau's mad boss, ex-Commissioner Charles Dreyfus (Herbert Lom), is deemed sane, and is to be released from the local mental asylum to try and crack the case, while Douvier's plans continue.

In Russo's clothes, Clouseau is taken to the mental asylum, but escapes into Dreyfus' room. Dreyfus faints at the sight of Clouseau, whom he believed dead, whereupon Clouseau disguises himself as Dreyfus and is driven home in a car by operative François.

At home, Clouseau finds Cato, who (despite having turned Clouseau's apartment into a Chinese-themed brothel) is relieved to see him alive. Having settled Clouseau's initial anger at Cato, the two plan their revenge on the person who ordered Clouseau's assassination, taking advantage of the belief that Clouseau is dead to conduct their investigations.

Dreyfus, led to believe that the man he saw was Claude Russo, is assigned to read a eulogy at Clouseau's funeral. His objections are overridden by political necessity when it is revealed that the speech was composed by the police chief's wife, who apparently is able to dismiss Dreyfus if he refuses to recite. During the recital, Dreyfus is unable to control his laughter at the statements he is obliged to speak, but conceals his amusement by giving the impression that he is weeping rather than laughing. When Clouseau surreptitiously reveals himself among the attendants of the funeral, Dreyfus faints into the burial pit moments before the master of ceremonies completes his oration.

Shortly after his wife threatens him with a divorce, Douvier, needing her respectability and her silence pertaining to his crimes, tells his secretary/paramour Simone LeGree (Dyan Cannon) that their courtship must end. Angry, Simone storms out of Douvier's office, giving an impression that she may blackmail Douvier. Douvier therefore gives orders to have Simone killed at a nightclub called Le Club Phut (a play on the word "clubfoot").

Having been told by a seafaring informant (Alfie Bass) of the possibility of trouble at the nightclub, Clouseau and Cato investigate and accidentally save Simone from being murdered by Douvier's assassins. Clouseau and Cato are separated, because Simone has not noticed Cato and is eager to take Clouseau (whom she considers her savior) home. At Simone's flat, Clouseau tells Simone that he is the supposedly dead Chief Inspector; although Simone denies it- both of them being more than slightly drunk- he eventually convinces her of the truth, prompting her to reveal that Douvier ordered Clouseau's assassination as part of his attempt to impress the American Godfather. When the assassins enter, having tracked them down, Clouseau and Simone escape into the flat below, in which lives Dreyfus. Dreyfus overhears Simone telling Clouseau of Douvier's plans to meet with the New York Mafia Godfather, Julio Scallini, in Hong Kong, but again faints when he sees Clouseau.

Clouseau, Cato, and Simone travel to Hong Kong on a Cathay Pacific Lockheed Tristar jet. Disguised as an archaic Chinese under the name "Mr. Low Key", Clouseau, Cato, and Simone tail Douvier to Hong Kong, unaware that Dreyfus is also after Douvier.

Clouseau impersonates Scallini while Simone distracts the real Scallini, so that Clouseau can uncover Douvier's plans. He succeeds, but the plan goes awry when Clouseau's disguise is exposed. A car chase begins, terminating in a crash. Here, Dreyfus recognizes Clouseau, loses his mind again, and tries to kill him with a Colt Python service revolver, chasing him into a firework warehouse. There, Clouseau eludes Dreyfus, who when trying to hunt him sets the fireworks alight. The resulting explosions, which in turn trigger a chaotic gunfight between all the characters. This leads to the arrests of Douvier and Scallini. Clouseau is awarded for their arrest by the President of France. Thereafter, he and Simone spend an evening together, and talk about their histories.