Review of Peter Sellers Box Set

Introduction

Peter Sellers starred in countless movies, but to most will be remembered as the bumbling Inspector Jacques Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies. Sellers` career included appearances in Dr Strangelove, Stanley Kubrick`s infamous Lolita, The Mouse That Roared, Casino Royale and many other films from 1951 to 1980 when he died of a heart attack.

The Peter Sellers Box Set contains four movies, Hoffman, Two Way Stretch, Carlton-Browne Of The F.O. and The Smallest Show On Earth.

In this review, I`ll take a look two of the above movies.

Video

Carlton-Browne Of The F.O.
This movie was made in 1959 and is presented in full-frame black and white. The image is relatively clean given that it is 42 years old, but does display some dirt and scratches and a hint of grain. There is a slight flicker at times, but overall the picture is of the same quality that you would expect to see it broadcast on television.

Hoffman
This movie was made in 1970 and is presented in 16:9 anamorphic widescreen in colour. The image is suffers from much more dirt and scratching than the earlier movie, and the picture lacks focus and detail, is often dark and in general is below par.

Audio

Sound for both movies comes in Dolby Digital Mono and in each case the quality of sound reflects the age of the film rather than the reproduction on the DVD.

The sound effects and any incidental music are replayed adequately and the dialogue is clear and understandable at all times.

Features

Neither disc contains any extras and each has a static menu with a picture of Sellers and a small copy of the film`s cover artwork.

Conclusion

Carlton-Browne Of The F.O. is the sort of easy-viewing movie that you might find on television on a bank holiday afternoon and is less than enthralling throughout it`s 86 minute running time. Whilst supposed to be a comedy about Britain`s attempts to cash in on a far-flung colony, the film is never amusing and does not stand out from countless other movies from this period. The performances aren`t especially good, and the film is mainly shot indoors, with little visual appeal to help out a weak plot. Overall, this is best left consigned to the archives.

Hoffman is a very different movie, although not necessarily any more entertaining. Whilst the plot offers some interest when a businessman blackmails his attractive secretary into spending a weekend with him, the film is inherently uninteresting despite good performances from both Sellers and Sinéad Cusack. The movie is slow and struggled to hold my attention for the 113 minute running time and it wasn`t helped by the mediocre picture quality.

Overall, the two films that I watched from this collection haven`t inspired me to watch the others. Maybe I`ll keep my memories of Peter Sellers pointing at Inspector Clouseau.