Starting in 1963, Blake Edwards directed Peter Sellers as zee dogged bungler Inspector Jacques Clouseau. Edwards also co-wrote those five comedies. Steve Martin has co-written two knock-offs where he reincarnates Clouseau with slapstick cluelessness. “The Pink Panther 2” is billed as a sequel but that’s a gaffe on par with the verbal pitfalls inflicted by the English-speaking French cop. Dimmer than Martin’s first outing, this one is little more than a remake. Martin and co-writers Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber simply revisit the 2006 set-up. Clouseau is once again on the trail of the legendary diamond that’s named after a flaw resembling the title animal. John Cleese plays his beleaguered, upstaged overseer. Jean Reno and Emily Mortimer return as supporting shtick-sters. Prepare to wince at wasted talent and lame, dated humor whenever Lily Tomlin appears to play a hapless coach on political correctness in the workplace. Director Harald Zwart is about as inept as Clouseau in handling an international “dream team” of investigators. By some accident or another, a brilliant bit with juggling wine bottles slipped into this mediocre rebottling job. With Andy Garcia, Alfred Molina, Yuki Matsuzaki and Aishwarya Rai. 92m. (Bill Stamets)
