The Life and Death of Peter Sellers (2004)

Director:

Stephen Hopkins

Writers (WGA):

Roger Lewis (book)
Christopher Markus (teleplay) ...

Release Date:

26 August 2004 (Australia)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Tagline:

Never judge a man by his cover.

Plot:

The feature adaptation of Roger Lewis' book about the actor best remembered as Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies.

Plot Keywords:

Actor | Bumbling | Clouseau | Fame | Peter Sellers

Awards:

Won 2 Golden Globes. Another 17 wins & 23 nominations

Cast

Geoffrey Rush	...	Peter Sellers
Charlize Theron	...	Britt Ekland
Emily Watson	...	Anne Sellers
John Lithgow	...	Blake Edwards
Miriam Margolyes	...	Peg Sellers
Peter Vaughan	...	Bill Sellers
Sonia Aquino	...	Sophia Loren
Stanley Tucci	...	Stanley Kubrick
Stephen Fry	...	Maurice Woodruff
Henry Goodman	...	Dennis Selinger
Alison Steadman	...	Casting Agent
Peter Gevisser	...	Ted Levy
David Robb	...	Dr. Lyle Wexler
Edward Tudor-Pole	...	Spike Milligan (as Edward Tudor Pole)
Steve Pemberton	...	Harry Secombe

Runtime:

122 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Germany:12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | Iceland:L | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:13 | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-11 | Netherlands:12 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | Singapore:M18

Filming Locations:

Biltmore Estate - 1 Approach Road, Asheville, North Carolina, USA

Company:

HD Vision Studios

Trivia:

Although the scenes featuring Emilia Fox's performance as Sellers' fourth wife Lynn Frederick were left out of the final cut, Fox is still visible in the background of the scene showing the filming of a scene from Being There. She is the blonde woman standing behind the cameraman, when we see the crew behind Peter Sellers/Geoffrey Rush. In a deleted scene on the DVD we see a continuation of this scene, after the take is over Lynn tries to talk to Sellers but he remains in character of the simpleton Chance.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Sellers, along with some ladies, is seen riding in a stretch limousine version of a late-1980s Mercury Grand Marquis. This scene is supposed to be set sometime between Sellers' divorce from Britt Ekland in 1968 and the filming of The Pink Panther Strikes Again in 1976, and Sellers died in 1980, years before this car was was in production.

Quotes:

Peter Sellers: Your father is a useless, talentless, empty man. Did you know that?
Sarah Sellers: Yes, Daddy.

Movie Connections:

Features Carlton-Browne of the F.O. (1959)

Soundtrack:

It's Not Unusual

I thought Geoffrey Rush's performance was fantastic and makes the movie totally worth watching.

The story begins with the Goons and ends just after his role in the movie, Being There, thirty years later. A lot of the film features recreations of famous moments in Seller's acting life, such as appearing on "The Goons" or in "The Pink Panther". There are some particularly hilarious insights into his development of the "Inspector Clouseau" character, including an explanation of why he ended up hating the character so much.

As such, it really only touches the surface of his life story, but it does give you an intense understanding of the character. A character which, in the style of Greek tragedy, had a major flaw. For me, the flaw was Seller's total lack of confidence, perhaps due to his appearance, which he appears constantly to have overcompensated for.

Curiously enough, since Sellers is shown portraying great emotions, I was never actually moved myself, except perhaps for the occasion when he is violent towards Britt Ekland and in a particularly galling moment with his children.

The movie reaches its crescendo with Sellers' performance in "Being There" in which it's suggested the reason why Sellers so wanted to play the man without a personality was because he, himself, had no personality.

A few people at my workplace commented they thought the movie was far too stylized. Although I can see their point, and I agree I was never really touched by the movie, I thought Geoffrey Rush's performance more than made up for this. Rush plays not only Sellers, but several other characters in a Sellers-like "Dr Strangelove" kind of way, and achieves all of it with gusto. I also really enjoyed the performance of Miriam Margoyles as Sellers' mother, Peg, with whom he seems to have enjoyed an intense, almost Oedipal relationship.

I thought Geoffrey Rush's performance was fantastic and makes the movie totally worth watching.