'' is a
2004 Film about the life of British comic actor
Peter Sellers , based on
Roger Lewis 's
Book Of The Same Name . It was directed by
Stephen Hopkins and starred
Geoffrey Rush as Sellers,
Miriam Margolyes as his mother Peg Sellers,
Emily Watson as his first wife Anne Howe,
Charlize Theron as his second wife
Britt Ekland ,
John Lithgow as
Blake Edwards ,
Stephen Fry as
Maurice Woodruff and
Stanley Tucci as
Stanley Kubrick .
The film shows Peter Sellers as a demented genius, not having a personality of his own. It glimpses his life as a family man and as an actor.
According to the film, Sellers was not too excited about landing a role in ''
Pink Panther '' movies, as the Clouseau character was only offered to him after
Peter Ustinov turned it down. Also, it upset him that Clouseau was only a minor character, with
David Niven 's character getting the bulk of the attention. Sellers' performance impressed
Blake Edwards , though, and Clouseau was made the central character in the hugely successful sequels.
The ''Pink Panther'' films are only a small part of this
Docudrama , however, as it spans Sellers' career from ''
The Goon Show '' through ''
Being There ''. Much emphasis is put on the fact that ''Being There'' (which earned him an
Oscar nomination) was the one film about which Sellers was truly passionate since it was an opportunity to show off his skills as an actor as opposed to simply a comedian (he also reportedly greatly identified with the main character). Sellers is also shown aspiring to be a leading man during a spoof of James Bond ''
Casino Royale '' which prompts ridicule from the film's crew.
Actor Geoffrey Rush stated in interviews that the film was itself structured to be reminiscent of a Peter Sellers film. This included at various times Rush (as Sellers) dressing up to play other characters in his life (several were ultimately editted out, but are included within the special features on the DVD). In these instances he broke the
Fourth Wall to give a monologue to the audience.
Many familiar faces have small roles in the movie;
Ed Tudor-Pole (former
Tenpole Tudor lead singer) plays
Spike Milligan and ''
The League Of Gentlemen '''s
Steve Pemberton plays
Harry Secombe .
Mackenzie Crook of ''
The Office '' also has a small role.
The film won the 2005
Golden Globe award for Best Motion Picture Made for Television and Rush was awarded the Globe's Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture Made for Television.
