USA: An all-star cast walks the "pink" carpet for the premiere of "The Pink Panther 2"
Record ID:
219826
USA: An all-star cast walks the "pink" carpet for the premiere of "The Pink Panther 2"
- Title: USA: An all-star cast walks the "pink" carpet for the premiere of "The Pink Panther 2"
- Date: 4th February 2009
- Summary: NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (JANUARY 22, 2009) (REUTERS) AISHWARYA RAI ON THE RED CARPET (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR STEVE MARTIN, SAYING: "Well it was at first, but now we're in our second one so it's less daunting. At first it's daunting because Peter Sellers was the great master, but now it's daunting because you want to do a good job and you want the movie to be really really funny." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS AISHWARYA RAI, SAYING: "Like you said, it was just a stellar ensemble, working on a genre like this. Steve Martin is an institution, I've watched his cinema growing up, and all the actors on board, it's just, the fantastic spirit of the movie itself that people have come on board with, and I was happy to belong, and just be part of a movie that you know a family out there is going to enjoy. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR JEAN RENO, SAYING: "You know, it's like playing tennis, when you play tennis with a good player, it is a good tennis, and you take pleasure doing that. When you are with a good cast, pro, it is easy and very tasty in fact." STEVE MARTIN TALKING TO A REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTOR ANDY GARCIA, SAYING: "Well there's an old saying, 'comedy is a serious business.' I think, Steve is known as a comedian, but that doesn't mean he can't be a dramatic actor, I mean, I think we are all actors, and we should be able to be trained and have the sensibility to do drama and to do comedy, that's what you train yourself as an actor. I don't consider myself a dramatic actor, I just consider myself an actor." (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS EMILY MORTIMER, SAYING: "No it's very easy, the English are very at home with taking the piss out of the French, we have a very ancient rivalry that goes back to the days of William the Conquerer, so it's always a pleasure to make the French look ridiculous." (SOUNDBITE) (English) AISHWARYA RAI, SAYING: "Peter Sellers, yeah, I mean, that is what I was just telling the rest of the media, this was an easy 'yes.' It's a genre we've all grown up on... He's cold, can you imagine me?.... So I was saying, this was an easy yes, it's a family genre, and you know it's a film that everyone is going to enjoy, so I was happy to do it." (SOUNDBITE) (English) STEVE MARTIN, SAYING: "Well, you know, there's an expression they call actors in England, they call them 'lovies,' and it's sort of detrimental, but actually that's true, you kind of sit around all day and you talk and you laugh and you love each other, and you make jokes and tell acting stories, and that's what's really fun on the set to do." (SOUNDBITE) (English) AISHWARYA RAI, ON "SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE," SAYING: "It's just a movie, and that's what it needs to be regarded. It's just another movie." WIDE SHOT OF RED CARPET
- Embargoed: 19th February 2009 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVAC8ANFO537GACEGBTFFQMUBKAE
- Story Text: The all-star cast of "Pink Panther 2" gathered on the "pink" carpet at New York City's Ziegfield Theater Tuesday evening (February 3) to premiere the latest film of the popular franchise that began in the 1960's. Comic actor Steve Martin, who reprises his role as Detective Jacques Clouseau in the sequel to 2006's "Pink Panther," joined his multi-national co-stars Aishwarya Rai, Jean Reno, Emily Mortimer, and Andy Garcia at the event.
For Martin, taking on the character of Clouseau, the bumbling French detective who has a talent for solving high-profile criminal cases, was no easy task as it meant having to fill the shoes of the legendary Peter Sellers, who starred in the original "Panther" movies. This time around, however, Martin found the most daunting task to be keeping the audience entertained.
"Well it was at first, but now we're in our second one so it's less daunting," says Martin.
"At first it's daunting because Peter Sellers was the great master, but now it's daunting because you want to do a good job and you want the movie to be really really funny."
The film follows Martin's Clouseau as he and an elite, international "dream team" of investigators travel between Rome and Paris, fresh on the case of the missing Pink Panther diamond, as well as other historic artifacts that have been stolen by a world-class thief. For Indian actress Aishwarya Rai, the chance to take part in the film was a great opportunity, because of her fondness for both Peter Sellers and Steve Martin.
"Peter Sellers, yeah, I mean, that is what I was just telling the rest of the media, this was an easy 'yes.' It's a genre we've all grown up on," says Rai.
"Steve Martin is an institution, I've watched his cinema growing up, and all the actors on board."
French actor Jean Reno likens working with such a talented cast to playing a rewarding game of tennis.
"You know, it's like playing tennis, when you play tennis with a good player, it is a good tennis, and you take pleasure doing that," says Reno.
"When you are with a good cast, it is easy and very tasty in fact."
Emily Mortimer plays Martin's love interest in the film, and just like Clouseau, her character speaks with an over-the-top French accent perfected by Sellers. Appearing in "Panther" was good fun for the British actress, as it gave her a chance to rekindle an ancient rivalry almost daily.
"The English are very at home with taking the piss out of the French," says Mortimer. "We have a very ancient rivalry that goes back to the days of William the Conquerer, so it's always a pleasure to make the French look ridiculous."
Also attending the premiere was Indian actor Anil Kapoor, one of the stars of "Slumdog Millionaire," which has been mired in controversy in recent days over the use of the term "slumdog" in its title to refer to India's poor. In Mumbai on Tuesday, dozens of residents from the slum where the Oscar-nominated film was partly shot protested by hurling insults and hitting pictures of its cast and crew with slippers.
When asked if she too is offended by the term "slumdog,"
Aishwarya Rai, had this to say: "It's just a movie, and that's what it needs to be regarded. It's just another movie."
"The Pink Panther 2" also stars Jeremy Irons, Alfred Molina, Lily Tomlin, and John Cleese, and the film opens in the United States on February 6, 2009. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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