If anyone could step into the huge shoes of comedic genius left by Peter Sellers as bumbling French policeman Jacques Clouseau, it's Steve Martin. Sellers made Clouseau a true icon of character and comedy in five Pink Panther movies in the '60s and '70s; Martin has arguably already attained Sellers' rank as an entertainment talent, so it only makes sense that he became Clouseau's heir apparent for the inevitable screen resurrection. This updated story of the priceless eponymous diamond purloined under mysterious circumstance and pursued with Keystone Cop-like antics by Clouseau is a frivolous yet winning pastiche of physical gags and riffs on Clouseau's hilariously impenetrable accent. A famous French football coach (Jason Statham in cameo mode) is wearing the stone, set as an engagement ring for his pop star fiance (Beyonce Knowles). But before a packed stadium crowd of thousands, the ring disappears from his his fingers as he falls he falls dead by a poison dart.

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The spirit of Motown runs through the long-awaited film adaption of the Broadway musical Dreamgirls, which centers around a young female singing trio who burst upon the music scene in the '60s, complete with bouffant hairdos, glitzy gowns, and a soul sound new to the white-bread American music charts. Sound familiar? You aren't the first one to draw comparisons to the meteoric rise of the Supremes, and despite any protests to the contrary, this is most definitely a thinly veiled reinterpretation of that success story. The Dreamettes--statuesque Deena (Beyonce Knowles), daffy Lorell (Anika Noni Rose) and brassy Effie (Jennifer Hudson)--are a girl group making the talent-show rounds when they're discovered by car salesman and aspiring music manager Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx). Sensing greatness (as well as a new marketing opportunity) Curtis signs the Dreamettes as backup singers for R&B star James "Thunder" Early (Eddie Murphy). But when Early's mercurial ways and singing style don't mesh with primarily white audiences, Curtis moves the newly-renamed Dreams to center stage--with Deena as lead singer in place of Effie. And that's not the only arena in which Effie is replaced, as Curtis abandons their love affair for a relationship with star-in-the-making Deena.