The Inspector Wears Skirts – 88 Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1988
Director: Wellson Chin
Writer: Cheng Kam-fu
Cast: Sibelle Hu, Cynthia Rothrock, Kara Hui, Regina Kent, Ellen Chan, Alex To, Billy Lau, Sandra Ng, Ann Bridgewater, Stanley Fung, Michael Chow 

Release Date: December 4th, 2023 (UK), December 26th, 2023 (USA)
Approximate running time: 95 Minutes 47 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 15 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Mono Cantonese, LPCM Mono English
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A,B
Retail Price: £16.99 (UK), $34.95 (USA)

"A team of high-kicking female super cops prove themselves a match for any man alive as they tackle foes from terrorists to jewel thieves." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.5/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "Brand new 2K restoration in 1.85:1 aspect ratio from the original negatives".

The Inspector Wears Skirts comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 40.5 GB

Feature: 28.1 GB

The source used for this transfer is in excellent shape. Flesh tones and colors look correct, image clarity and compression are solid, black levels are strong, and there does not appear to be any digital noise reduction.

Audio: 4.25/5 (LPCM Mono Cantonese), 4/5 (LPCM Mono English)

This release comes with two audio options, a LPCM mono mix in Cantonese and a LPCM mono mix in English. Both audio tracks sound clean, clear, and balanced. Though both of these tracks sound great range-wise, I would give a slight edge to the Cantonese language track. Included are removable English subtitles for the Cantonese language track, a second removable English subtitle track for Cantonese text, and a song that is in Cantonese when watching with the English language track.

Extras:

Extras for this release include an image gallery with music from the film playing in the background, English language theatrical trailer (2 minutes 2 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), Hong Kong theatrical trailer (3 minutes 32 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with removable English subtitles), ”Top Squad” English language version opening and closing titles (2 minutes 47 seconds, Dolby Digital mono English, no subtitles), an interview with director Wellson Chin titled The Director Wears Pants (16 minutes 3 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo Cantonese with removable English subtitles), an interview with actress Cynthia Rothrock titled Shooting Her Shot (16 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), an audio commentary with Frank Djeng, reversible cover art, a double-sided foldout poster (limited to first pressing), a double walled gloss finish O-ring (limited to first pressing), and 32-page booklet (limited to first pressing) with cast & crew information, and an essay titled Girls with Skirts: A Look at ‘The Inspector Wears Skirts’ Role in the Girls with Guns Genre written by Paul Bramhall.

Summary:

Directed by Wellson Chin, who would go on to direct three more The Inspector Wears Skirts films.

The narrative revolves around an all-female squad that has been put together for assignments that their male counterparts cannot do.

Though The Inspector Wears Skirts bills itself as a girls with guns who kick butt film, the result is something that feels like two separate films. The opening and closing scenes are wall-to-wall action, while the rest of the narrative is characters getting to know each other and trying to hook up. That said, in the case of the latter, there is plenty of humor that comes from these moments.

Despite there being a limited amount of action in The Inspector Wears Skirts, when there is action, this film does not disappoint. The opening moments are an elaborate action set piece where the police are protecting a wealthy Arab prince and his wife from ninja assassins. This sequence, like the exceptional action-packed finale, works as well as it does because of Cynthia Rothrock’s (yes, Madam!) presence. She is by far and away the strongest fighter, and the caliber of her fight scenes is miles ahead of the rest of the cast.

Though they may be lacking when it comes to the fight scenes, when it comes to the performances, the cast is very good, especially the female cast. The most memorable performance is by Sandra Ng (Royal Tramp) in the role of Amy, a wise cracking academy trainee who provides most of the comic relief. Other performances of note are Sibelle Hu (My Lucky Stars) in the role of Madame Wu, who's given the task of training the female officers, and Stanley Fung (Winners & Sinners) in the role of Inspector Kan, a character who spends more time flirting with Madame Wu than training male officers at the academy.

There are a lot of great female-led Hong Kong action films. Unfortunately, The Inspector Wears Skirts is not one of them; it is a film that is more concerned with humor than action. The lack of action also carries over into the narrative, which has a few lulls; there is only so much time that can be devoted to characters hanging out and doing silly things. Also, when it comes to some of the humor, it is dated when viewed through the lens of Western culture. Fortunately, for those who are not thin-skinned, most of the humor rarely misses the mark. Ultimately, The Inspector Wears Skirts can be a lot of fun if you go into it with the right frame of mind.

The Inspector Wears Skirts is an excellent release from 88 Films that comes with a solid audio/video presentation and informative extras, recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer