The Inspector Wears Skirts 3: Raid on Royal Casino Marine – 88 Films (Blu-ray)

Theatrical Release Date: Hong Kong, 1990
Director: Wellson Chin
Writer: Lee Man-Choi
Cast: Sibelle Hu, Sandra Ng, Kara Hui, Stanley Fung, Billy Lau, Amy Yip, Shing Fui-On, Yip San

Release Date: June 22nd, 2024 (UK), July 9th, 2024 (USA)
Approximate running time: 96 Minutes 39 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: 15 (UK), NR (USA)
Sound: LPCM Mono Cantonese
Subtitles: English
Region Coding: Region A,B
Retail Price: £16.99 (UK), $39.95 (USA)

"Inspector Kan (Stanley Fung), now married to Madame Wu (Sibelle Hu), has been instructed to train the Banshee Squad Members after Madame Wu goes into semi-retirement. For their next mission, the Squad is assigned to go undercover into a Casino Ship to nab a group of thieves responsible for stolen law enforcement and military weapons." - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Here’s the information provided about the transfer, "4K Scan and 2K Remaster from the Original Negatives".

The Inspector Wears Skirts 3: Raid on Royal Casino Marine comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 28.9 GB

Feature: 26.7 GB

The source used for this transfer is in excellent shape. That said, the opening credits do not look as strong as the bulk of the transfer. 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

This release comes with one audio option, a LPCM mono mix in Cantonese with removable English subtitles. The audio is in great shape, the dialog comes through clearly, and everything sounds balanced and robust when it should.

Extras:

Extras for this release include Hong Kong theatrical trailer (4 minutes 8 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Cantonese with burnt-in English subtitles), a deleted scenes (1 minute 55 seconds, Dolby Digital mono Mandarin with burnt-in English and Cantonese subtitles), an audio commentary with Frank Djeng, reversible cover art, a double-sided foldout poster (limited to the first pressing) and a double walled O-ring (limited to the first pressing).

Summary:

Directed by Wellson Chin, who directed four The Inspector Wears Skirts films.

An all-female police squad goes undercover on a cruise ship.

The Inspector Wears Skirts 3: Raid on Royal Casino Marine is a textbook example of “if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Just like its predecessor, the bulk of the narrative is filled with training moments with the all-female police squad. The bulk of the action sequences happen in the final act once an all-female police squad is onboard the cruise ship. And though The Inspector Wears Skirts 3: Raid on Royal Casino Marine, like its predecessors, has some action, all of these films are really just comedies.

This time around, the main difference is Sibelle Hu’s (The Seventh Curse) reduced role. Her character, Madam Wu, was the trainer of the all-female police squad in the first two films. Inspector Kan has taken over her previous role, and they are now married, with her character having retired. That said, though Stanley Fung (Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars) is excellent in the role of Inspector Kan, swapping his character with Madame Wu creates an odd dynamic that is not as effective.

Fortunately, there are several characters from the first two films who take on a much larger role. Notably, Sandra Ng (Royal Tramp) plays the role of Amy, an obnoxious character who was often the butt of the jokes from the first two films. Amy Yip (Robotrix) reprises her role from The Inspector Wears Skirts 2, and her breasts once again play a significant role when it comes to the humor. On multiple occasions, her character exposes her breasts as a distraction.

By the third film, the formula was starting to wear thin. And though the narrative does a good job moving things forward, the result is a film that brings nothing new to the table. That said, humor is one area where The Inspector Wears Skirts 3: Raid on Royal Casino Marine never disappoints. Ultimately, if you enjoyed the first two The Inspector Wears Skirts, then you should enjoy The Inspector Wears Skirts 3: Raid on Royal Casino Marine.

The Inspector Wears Skirts 3: Raid on Royal Casino Marine gets a solid audio/video presentation from 88 Films and an informative audio commentary, recommended.

Written by Michael Den Boer