The Inspector Wears Skirts Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.0

The Inspector Wears Skirts Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 29, 2023

A film about some butt kicking female police types might seem to owe at least something to Charlie's Angels, but kind of humorously (in more ways than one), The Inspector Wears Skirts was evidently actually sparked by the Police Academy franchise. Two iconic names turn up on the production side during the credits roll, namely Jackie Chan and Raymond Chow, but the onscreen chemistry is left to Sibelle Hu and Cynthia Rothrock. The film may never really attain some of the lunatic heights of the Police Academy outings, but it's generally quite genial and it does include some knockout (again, in more ways than one) action sequences.

In an interview included on this disc as a supplement, Cynthia Rothrock seems to hint that she was brought on to an already existing project, perhaps somewhat late in the pre-production or even production phase in actuality, which may account for the fact that she's really only in this film in bookending sequences, albeit with the "final" one lasting for about the last third of the film. Otherwise, this is a resolutely Hong Kong cast-centric affair which follows the exploits of a female police squad (that would be top squad, as the film's kind of hilariously generic English title points out) who are intent on proving they're easily a match for any of their male counterparts.

The Inspector Wears Skirts wisely begins with both Rothrock and Hu as Madam Law and Madam Wu respectively, who are rather cheekily assigned to a film set where a visiting VIP finds himself under attack by what are kind of quasi-ninjas. Rothrock as Madam Law gets to strut her prop stuff with a great early scene involving a cane, but then the film shifts gears a bit by concentrating on Madam Wu and her charges on the police force. The middle part of the film is really more about the training regimen and the "quirks" of several of the recruits, intercut with some frankly kind of lame and possibly even objectionable (to modern day sensibilities) material involving the men on the force.

The humor here is certainly inconsistent, and adrenaline junkies may wish the film offered more in the action department than just the opening (relatively brief) sequence and then the film's final act, but it's fun to see Rothrock, however minimally she's utilized, and several members of the supporting Hong Kong cast do their best to land punchlines (if not actual punches).

The Inspector Wears Skirts Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Inspector Wears Skirts is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 88 Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Despite this release offering an insert booklet (something that 88 Films' simultaneously released The Blue Jean Monster does not include), there's no information about the transfer there or on any of the packaging that I could find. However, as with The Blue Jean Monster, 88 Films' website states this features a "Brand New 2K Restoration in 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio from the original negatives". While a bit inconsistent looking at times, I'd actually rate this overall transfer as somewhat more pleasing than The Blue Jean Monster, perhaps due in part to the lack of composited effects that were part and parcel of the other film. The palette here pops quite winningly throughout, and fine detail in a lot of the outdoor material is excellent. There are some curious color timing variations, and some scenes can be intermittently on the fuzzy side. There's no major damage to report and grain resolves naturally.

The Inspector Wears Skirts Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Inspector Wears Skirts features LPCM 2.0 Mono tracks in either Cantonese or English. There's really not a ton of difference between the two in overall sound quality, but I'd say the Cantonese track may have a bit more presence on the high end, which actually also includes some background hiss, and may be just marginally hotter than the English track. Otherwise, though, dialogue, effects and score are presented without any issues whatsoever. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Inspector Wears Skirts Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary by Frank Djeng


• Shooting Her Shot (HD; 16:46) is an interview with Cynthia Rothrock.


• The Director Wears Pants (HD; 16:03) is an interview with director Wellson Chin. Subtitled in English.


• Top Squad English Opening and Closing Titles (HD; 2:47)


• Hong Kong Trailer (HD; 3:32)


• English Trailer (HD; 2:02)


• Stills Gallery (HD; 1:41)

Additionally, the keepcase encloses a nicely appointed insert booklet and a fold out double sided poster, and packaging features a doubleweight slipcover.

The Inspector Wears Skirts Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Inspector Wears Skirts probably could have used more consistent action and humor, but it does have a couple of great fight scenes and at least a few of the jokes are decently funny. Technical merits are solid and the supplements and non disc swag enjoyable, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.