Vice Squad 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Vice Squad 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov May 19, 2025

Gary Sherman's "Vice Squad" (1982) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Lorber. The supplemental features on the release include two audio commentaries; multiple archival programs with Gary Sherman, producer Brian Frankish, star Gary Sherman, and others; vintage promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Keep quiet.

If America had its own ‘video nasty’ list, Gary Sherman’s Vice Squad undoubtedly would have been on it. In fact, it is practically guaranteed that it would have had a spot near the top of this list, too, where one would have placed the worst of the worst ‘nasties’. Or, maybe not. Vice Squad is effective precisely because it does not look fake and silly, like all those notorious shlockers Italian directors produced several decades ago and British censors banned.

Sherman’s camera closely follows three very different characters who spend the majority of their time in some of Hollywood’s seediest areas. The first is Princess (Season Hubley), a single mother who makes ends meet as a streetwalker. The second is Ramrod (Wings Hauser), a violent pimp who makes ends meet by exploiting women like Princess. The third is Tom Walsh (Gary Swanson), a vice cop who picks up streetwalkers and pimps like Princess and Ramrod, seemingly around the clock. When a friend of Princess, also a streetwalker, is murdered by Ramrod, Princess and Walsh set up a trap and get the killer arrested. However, while two overworked and reckless vice cops transport Ramrod to the local police station, he manages to get away and immediately begins hunting down Princess, who, assuming he is already behind bars, has started working again. When Walsh is informed about Ramrod’s escape, he hits the streets too, hoping to be the first to find Princess.

Vice Squad is not a one-of-a-kind film. Streetwalkin', Hollywood Vice Squad, Trackdown, Hardcore, and Whore all have characters like Princess and Ramrod and visit various shady areas where streetwalkers go to work. However, these films show some of the ugly that is always present in a streetwalker’s life and then veer off in different directions, where they effectively counter it with carefully developed genre material. As a result, the ugly usually functions as ornamentation for the drama that flourishes in them.

It is not how Vice Squad was conceived and shot. The ugly in it, which is a lot, dominates, and the drama that flourishes while Ramrod hunts down Princess and Walsh tries to reach her first looks like elaborate ornamentation. Also, the sustained intensity of the ugly becomes quite disturbing, easily leaving the impression that Vice Squad wants to show as much as possible without evolving into a conventional documentary.

The main problem that a film like Vice Squad inevitably faces is always the same. It is how to balance star power and the rawest possible authenticity. It is not easy to do it perfectly. It is why many films like Vice Squad look either like adult soap operas or exploitative time capsules.

Vice Squad swings in both directions. It has some soapy material and twice as much exploitative material. It has always been praised because of how the latter is shot, which is dominated by a seriously unhinged Hauser.

Sherman’s director of photography was John Alcott, who is best remembered for his collaborations with Stanley Kubrick on A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, and The Shining.

Vice Squad 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of Vice Squad is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray disc and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

Screencaptures #1-22 are from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #25-35 are from the 4K Blu-ray.

Vice Squad made its high-definition debut with this Blu-ray release, produced by Shout Factory, in 2019. I have it in my library and was able to do various comparisons. On the combo pack, in native 4K, the 4K presentation of the film cannot be viewed with Dolby Virion or HDR grades.

I viewed the film in its entirety in native 4K and then spent time with the 1080p presentation of it on the Blu-ray. To be honest, I am not impressed with these presentations. First, the previous and current presentations of the film are not identical. While the discrepancies are not drastic, if you have already seen the film on the previous Blu-ray release, you will notice that now in some darker areas there are fluctuations of the kind that we typically associate with incorrectly set gamma levels. However, the gamma levels on the native 4K and 1080p presentations are fine. Also, on both presentations, there is a noticeable yellow-ish hue. (For what it's worth, StudioCanal's 4K master of Can't Stop the Music has this exact same issue as well). I do not know if it is responsible for the anomalies in the darker areas, but it is very easy to tell that it causes some changes. Grain exposure is not as convincing as it should be. In a lot of areas, the grain begins to appear very noisy, even mushy. On the previous Blu-ray release, in some areas grain exposure was similarly unconvincing, but now, especially in native 4K, the grain can look distractingly loose. While encoding optimizations could have been introduced, there is more going on here. For example, if you look at the visuals right before and during the closing credits, you should easily notice quite a bit of light smearing. Color balance is stable. However, in different areas, the yellow-ish hue that I mentioned above impacts primary red and blue. Image stability is excellent. In summary, if you already have the previous Blu-ray release of Vice Squad, it will be best if you found a way to test this release first. On my system, the previous 1080p presentation was the most convincing presentation of the film.

Vice Squad 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The previous Blu-ray release of Vice Squad had only a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. I think that it is the one to use. I quickly tested the 5.1 but did not find it to be in any way superior. There is quite a bit of action material, too. Dynamic intensity remains the same, though in the final act, for instance, the 5.1 track does open up the action material a little bit better. As always, it is best if you test both tracks, too.

Vice Squad 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary One - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic and author Steve Mitchell. Some of the best comments in the commentary address the use of authentic locations in Los Angeles and how the city landscape has evolved since the 1980s, when Vice Squad was shot. Also, Mitchell correctly points out that, despite its subject, Vice Squad does not produce any sex scenes.

• Commentary Two - this archival audio commentary was recorded by director Gary Sherman and producer Brian Franklin. The entire commentary is a pretty fascinating trip down memory lane, full of recollections about the production of Vice Squad, the real locations where different parts of it were shot, its editing, reception and reputation as a cult film. Also, there is some good information about John Alcott and his involvement with the film. If you enjoy the film, be sure to listen to it in its entirety.

BLU-RAY DISC ONE - MAIN FEATURE

• Commentary One - this exclusive new audio commentary was recorded by critic and author Steve Mitchell. Some of the best comments in the commentary address the use of authentic locations in Los Angeles and how the city landscape has evolved since the 1980s, when Vice Squad was shot. Also, Mitchell correctly points out that, despite its subject, Vice Squad does not produce any sex scenes.

• Commentary Two - this archival audio commentary was recorded by director Gary Sherman and producer Brian Franklin. The entire commentary is a pretty fascinating trip down memory lane, full of recollections about the production of Vice Squad, the real locations where different parts of it were shot, its editing, reception and reputation as a cult film. Also, there is some good information about John Alcott and his involvement with the film. If you enjoy the film, be sure to listen to it in its entirety.

• Promotional Materials -
  
  1. Trailers
  2. TV Spots
  3. Radio Spots

BLU-RAY DISC TWO - SPECIAL FEATURES

• Tracking the Beast - in this archival program, Gary Swanson discusses the evolution of his philosophy of acting and how it is reflective of his "astonishment of life". In the second half of the program, Swanson recalls how he was cast to play his character in Vice Squad, and mentions several interesting experiences he had, one involving Asian gang members, during the shooting process. In English, not subtitled. (59 min).

• Of Poltergeists and Neon Lights - in this archival program, Gary Sherman discusses his childhood years in his hometown of Chicago and explains why and how he disappointed his parents by now choosing to become an engineer. Sherman also discusses in great detail the conception and production of Vice Squad, "a film about the exploitation of women". In English, not subtitled. (73 min).

• Hollywood Magic - in this archival program, producer Brian Frankish explains how he fell in love with cinema and entered the film industry, and recalls his involevement with Vice Squad. In English, not subtitled. (63 min).

• The Roots of Reality - in this archival program, actress Beverly Todd explains what it was like to grow up in Cleveland, Ohio, in a completed different era, and how she fell in love with cinema. Todd also recalls constantly being "on the edge" during the shooting of Vice Squad and and what it was like to be around real streetwalkers and pimps. In English, not subtitled. (45 min).

• Cathing a Killer - in this archival program, actor Pepe Serna discusses his childhood years in Corpus Christi, Texas, and controbution to Vice Squad. In English, not subtitled. (59 min).

• Princess Driver - in this archival program, actor Michael Ensign recalls the exact moment when he made up his mind to be an actor and how he was cast to play his character in Vice Squad. Ensign also discusses the on-location shoots in Los Angeles. In English, not subtitled. (25 min).

• Hollywod Streetwalking - this archival program visits some of the real locations in Los Angeres that were used to shoot different parts of Vice Squad. Presented with music. (12 min).

• Cover - reversible cover with vintage poster art for Vice Squad. Presented with music. (12 min).

Vice Squad 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It is instantly obvious that Vice Squad comes from a different era. It is strikingly gritty, somewhat unavoidably exploitative, and overflowing with visuals from a city that now has a completely different vibe and identity. It was made in the '80s, but it carries the genes of '70s genre films like Trackdown and Hardcore. This combo pack presents a 4K restoration of it prepared on behalf of StudioCanal, together with a very impressive selection of archival bonus features. If you already have Shout Factory's Blu-ray release of Vice Squad in your library, you should find a way to test the combo pack. I do not think it brings a satisfying upgrade in quality.