Madame Wu (Sibelle Hu) has been assigned to the Hong Kong Police Academy to train female Banshee Squad Members, right next door to the all-male Tiger Squad lead by Inspector Kan (Shui-Fan Fung). After internal conflicts and courting mishaps, the squad members are ordered to band together to round up a gang of thieves, but nothing goes as planned. From executive producer, Raymond Chow (ENTER THE DRAGON) comes this rambunctious action-comedy that was produced & choreographed by the legendary Jackie Chan and lensed by superstar Andy Lau. 88 FILMS proudly presents THE INSPECTOR WEARS SKIRTS (also known as TOP SQUAD), gorgeously remastered from the original camera negative and packed with bonus material. Finally, North American audiences can see the film that put in motion a massively successful franchise, launched the career of international action star Cynthia Rothrock and helped to establish the viability of female-driven action films in Hong Kong — and worldwide!

For thoughts on The Inspector Wears Skirts, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

[youtube https://youtu.be/xWdeP8yLjmQ?si=l_rWfkeeKnW3Y7w-&t=1392]

Video Quality

The Inspector Wears Skirts comes to Blu-Ray via 88 Films with a new 1080p master in its original aspect ratio derived from a 2K restoration of the Original Camera Negative. This release is pretty spectacular as it avoids most of the anomalies that usually detract from other releases. The transfer maintains its natural look throughout without filtering or DNR mucking things up. Some fleeting signs of age remain, but the source appears to have been kept in good shape and restored with care. The grain resolves well without any notable signs of spiking or clumping.

This transfer seems to be in favorable shape when it comes to wear and tear, only revealing the smallest amount of speckle at its worst. The presentation avoids most instances of compression artifacts, banding, and other digital anomalies. There are brief shots that present as a bit soft which more than likely links back to the quality of the source elements. The transfer is pleasing when it comes to color saturation in the locales, clothing, and production design. The presentation thrives in terms of fine detail as you notice subtle facets of the costumes and backgrounds without issue. 88 Films has delivered a rich presentation for fans.

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray presents the film with an LPCM 2.0 dual mono track in the original Cantonese which holds up very well. There is also an English dub provided in LPCM 2.0 audio that sounds pleasant enough, but we always recommend sticking with the original language. Dialogue can sound a bit hollow in a few scenes, but primarily it is clear and easy to understand. The music does a nice job of settling you into the mood of the film, and it comes through with a nice fidelity. The film digs deeper when it explodes into action-driven set pieces, but it also knows how to handle a quieter moment. There are no blatant instances of damage or audio dropouts, even if a few moments hint at some weakness. 88 Films has provided a consistently good sonic experience. This release does have optional English and English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Asian cinema expert Frank Djeng delivers an informative commentary track in which he discusses the place of this film in Hong Kong action cinema, the careers of the talent involved, how Jackie Chan helped usher this project, the background of the story, the legacy of the feature, and more.

Shooting Her Shot – An Interview with Cynthia Rothrock: A new 17-minute interview with the star in which she discusses how she came to be involved with the project, her memories of her co-stars, the shooting locations, getting involved with Golden Harvest, the excitement of shooting the opening scene, and much more.

The Director Wears Pants – An Interview with Director Wellson Chin: A new 16-minute interview with the filmmaker in which he discusses jumping around between different productions in the ‘80s, his involvement with The Inspector Wears Skirts, his involvement in the casting process, the shooting schedule, shooting the action scenes, and more.

Top Squad English Opening and Closing Titles: A three-minute look at the credits with a special English title.

Trailers: There is an English Trailer (2:02) and a Hong Kong Trailer (3:32) provided for The Inspector Wears Skirts.

Stills Gallery: This disc provides various stills in a gallery.

Double Sided Poster

Booklet: A multi-page bound booklet is provided with the essay “Girls With Skirts: A Look at The Inspector Wears Skirts’s Role In the Girls With Guns Genre” by Paul Bramhall.

Final Thoughts

The Inspector Wears Skirts can be somewhat regressive in its gender politics, but it never completely crosses over into an irredeemable territory. For the time in which this was made, it holds up pretty well as it features plenty of butt-kicking women who outpace their male counterparts. The comedy is hit-or-miss, but there is enough consistent action and humor to keep this quite entertaining. 88 Films has released a Blu-Ray featuring a terrific A/V presentation and a nice assortment of supplements. Any fan of Hong Kong action cinema should check this out. Recommended

The Inspector Wears Skirts is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: 88 Films has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.