The Police Academy Collection Blu-Ray Review - Long-Running Franchise Gets A Glorious Upgrade

The call went out. The recruits came in. No longer would police cadets have to meet standards of height, weight, and other pesky requirements. Brains were optional, too. Can’t spell IQ? Don’t know the number for 911? No matter. Police Academy grads are ready to uphold law and disorder! Among the funniest and most memorable comedy series to ever spill wildly across the screen, the Police Academy films are an absolutely mandatory part of any film collection! And hey … be careful out there.

For thoughts on The Police Academy Collection, please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:

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Video Quality

The Police Academy Collection comes to Blu-Ray at long-last with seven films spread over four discs with an additional disc for supplements. Given that these films are all fairly short, having two films per disc after the first film still avoids compression artifacts. All of the films have been presented in their original aspect ratios in their original and complete forms. All seven films come to Blu-Ray with a digital AVC encoded 1080p transfer derived from a new 2K scan of the Interpositive. These films share a lot of the same qualities, especially with these being released so closely together, so I will mostly be judging them as a whole while pointing out noticeable differences when necessary. Shout! Studios has not only rescued this series from the land of standard definition, but they have taken great care to make the presentations shine.

Overall clarity and detail are impressive with subtle facial features such as facial hair and makeup easily noticeable in closeup. The production design reveals a lot of texture from the academy itself to some of the city streets the officers patrol. Skin tones never fail to be natural and consistent. Colors are faithfully saturated with distinct hues popping off the screen when it comes to foliage and clothing. Black levels are strong and hold up well with crush not serving as a notable issue. The remastering work is shown to be top-notch across these seven films, and it is obvious the source elements available were of the highest quality. Print damage has been cleaned up to inconsequential levels with any previous blemishes disappeared. These transfers retain the natural film grain of the source without any hints of digital manipulation to smooth over the details. The grain presents as organic rather than overwhelmingly noisy, which allows for greater nuance to the image. Shout! Studios has allowed fans to cross a major series off the bucket list.

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray set presents all of the films with DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio tracks in their original English audio. The audio quality across this set remains consistent and sonically pleasant. There is very little in the way of source deficiencies as humming, drop-outs, and outright distortion are absent. Dialogue is the spotlight element for each outing with a presentation that is clear and easily distinguishable without any signs of crackling or any muffled exchanges. These films are usually accompanied by an array of interesting sound effects in the mix. The triumphant score for each film showcases an agreeable fidelity while avoiding age-related wear and tear at the highest amplitudes. Shout! Studios has handled these with great care, and fans will be impressed by the results. All the films included in this set have optional English SDH subtitles provided.

Special Features

Police Academy Audio Commentary: Stars Steve Guttenberg, Michael Winslow, Leslie Easterbrook, and G.W. Bailey; Director Hugh Wilson; and Producer Paul Maslansky provide a lively, entertaining archival commentary track. The anecdotes and jokes fly fast and furious and you learn about how all of the performers came to be involved, the location shooting, fun times on set, and much more that is a joyous listen.

Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol Audio Commentary: Film Historian Russell Dyball provides a new commentary track in which he reflects on this film and its place in cinema, the title song, the real-world inspiration for the titular program, the expansive cast of characters, the reception of the movie, and more.

What They Don’t Know…Can’t Hurt Them – Inside the Police Academy Films: A new 20-minute featurette in which producer Paul Maslansky explores the initial idea for the story, the development of the script, the casting process, the shooting location, tweaking the original ending of the first film, the development as a franchise, the worldwide recognition, and more.

Desperate Measures Were Taken – Writing Police Academy: A new 12-minute interview with writers Neal Israel and Pat Proft in which they discuss what inspired them when attending real-life police academies, the requirements for police officers at the time, coming up with unique elements for certain characters, and more.

First Class Schmuck – Recruiting Lt. Proctor: A new 12-minute interview with actor Lance Kinsey in which he reflects on his history with this fan-favorite character, the kind words he received from Jerry Seinfeld, working with specific directors, his relationship with various co-stars, and more.

Move It! Move It! – Recruiting Captain Harris: A new 16-minute interview with actor G.W. Bailey in which he discusses nearly losing his role to Paul Dooley, coming into his signature stick, his discomfort with hurling certain insults at Bubba Smith, memories of various performers, his history with the character, and more.

Send In The Recruits – Scoring the Police Academy Films: A new 16-minute interview with composer Robert Folk in which he discusses getting involved with Police Academy, getting the job thanks to the busy schedule of Elmer Bernstein, creating the main theme for the series, and more. the evolution of the sound throughout the series, and more.

Armed and Dangerous – Making Police Academy 2: A new 14-minute piece in which Assistant Director Roger Joseph Pugliese discusses how he got a promotion on set, working with Paul Maslansky and Jerry Paris, what he learned from the experience, and more.

Fun and Guns Under the Sun – Making Police Academy 5: A new 17-minute featurette with director Alan Myerson who discusses what he wanted to bring to the series with this installment, blending the new faces with the established cast, developing gags from the script, the big set pieces, and more.

Undercover Blues – Making Police Academy 6: A nearly 13-minute new interview with director Peter Bonerz in which he discusses learning to direct on The Bob Newhart Show, his distaste for guns, memories of the production, working with the performers, and more