May 2024 – DVD Reviews

DVD & BLU RAY REVIEWS

Reviews by JAIME PINA

The Inspector Wears Skirts 2

88 Films/MVD

Quick on the heels of the release of the first film, 88 Films and MVD follow up with the sequel in this series. Sibelle Hu, Regina Kent, Billy Lau, Stanley Fung and Bill Tung all return  from the first film but no Cynthia Rothrock. This sequel is once again produced by Jackie  Chan but somehow the production veered off in another direction when compared to the  first one. While the first film began and ended with exciting action sequences that also  helped move the story forward and to a reasonable climax, this film has none of that. It  aims more at trying to push the series toward comedies along the lines of American films  like Porky’s and Police Academy.  

Similar themes of the battle of the sexes from the first film play out in this one as the  female and male training camps are pitted against each other making room for a lot of very  dated sexist jokes and uncomfortable violence against women. The first film featured a  sequence where the males and females had to spar with each other, a concept used to  much better effect in Pacific Rim. It worked okay in the first film but in part 2 the repeat just  seems dull and offensive. After being subjected to corny and unfunny attempts at humor  and no action scenes of any merit the end sequence finally comes. Was it worth the wait?  One of the gangsters from the jewel heist depicted in the first film is busted out while being  transferred and the teams go out to apprehend him. There are plenty of great fights and  gunplay and the hostage situations are amusing. The end comes abruptly with Chief Kan  and Madame Hu finally hooking up. 

The film can be viewed in Cantonese with English subtitles or in English. There is a  commentary, interviews with stuntmen and the director, the Hong Kong trailer and a stills  gallery. Like the other 88 Films releases this disc comes in an attractive and sturdy  slipcase with reversable cover art and a two-sided mini poster.