Below Average
Summary
Without the main attraction of the previous lead actresses from the preceding entries in the Inspector Wears Skirts movies, this 4th outing is far less appealing as it lacks a central focal point and each of the new girls more or less have similar fighting skills, looks, and approach to comedy. None of the new cast (there are at least one or two holdovers) commands your attention, and the quickie plot doesn’t do much for making this entry a standout. It feels like a direct-to-video film without much cinematic appeal, though there are a few hard-hitting action and fight scenes, but even with those, none of the centerpiece moments has enough build up or grandeur to make this one of the better films in the series.
Plot: The all-female “Banshee Squad” police team is back for one more mission.
Review: Years after Hong Kong’s all-female “Banshee Squad” recalibrated with a (mostly) new team after the previous members shipped off, retired, or had kids, the latest graduating class from the police academy fumbles around, trying to get their bearings after poor leadership. These misfit badass chicks are faced with what might be the toughest assignment so far: Save a bunch of little kids from a group of terrorists who’ve kidnapped an entire classroom full of them! A climax at an empty amusement park will be the playground for the Banshee girls and the bad guys, who go toe-to-toe … until the end!
Without the main attraction of the previous lead actresses from the preceding entries in the Inspector Wears Skirts movies, this 4th outing is far less appealing as it lacks a central focal point and each of the new girls more or less have similar fighting skills, looks, and approach to comedy. None of the new cast (there are at least one or two holdovers) commands your attention, and the quickie plot doesn’t do much for making this entry a standout. It feels like a direct-to-video film without much cinematic appeal, though there are a few hard-hitting action and fight scenes, but even with those, none of the centerpiece moments has enough build up or grandeur to make this one of the better films in the series. With shocking, gory violence, and an overall mistreatment of little kids, the movie is a downer overall, but if you’ve made your way through the series up to Part 3, then you may want to complete the trek with this one. Wellson Chin directed it.
88 Films recently released The Inspector Wears Skirts 4 on a premium Blu-ray to compliment their other releases from the series, and it holds up with a vivid high definition transfer. The limited edition comes with a slipcover, a double-sided foldout poster, an audio commentary by a film historian, a trailer, and more.