Gatas de Aço

Following pretty much the same structure as the highly popular at the time "Lucky Stars" films, "The Inspector Wears Skirts" has action mostly in the first and last 10 minutes, and comedy, romance and a bit of drama in the middle. This causes the film to lag at times, but still, the action sequences are awesome and there ARE some legitimately funny moments as well, courtesy mostly of Sandra Ng. The cast offers a mind-boggling collection of beautiful women, but if I had to pick just one as my favorite, it would probably be the STUNNINGLY GORGEOUS Ellen Chan. However, it should be noted that the girls weren't picked just for their looks, but for their skills as well: they don't seem to be intimidated at all by any physicality required, they throw themselves into their roles with abandon and take quite a few "ouch" bumps (the action was choreographed by Jackie Chan's Stunt Team; IMDb says that Jackie also directed the film, but I'm not so sure this info is accurate). Overall, "The Inspector Wears Skirts" is uneven, but a definite must-see for Girls With Guns fans. (**1/2)

If you're looking for HK-style girl action thrills you won't find very much here. Practically all of it is confined to the beginning and the end of the movie with lots of light comic filler in between. There is a goofy musical production number in a roller rink and Cynthia Rothrock is great but there's very little of what most viewers want from a movie like this..namely watching Chinese girls fight and shoot better than any guy can.

First, I feel I should mention that I LOVE Hong Kong films. I like Hong Kong action movies, and I've found funny Hong Kong comedies. This movie mixes action and comedy together, but this mix doesn't work this time around. Pretty much all of the female characters in the movie are wimpy whiners and act in other ways that are pretty stereotypical. (Maybe Hong Kong audiences might find this funny, but I didn't.) The men are a bunch of sexist pigs for the most part. Again, this behavior may be funny to a foreign audience, but I don't think it will go well for many westerners. Another big weakness of the movie is that there is really no plot, just a bunch of vignettes stitched together with the flimsiest of excuses. On the plus side, the opening and closing parts of the movie do have some acceptable action. And while this movie may be flawed, it is certainly better than all the awful movies Cynthia Rothrock has made in the U.S.

This was a typical Hong Kong police movie with girls being trained to be super cop. It is worth watching because of Ellen Chan (known as Jean) in the movie. She acted as the most pretty and outstanding, and smart girl in the lady cadet. All the lady cadets like her and the guy cadets keep on going after her. Other cast like Sandra Ng Kwan Yue and Alex Toh were unknown at that time. This movie was the masterpiece that makes Ellen Chan one of the most popular actresses in the late 80s and early 90s. When you watch this movie, expect your jaw to drop when you see Ellen.

Actress Sibelle Hu stars as Madam Wu, a character that is spun-off from the "Five Lucky Stars" movie series. Here, she is in charge of training a group of female Banshee Squad Members of the Hong Kong Police Force. Next door to their academy is the male Tiger Squad Members, led by Inspector Kan (Shui-Fan Fung).

What started out as some rigorous training action quickly was reduced to a prolonged scene set at a roller-skating rink towards the middle of the movie, where the Tiger Squad members try to court the Banshee Squad members. This scene really dragged with unnecessary slapstick humor that distracts from the movie's main plot. The subplots of the members courting one another and the rivalry of Madam Wu and Inspector Kan are not interwoven into the story well, making you wonder what the main objective of this movie's story is. Some butt-kicking and gut-totting action do not take place until the end of the film.

So, if you are a fan of slapstick comedy, give this film a watch. If you are a fan of action movies only, watch the beginning, than forward to the end.

Grade C-