La poliziotta fa carriera

While the original "Poliziotta" with Mariangela Melato touched upon some serious issues on the role of women in Italian society, "La Poliziotta fa carriera" is more like a silly, low brow remake than a sequel. Edwige Fenech stars as Gianna Amicucci, who longs to join the police force, even though her enthusiasm clearly out ways her skills. Lucky for Gianna, good connections ensure her a place on the force (after a brief Police Academy training sequence, just like in the Melato version).

Foreshadowing Frank Drebin, Gianna is unable to park her car without bumping into another (always one belonging to a superior). Her immediate boss is portrayed by Mario Carotenuto as a Chief Inspector Dreyfuss clone who cannot get any appliance in his office to work without the help of dogsbody Alvaro Vitali. Michele Gammino plays Gianna's co worker and boyfriend, Arturo, while his blonde Doppelganger Giuseppe Pambieri is a neighboring doctor also vying for la Poliziotta's affections. When one of her first assignments finds Gianna working undercover as a streetwalker, naturally both love interests happen to intrude on the scene.

Having set all the different characters in place, the rest of the film consists merely of mainly unrelated comedy routines. Gianna tries to find the mother of a lost boy (an idea greatly expanded in the next installment) and gets into a silly Bud Spencer fight sequence. Here, La Fenech is obviously doubled by a masculine Kung Fu double. Eventually the entire flying squad (Squadra Volante) goes after a drug pushing pimp called Bouno Talco, leading as always to a long and tiresome car chase in the final reel (with poor old Alvaro propelling a car Fred Flintstone style). On top of this there is also a useless subplot involving a lost parrot and the obligatory medal of honor at the end.

7 out of 10