Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach (1988)

Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach is the series at its breeziest, swapping big-city chaos for sunlit vacation vibes and letting its lovable misfits play to their strengths without feeling quite so strained. There’s an easy, goofy rhythm to it—Michael Winslow’s sound-effects wizardry, Hightower’s gentle-giant presence, and Tackleberry’s trigger-happy enthusiasm all land in a setting that practically begs for slapstick. The “wrong bag” hook gives the comedy a simple, satisfying engine, so the jokes feel like they’re moving somewhere rather than just circling the drain, and the finale leans into crowd-pleasing action-comedy energy. It’s still broad, PG-rated, and proudly ribald, so if you don’t like this franchise’s cartoonish humor it won’t convert you—but if you’ve ever enjoyed Police Academy, this is one of the sequels that comes surprisingly close to being genuinely fun.

Police Academy 5 is trying to give the series a sunny change of scenery by dropping the familiar misfits into Miami Beach and building a simple “wrong bag with stolen diamonds” caper around Lassard’s clueless charm. The problem is it plays like a tired vacation episode: the jokes lean heavily on juvenile slapstick, the plot runs on autopilot, and the pacing feels like a string of skits waiting for the next chase. If you’re not already nostalgic for this franchise’s very specific brand of low-brow, anything-for-a-gag comedy, this one will likely feel like a fifth lap around the same track. Still, Winslow’s sound effects, a few Hightower moments, and the breezy Miami/Everglades set pieces can deliver mild comfort-food laughs if your expectations are set to “background movie.”