Scandal | 醜聞 | Cauh Man

Michael Hui and Wong Sam are small time thieves who decide to steal at the Magistrate's House. Unknown to them, workers protest, chasing the Magistrate to his house and assault him. With the place now swarming with people and police, being caught between a rock and a hard place, they realise that Wong Sam looks alot like the Magistrate, thus beginning their plan to worm their way out.

The movie is pure political satire. It derives its humor from those situations. Infact it is so pure, that you'd hardly find any other humor in this film. If you are not too fond of satire, this movie may feel a bit monotonous. But the quality of its humor is still very high and refined that its worth a watch for anyone.

This film is a thematic follow up to the previous movie by these artists, The Warlord. They've managed to improve on the formula and this one is an improvement on all the things nice with that one without any of its detractions.

Michael Hui's performances are incredible, playing both the shrewd crook and the shameless Governor. He stuns both the characters on screen and the audience with his antics. The Rest of the cast also turn in excellent performances each true to their character. Its sad to see that we don't see much of this type of talent these days.

The production is typical of the shaw brother's movies of the time. They usually have a metticulously well done setting which is reused many times. This limits the number and variety of locales. Though given the story's focus, the aesthetic still holds up well today.

The film references a lot of mentalities and attitudes of those times, and they still feel quite relevant today. In recent times the modus operandi of corruption may have taken different turns, but the movie is still very funny and offers relatable look into the past.

Overall, a definite classic to watch if you are into the satires and power plays. The acting and production are great and still very watchable. The plot is quite simple apart from the brilliant setup and offers a bit of a moral in the end. Just like some films in that period used to.