Flirting Scholar

Dir: Lee Lik-chee
Scrs: Chan Man-keung, Lee Lik-chee, Vincent Kok Tak-chiu
Prod Co: Win's Company
Co-starring: Stephen Chow, Gong Li, Natalis Chan, James Wong
1993 | Colour | DCP | Cantonese | Chi & Eng Subtitles | 101min

Flirting Scholar is a comedy dominated by Stephen Chow, whose larger-than-life performance drives the film. Gong Li leads the female cast. For Cheng Pei-pei, who had spent decades in the spotlight, stepping aside to make room for a new generation was no small feat. Yet the role opened up an entirely new realm in her acting career.

The film follows Tong Pak-fu (Stephen Chow) as he attempts to win the heart of Chow Heung (Gong Li), a maid in the household of Madame Wah (Cheng Pei-pei), the powerful matriarch of the Wah clan. Madame Wah despises Tong Pak-fu and constantly picks on him. Based on an ancient Chinese legend in which Madame Wah is only a minor character, Flirting Scholar transforms her into one of its most memorable figures, thanks largely to Cheng’s inspired performance.

Madame Wah repeatedly takes on Tong Pak-fu with her impressive fighting skills – something Cheng was naturally at home with – but she also abandons her elegance and a swordswoman’s poise to embrace some of the wildest and most outrageous comedy in Stephen Chow’s signature style. Their hilarious battle of wits and martial arts becomes one of the most iconic sequences in Hong Kong comedy and remains among the most memorable scenes of Chow’s earlier films.

Courtesy of Orange Sky Golden Harvest Entertainment Group

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