Cat vs Rat

Popular Hong Kong filmmaker Lau Kar-leung directed this historical action-comedy about two sworn enemies battling to determine which of them is the best swordsman. The Cat is Chan Chiao (Adam Cheng) and the Rat is Pai Yu-tang (Alexander Fu Sheng). The two men compete in various flamboyantly choreographed duets before realizing that they must seek the judgment of their master (Lau Kar-wing). He disappoints them by ruling that their abilities are perfectly equal, then being so completely impartial as to give the Rat a nine-ringed sword which he can use to defeat the Cat, and giving the Cat a spear to defeat the sword which he just gave the Rat. A few more contests result in ties before a subplot gets underway involving a precious jade seal owned by the Emperor Yung Hsi (Gordon Lau) and the thieves out to steal it. This, finally, is what forces the Cat and Rat to work together and overcome their rivalry.