The 80s had plenty of these forgotten little comedies, but what caught my eye about this one is that the story was co-penned by cult film-maker Larry Cohen. Then added additions of Pamela Stephenson beautiful presence and the comedic touches of John Gielgud and Jim Dale as a snoopy Scottish yard detective. "Scandalous" is a breezy, but innovatively constructed mystery-comedy that is completely daft and somewhat contrived, but thoroughly entertaining in its comic flashes and dangerous inclusions. The twists and turns within the plot aren't all that predictable and even resolution is somewhat tragically downbeat. Robert Hayes (who's great in the role) plays an investigative TV reporter Frank Sweldin returning home to London where he comes across an espionage story involving industrial spies (or that's what he's to believe), but instead he finds himself dealing with con-artists and then murder, which everyday the situation worsens as the evidence piles up against him. While Frank was always on the look out for a real story, he never expected he would become one. Very tongue in cheek with a script with much added quick wit and deliciously silly in its many bemusing occurrences like when Dale's erratic character pops up. It seems to play out like a storm in a tea cup. Director Rob Cohen does a crisp job. Also showing up in the cast is M. Emmet Walsh.
"Never trust journalists."
