As two rival clans vie for dominance in a martial world where loyalty and honor can be bought and friends become enemies, a peerless swordsman (Chung Wa) discovers that the only thing truly worth fighting for is love.
The synopsis to Killer Clans may sound like an adventurous Victorian romance, and in part it is a Chinese version of the same. The principle characters, played by the noble Chung Wa and the lovely Cheng Lee are two lovers trapped in a tightly regulated world of valiant warriors and servants, two-faced villains, and a conniving seductress who adhere to stringent rules of protocol and behavior. The film also happens to be a balls-out blast of endlessly inventive weaponry and bloody martial mayhem, Shaw Brothers style.
The film is based on a romantic novel by Ku Lung, one of many such popular literary works that chronicle the gallant and vicious lives of swordsmen within the “underworld” who belong to clans and are constantly battling each other for martial supremacy. As the film begins we are introduced to Meng Sheng Wen, the hero played by Chung Wa. He is a wandering swordsman hired by a high-priced prostitute to kill Sun Yu (Guk Fung), the patriarchal leader of the Lung Men Society. Protecting him is his dauntless son Sun Chien (Wong Chun) and his right hand man and master of 72 secret weapons, Lu Hsiang Chuan (Yueh Hua). There is also Han Tang (Lo Lieh), a mysterious and deadly fighter who is rarely seen. Before Sheng Wen can act, a rival clan known as the Roc Society begins to hatch their plot to destroy the Lung Men Society. An unknown traitor kills off the son and Han Tang, leaving only Hsiang Chuan who turns out to be the traitor himself. He fails to kill Sun Yu with his deadly darts and the leader escapes through a network of underground tunnels. In the meantime, Sheng Wen has fallen in love with Sun Yu’s daughter (Cheng Lee) and ironically has become the only capable fighter willing and able to aid the man he was originally hired to kill. Obviously, this leads to a showdown between Hsiang Chuan and Sheng Wen.
This is a classic swordplay film that benefits greatly from the resources Shaw Brothers brings to bear. Professional cinematography, detailed sets and costumes, and marvelous weapons combat orchestrated from the team of Tong Gaai (Tang Chia) and Yuen Cheung Yan combine to generate richly entertaining fare.
But no film, no matter how great technically will really come together without competent actors and this one has them. Guk Fung, who is perhaps better known to Western audiences as Ku Feng winningly anchors all of the actors’ performance, which is not surprising given his incredibly prolific and successful track record in the genre as a character actor. He embodies a depth and authority generally reserved for the likes of Richard Harris or Ian McKellen. Chung Wa sticks to the familiar role he came to be typecast in as a stoic hero, as does sexpot Chang Ping whose turn as a manipulative bordello queen could have provided inspiration for Monica Bellucci’s saucy role in Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001). Lo Lieh is underused, but has one of the more colorful roles as a killer capable of smearing the blood from his freshly beheaded victim all over his own face. I do wish they had taken this crazed dark horse element further, but Lo makes the best of what he’s given. A familiar face to genre fans is the bulky Fan Mei Sheng who deserves mention for adding meaningful pathos to a grim scene involving the willing poisoning of his children in order to save the life of his master, Sun Yu.
Killer Clans is definitely representative of director Chor Yuen’s work in that it mixes emotion, adult themes, and action to create a soundly balanced film. The kung fu may be more intense in a Lau Kar Leung film and the action more creatively bloody in a Chang Cheh film, but Chor strikes a vigorous cinematic chord among the SB ranks that makes for an excellent swordplay film.
by Mark Pollard
