Killer Clans

Cast

Tsung Hua as Meng Sheng Hun
Ching Li as Butterfly
Yueh Hua as Lu Hsiang Chuan
Ku Feng as Uncle Sun Yu
Lo Lieh as Hang Tan
Chen Ping as Sister Kao
Ling Yun as Yeh Hsiang

Credits

Directed by Chu Yuan
Original Novel by Ku Lung

Summary

In the middle of the night two swordsmen, one in white and the other in black robes, stand facing each other at a bridge. The swordsman in black enquires about the identity of the other swordsman. The white swordsman reveals that he is Li, the man who rocked 9 states and had killed numerous other swordsmen. He asks for the identity of the swordsman in black in return. That particular swordsman was named Meng Sheng Hun (played by Tsung Hua) a deadly assassin with unrivalled skills. He advises Li that the reason for their meeting was to kill him. Li is immediately shocked, unsheathing his sword to defend himself. But he is no match for Meng Sheng Hun and is instantly slain.

Assassins were like shooting stars. They shine at the height of their powers when they appear but they don't last for long.

Meanwhile a young prostitute is entertaining one of her clients at a brothel. That prostitute's name is Sister Kao (played by Chen Ping). The brothel is also a place for soliciting the help of deadly assassins. The customer leaves Sister Kao with a note on the table with the name of the intended target written on it. Upon reading the note Sister Kao knows exactly who this task should be appointed to. It would be none other than Meng Sheng Hun.

Upon hearing of his next assignment Meng Sheng Hun protests because he has been overworked. But there was no one else Sister Kao could trust as the other assassin named Yeh Hsiang (played by Ling Yun) had become a drunk. Reluctantly Meng Sheng Hun accepts the assignment. He is to assassinate Uncle Sun Yu (played by Ku Feng), the head of the Lung Men Society, one of the most powerful clans in the martial arts underworld. Uncle Sun Yu is protected by many highly skilled fighters including his son, Sun Chien, who is a dauntless swordsman with exceptional skills. He smashed an entire gang overnight without a worthy opponent. Then there's Uncle Sun Yu's grandson, Lu Hsiang Chuan (played by Yueh Hua), his right hand man who excels in martial arts and is an expert of 72 hidden weapons. Finally there's a mysterious and yet cold blooded assassin named Han Tang (played by Lo Lieh) who lives at a secret address and rarely appears in public. But it was said that he could assassinate anyone. Sister Kao decides to send Meng Sheng Hun to Uncle Sun Yu's 50th birthday so he could plan his assassination attempt.

Trouble brews on Uncle Sun Yu's 50th birthday. Starting with a group of men accusing Sun Chien's friend, Hsiao Tieh, of murdering his master's entire family. Sun Chien would step in to resolve the problem. But Hsiao Tieh's pursuers would request to speak with Sun Chien's father as they believe that he would not speak to them so rudely. 'Nonsense' cried Uncle Sun Yu as he stepped out to greet his various guests. He also advised the three men that manners were hereditary and that a father may therefore be even ruder than his son. Upon seeing Uncle Sun Yu, Hsiao Tieh produced evidence that he did not kill his master's family. The three men immediately try to kill Uncle Sun Yu. Sun Chien and Lu Hsiang Chuan immediately intervene to protect Uncle Sun Yu. They are joined by Han Tang who beheads one man with his hat before killing the two other men. He rubs his face with the blood of his victims before making a bold declaration, that anyone who wishes to kill Sun Yu must first kill him. Meng Sheng Wen watches on with curiosity. He realises it isn't going to be an easy task to kill Uncle Sun Yu.

Many days later an elder advises Uncle Sun Yu of a gang of thugs who has been committing a number of crimes, including murder and rape. Uncle Sun Yu arbitrates over the matter and decides to send his son, Sun Chien to eliminate the gang. He succeeds. Later another elder complains of a gang of men known as the Three Tigers who had raped his daughter. The Three Tigers belonged to an equally powerful clan known as the Roc Society. Once again Uncle Sun Yu decides to arbitrate over the matter, knowing that he has spies working for him within every clan. But this time he decides to send his right hand man, Lu Hsiang Chuan, to resolve the matter. Before allowing Lu Hsiang Chuan to depart, Uncle Sun Yu, asked how he would go about resolving the matter. To that, Lu Hsiang Chuan replied that whoever Uncle Sun Yu wanted dead should die, because people who deserved to be killed should be killed. With that Lu Hsiang Chuan left for his journey.

Lu Hsiang Chuan met with the Chief of the Roc Society at an antique shop and was invited to their headquarters. Upon hearing of Lu Hsiang Chuan mission the Chief of the Roc Society decided to offer two rare and priceless antiques in exchange for the lives of the Three Tigers. Naturally Lu Hsiang Chuan refused to accept the offer. Enraged, the Chief of the Roc Society ordered his men to surrounded Lu Hsiang Chuan with men armed with arrows. But this meant very little as Nan Kung Yuan, a servant of the Chief of the Roc Society was a spy for Uncle Sun Yu. He immediately seized the Chief of the Roc Society as a hostage. This enabled Lu Hsiang Chuan to battle with and kill the Three Tigers. Once Lu Hsiang Chuan fled, Nan Kung Yuan killed himself stating that those who worked for Uncle Sun Yu are selfless and cared about honour more than their lives.

Meanwhile, Meng Sheng Hun wandered into the Butterfly Forest by accident. Whilst he was there he heard a girl reciting a poem about the season of Spring. It was a metaphor for love. This girl was known as Sun Hsiao Tieh, aka Butterfly (played by Ching Li). Meng Sheng Hun stated that it was an excellent poem. When asked whether he knew the meaning behind the poem he replied he did not but liked it nevertheless. During this time Meng Sheng Hun had also managed to catch a butterfly and wanted to give it to the young girl. Although she liked butterflies she refused to take it. So Men Sheng Hun decided to keep it as a token that would remind him that he had visited such a beautiful place. Butterfly initially rejected Men Sheng Hun's attempts to befriend her, stating that many had died where he stood. But when Men Sheng Hun stated that he was not afraid of death she became more relaxed. She suggested that Meng Sheng Hun should leave by providing him with directions.

Upon returning to the brothel, Meng Sheng Hun decided to use the butterfly he caught as a bookmark. His friend and fellow assassin, Yeh Hsiang saw the butterfly and commented that it looked beautiful. Shocked, Meng Sheng Hun asked whether Yeh Hsiang had been to the Butterfly Valley before. To that Yeh Hsiang gave a side glance before replying 'no'. Noticing how quickly Yeh Hsiang was drinking, Meng Sheng Hun became concerned and advised his friend not to drink so much. But Yeh Hsiang refused to heed his advice stating that an assassin who has failed once will never have the courage or ever be the same again. He wasn't ever going to hold a sword again, so it mattered little when he drank too much.

Meng Sheng Hun became curious as to how Yeh Hsiang became a drunkard. He thought it was because of a true love. To that Yeh Hsiang replied no, that it was because he loved a girl. Because of this Hang Tan was sent to kill him. Changing the subject, Yeh Hsiang stated that he and Meng Sheng Hun were both orphans before becoming assassins and that they were like brothers. He advised Meng Sheng Hun that name, friends, family, and love were not for people in their line of profession, because with those things they cannot keep calm and succeed. But he also stated that those who fail and get what those who succeed couldn't.

But before Meng Sheng Hun could ponder over words of wisdom he was summoned to see Sister Kao. Meng Sheng Hun informed Sister Kao that it was not going to be easy to kill Uncle Sun Yu. Sister Ko acknowledged this fact and agreed to given Meng Sheng Hun more time to think of a successful plan. But she warned Meng Sheng Hun must kill Uncle Sun Yu before the other factions do. Meng Sheng Hun did not seem to understand, so Sister Ko advised him that a war between the Roc Society and the Lung Men Society had started because of Lu Hsiang Chuan's actions of killing the Three Tigers.

Meanwhile as an act of revenge the Roc Society murdered the elder who advised Uncle Sun Yu of the Three Tiger's actions and his daughter. Their graves were delivered to the Lung Men Society headquarters. Uncle Sun Yu countered by sending his son Sun Chien to preside over the funeral whilst setting an ambush to murder men from the Roc Society. This was based on a plan devised by Lu Hsiang Chuan. His plan succeeded, but because of the act of some traitors, both Sun Chien and Hsiao Tieh were murdered on the day. Uncle Sun Yu was clearly in shock upon hearing of his son's murder and that there were spies from the Roc Society within his own Lung Men Society.

A little shaken by the recent events Uncle Sun Yu decides to send out two messages calling for the assistance of his two closest friends, Hsien-Lung and Lu Man Tien. He also attempts to send a message calling for the aide of Han Tang. But Hang Tang's secret address is somehow disclosed to the Roc Society. He is ambushed and is murdered by a stab in the back from a friend who collaborated with the Chief of the Roc Society. Following the death of Hang Tang, Uncle Sun Yu begins to suspect that his right hand man, Lu Hsiang Chuan, has betrayed him.

He informs this to his friend Lu Man Tien who is shocked. Lu Man Tien immediately asks Uncle Sun Yu why no action had been taken against Lu Hsiang Chuan. To that Uncle Sun Yu replied by stating that Lu Hsiang Chuan is his grandson and also Lu Man Tien's nephew, and that he liked him. Therefore he decided to test Lu Hsiang Chuan's loyalty by sending him on a mission to Hangchow were numerous members of the Roc Society had set up camp. Uncle Sun Yu advises Lu Hsiang Chuan that Hang Tan had betrayed them and the he should go and kill him. If Lu Hsiang Chuan was a traitor he would know that Hang Tan had died and would not fight against men from the Roc Society. Lu Man Tien agreed that this was a good plan.

In a tavern at Hangchow, Lu Hsiang Chuan, was shocked to find that members of the Roc Society had already killed Han Tang. They immediately engaged in a heated battle and Lu Hsiang Chuan kills many of the Roc Society members before eventually being caught. Members of the Roc Society then advise Lu Hsiang Chuan that he had been sold out by the Lung Men Society because Uncle Sun Yu suspects that he had killed Hang Tan. But Lu Hsiang Chuan appeared none the wiser. Just when Lu Hsiang Chuan was about to be killed, both Uncle Sun Yu and Lu Man Tien appeared from secret compartments to save him. Once everything had settled, Uncle Sun Yu confirmed that he had originally suspected Lu Hsiang Chuan as the man who was responsible for the matter. But he went on to state that he was now clear and trusted Lu Hsiang Chuan once more. He knew the real traitor would emerge sooner or later.

Following the incident at Hangchow, Uncle Sun Yu decided to recruitment men for the impending war against the Roc Society. Sister Kao felt that it was an opportune time to send Meng Sheng Hun to infiltrate the Lung Men Society. Their he would link up with her inside man and assassinate Uncle Sun Yu. She had also arrange for a new identity for Men Sheng Hun. He was to be known as Ching Chung Tin of the Ching Clan.

Before Meng Sheng Hun set off he decided to pay a visit to the Butterfly Valley. It was exactly a year since he visited and it was Spring again. When asked what he was doing by Butterfly, Meng Sheng Hun simply replied that he had come to catch butterflies. It was then that Butterfly mention that she once had an assassin friend, but because of this relationship her father had the assassin murdered. It was because of this that she had a quarrel with her father and lodged at the Butterfly Valley. Meng Sheng Hun asked for her real identity, but she would reveal no more. Before Meng Sheng Hun left Butterfly advised him that Spring was particularly long at the Butterfly Valley and that he could return to catch butterflies upon accomplishing his mission. To that Meng Sheng Hun replied, that Butterfly should not wait until Spring is over before journeying on his way.

As expected Meng Sheng Hun was recruited by Uncle Sun Yu because he displayed exceptional skills and talent whilst fighting against Lu Hsiang Chuan during the interview. Later that evening Meng Sheng Hun uncovered that the man who wanted Uncle Sun Yu dead was none other than Lu Man Tien. Based on his plan, Meng Sheng Hun was to use a secret tunnel leading to Uncle Sun Yu's garden and assassinate him when he is usually taking his nap at 5.00pm. This was the only moment, according to Lu Man Tien that Uncle Sun Yu decides to take off his iron vest and no one is allowed in the garden during this time. So in essence it was said that Meng Sheng Hun had at least 70% chance of success.

Meanwhile, Sister Kao discovers that Meng Sheng Hun had been through the Butterfly Valley on the way to the Lung Men Society. She becomes flustered as she believes that Meng Sheng Hun will not be able to accomplish his mission so she decides to urge the drunkard, Yeh Hsiang to undertake the mission. It is uncovered that Yeh Hsiang and Butterfly were once in love with each other. But Uncle Sun Yu could not tolerate their relationship so had sent Hang Tan to kill Yeh Hsiang. Hang Tan and Yeh Hsiang fought with each other for three days and three nights. Although Hang Tan finally managed to win he decided to spare Yeh Hsiang. Yeh Hsiang had been a drunkard ever since that day. Realising that his good friend, Meng Sheng Hun, could not and should not kill Uncle Sun Yu because of his love for Butterfly, Yeh Hsiang agrees to the mission. He wanted to kill Uncle Sun Yu so that Meng Sheng Hun didn't have to.

That evening Meng Sheng Hun followed the instructions given to him by Lu Man Tien and attempted to assassinate Uncle Sun Yu. To his surprise Uncle Sun Yu wasn't sleeping in his bed like he was supposed to be but was instead watering the flowers. Although he was caught red handed, Meng Sheng Hun remained calm. Uncle Sun Yu did not seem to want to take his life, so he was curious as to why. Just at this moment a bell starts ringing. This bell is normally used to herald the arrival of a doctor. But Uncle Sun Yu noticed from the way that the bell was ringing that it actually heralded the arrival of an assassin. Sure enough, upon arriving at the main hall to greet his guests, Yeh Hsiang had arrived dressed as a doctor. Meng Sheng Hun watched on with disbelief, not quite knowing what to make of the situation.

Almost immediately Yeh Hsiang attempted to kill Uncle Sun Yu. But he was prevented form doing so by Lu Hsiang Chuan. Realising he wasn't going to succeed Yeh Hsiang spent a lot of time telling Meng Sheng Hun about Butterfly, giving him hints that love was the only thing worth fighting for before committing suicide. Following the death of Yeh Hsiang, Uncle Sun Yu questioned Meng Sheng Hun., asking why he didn't mourn. To that Meng Sheng Hun replied, why should he morn. Uncle Sun Yu then revealed that he had known that Meng Sheng Hun was an assassin sent to murder him before he had even arrived at the Lung Men Society. This was news to Meng Sheng Hun and he was greatly shocked that Uncle Sun Yu had not taken any action against him. Uncle Sun Yu then revealed that he wished to learn who the mastermind was, and also it was for the sake of Butterfly that he did decided not to kill Meng Sheng Hun.

A valiant swordsman like Meng Sheng Hun was never going to reveal to Uncle Sun Yu the identity of the mastermind. But Uncle Sun Yu stated that it was not necessary as he would be able to find out within seconds. Sure enough just as he said this, news arrived that Lu Man Tien had committed suicide. Upon examining Lu Man Tien's body, Uncle Sun Yu was still not convinced that he was the main culprit. Because Lu Man Tien had been poisoned, otherwise he could have run away. With that in mind, Uncle Sun Yu worked on a master plan to drive the real mastermind out of hiding. He unexpectedly announced a raid on the Roc Society headquarters the next day before providing Meng Sheng Hun with two sealed orders. Meng Sheng Hun was to go to the Butterfly Valley and retrieve the hidden army for the proposed attack. With that Meng Sheng Hun went on his way. He was accompanied by four swordsmen whom Lu Hsiang Chuan had sent to keep an eye out for him.

That evening Uncle Sun Yu presented Lu Hsiang Chuan with the golden insignia that normally belongs to the Chief of the Lung Men Society before showing him all of the clan's secrets. It was obvious that Uncle Sun Yu had wished Lu Hsiang Chuan to succeed him and had made prior arrangements before the battle with the Roc Society in case something happened. Lu Hsiang Chuan attended to Uncle Sun Yu that night. Just when Uncle Sun Yu had taken off his iron vest to rest he was ambushed behind his back by Lu Hsiang Chuan. He was struck several times by Lu Hsiang Chuan's 7-Star needles that was said to have no cure.

As Uncle Sun Yu had previously suspected, Lu Hsiang Chuan had been the traitor all along. He had collaborated with the Roc Society, and had murdered both Sun Chien and Hang Tan. Laughing in triumph, Lu Hsiang Chuan, remarked that Uncle Sun Yu had made two mistakes in life. The first was to suspect him and then trust him again. The second was to know that he had been the traitor all along and not to believe it was true. Uncle Sun Yu asked whether Lu Hsiang Chuan was through with telling his story, before revealing one final secret. That he had done all of this to test Lu Hsiang Chuan's loyalty. With that Uncle Sun Yu pulled trigger that revealed a secret compartment to his bed before disappearing from sight.

Lu Hsiang Chuan was caught off guard, but managed to uncover the secret compartment. He would pursue after Uncle Sun Yu who was now on a raft being assisted by an unknown man along a small river. But as he gave chase the man assisting Uncle Sun Yu pulled a rope and rocks came crashing down. This angered Lu Hsiang Chuan who gave orders to a number of his men to remove the rocks so that he could continue his pursuit. He also dispatched a number of men to deal with Meng Sheng Hun.

Meanwhile, Meng Sheng Hun arrived at the Butterfly Valley. On advice of Butterfly he decided to open the first order. He was shocked upon reading it. At once he killed the four men who had accompanied him before leading Butterfly and her servant away to safety. They arrived at an abandoned temple where they were contacted by Hsien Lung who had stationed a number of men to meet them. At first Meng Sheng Hun did not trust Hsien Lung as it was rumoured that he had betrayed Uncle Sun Yu many months ago. Hsien Lung then sought to clear the confusion by stating that it had been Uncle Sun Yu's plans all along to lure the mastermind out of hiding. Uncle Sun Yu had left instructions for Hsien Lung to wait for his return. So the men did as they were told.

At this moment Uncle Sun with the help of his assistant arrived at a house where Ma Fung Chung and his wife had lived with two children. Apparently Uncle Sun Yu had once saved Ma Fung Chung's life and he had agreed to build and stock a well with food and supplies for an occasion such as this one. Ma Fung Chung was immediately lowered to the well, but he was spotted by the two children. To ensure that no one saw Uncle Sun Yu being lowered into the well, Ma Fung Chung and his wife agreed to poison their children before committing suicide. The other man who had rescued Uncle Sun Yu continued on his way with an empty cart hoping to distract Lu Hsiang Chuan so that he did not expect that Uncle Sun Yu had been lowered down to the well. This plan worked like magic and Lu Hsiang Chuan was unable to kill Uncle Sun Yu. Thinking that he had succeeded Lu Hsiang Chuan took up the post as Chief of the Lu Meng Society. He had also murdered Sister Kao who had been collaborating with him all this time as well.

Once Uncle Sun Yu recovered from his injuries he captured the Chief of the Roc Society and stormed the Lung Men Society with the aide of men like Meng Sheng Hun and Hsien Lung. Lu Hsiang Chuan had of course expected that this day would come when he failed to recover the body of Uncle Sun Yu. So he was well prepared for such and unexpected attack. But little did he know that Uncle Sun Yu was already one step ahead of him. All of Lu Hsiang Chuan's men hiding in ambush had already been murdered. Lu Hsiang Chuan suddenly became surrounded. He fought on bravely with Meng Sheng Hun in an attempt to escape. But he and Meng Sheng Hun were of equal ability and as such he was not able to escape. During the battle Meng Sheng Hun received a blow to the chest whilst Lu Hsiang Chuan received a stab in the right arm. He was also taken by surprised and struck from behind by Uncle Sun Yu. This caused him to bleed internally. Just when Uncle Sun Yu thought he had his man, Lu Hsiang Chuan escaped through a secret compartment underneath his table. Like master, like apprentice. Uncle Sun Yu could not help but praise Lu Hsiang Chuan for his genius.

But Lu Hsiang Chuan did not manage to get far. He had made prior arrangements with his long time friend named Hsia Ching for an occasion such as this one. Hsia Ching had agreed to safe keep a sum of money and prepared for a horse for his escape. Lu Hsiang Chuan went to thank him for being a true friend, and went on to remark that everyone needed a friend so when they fail they wouldn't feel so miserable and lonely. But little could he have guessed that his long-time friend would betray him and poison his wine. Just at this moment Uncle Sun Yu burst through the door along with the rest of the people. Uncle Sun Yu then stated that a man like Lu Hsiang Chuan should not expect to have friends because someone who betrays his master his certain to be betrayed in return. Lu Hsiang Chuan then glances at Hsia Ching in total disbelief whilst remarking that he also drank the same wine. Lifting the wine cup for Lu Hsiang Chuan to see, Hsia Ching replied, but its not from the same cup. Coughing up a mouthful of blood Lu Hsiang Chuan died in bewilderment. His plans to overthrow Uncle Sun Yu had failed miserably.

When things had settled down a servant ran in to advise Uncle Sun Yu that Butterfly had arrived. Uncle Sun Yu then turned to Meng Sheng Hun and requested that he take Butterfly to somewhere safe. When asked for the reason, Uncle Sun Yu explained that Meng Sheng Hun might attempt to kill Uncle Sun Yu one day if he remained at the Lung Meng Society as conflicts and disputes for power were inevitable in the martial arts world. With that in mind, Meng Sheng Hun mounted his horse to escort Butterfly away with him. Just as he was about to leave he tossed his sword towards Uncle Sun Yu. As he caught the sword, Uncle Sun Yu became curious. Knowing what was on Uncle Sun Yu's mind, Meng Sheng Hun stated where there are swords there are conflicts before riding off into the wilderness with Butterfly.

Review

'Killer Clans' or a more literal translation of the title 'Meteor, Butterfly, Sword' is another classic wuxia film featuring the combo of novelist Ku Lung and the direction of Chu Yuan. I would rate this movie as the best wuxia film I have ever seen. The story has one of the most intriguing plots with many twists and turns. Characters are not what they appear to be and loyalties are tested on more than one occasion. The amount of strategies used in the struggle for power conveyed in this film is extraordinary. Once again this film isn't all about action, gore, and swordsmen chopping each other into bits. Nor is it packed with stunning fight scenes. This movie concentrates more on the human and philosophical elements of what life is like for a warrior in ancient China. It also has a slightly romantic and supreme ideological feel about it. As such, it is more of a thinking man's movie and we can appreciate the various lessons to be learnt from watching such a movie.

The only part of the film I found amusing (well I found it amusing) is that in order to repay a debt someone would be willing to wait down a well for 15 long and lonely years and then drive an empty cart off the edge of a cliff, thereby killing himself. I thought that act was rather extreme, and I amused myself, thinking what would happen to poor Uncle Sun Yu if that fellow had decided not to wait for him all this time!

That aside the film was very artistic. The cinematography, costumes and weapons used in this film were absolutely stunning. It is amazing how many hidden weapons are contained within one weapon, and how weapons can quickly be constructed to form a more larger weapon. The sets, though being indoor, were very detailed and carefully constructed. I particularly liked the house at the Butterfly Valley. The colour and decorations were very bright, and the red leaves created a stunning visual effect.

In terms of acting, Ku Feng's performance as Uncle Sun Yu was absolutely stunning. He put on an authoritative and commanding performance that captured the attention of the audience and outshined leads like Tsung Hua and Chang Li. This is very rare given that Ku Feng normally plays the bad guys in movies. This film showcases the breadth and depth of his acting abilities. Having said that I also liked Tsung Hua's performance as Meng Sheng Hun. He was cool and handsome - something you want from a leading man. Ching Li suited the role of Butterfly. But the character I enjoyed the most in this movie was Hang Tan played by Lo Lieh. This is one of my favourite characters from Ku Lung's novel. I really liked the fact that he rubs his face with his opponents blood and wields a strange weapon below the brim of his hat. It takes a great novelist to invent such a colourful character. In fact the great characters along with the excellent acting is a real feature of this film.

The fighting is what you'd expect from a film of this age. It was made during the late 1970s where special effects, CGIs, and high wire antics had yet to be perfected. But the hand to hand combats, and combats with weapons, all taking place at ground level, somehow actually gave those fight scenes a more realistic type feel about it.

Fans may recall that there are other adaptations of this film, more notably 'Butterfly and Sword' in 1993 starring Tony Leung, Michelle Yeoh, Donnie Yen, and Joey Wong, and 'Killer Meteors' featuring Jackie Chan. I am of the view however that 'Killer Clans' is still the best adaptation by far, and probably won't be exceeded unless Directors out there begin to focus on telling the story the way its meant to be told, rather than rely on high wire, idiotic humour, and CGI effects.

Once again a must see for all wuxia fans. This is indeed a rare wuxia masterpiece.