Killer Clans is probably the last great film by Shaw Brothers. Shaw Brothers was losing its market share to Golden Harvest, and the Hong Kong audience - their taste changed by Bruce Lee - wanted a wholly different Hong Kong cinema. In a word, they wanted something fresh and new. When modern action kung fu films such as the Mr. Boo series hit the market, the end of Shaw Brothers seemed almost inevitable. Golden Harvest hit the market with hybrid martial arts film, and Shaw Brothers tried to keep the tradition alive with its historical martial arts films. It was during this time, around 1977, that the film Killer Clans was released. They made their best effort in trying to salvage the tradition of Shaw Brothers. Based on a novel by GU Long, who pioneered the martial arts mystery novel, the film stars many leading actors - very unusual for a martial arts film. However, the film does succeed in portraying the different characteristics of its lead actors. There are many sub-plots. There is a romance between the assassin Meng Sheng-hun and his lover Hsiao Tieh, and Meng Sheng-hun’s many convoluted relationships with the other martial arts masters. The truth of the matter is that, unlike most martial arts films, Killer Clans is a film filled with spoilers. Therefore, those who have already seen the film should promise not to give anything away to prospective viewers! Although filming on a great plain itself is nothing special, the studio set is a labyrinth, and there stories of betrayal, conspiracy, and love take place. And the last 20 minutes is filled with numerous reversals. Although one cannot find beautiful Chinese landscapes like those found in King Hu films, nor can one find tragic action sequences found in CHANG Cheh films, this is nevertheless one of the most ‘well-made’ of Shaw Brothers films. The film reaches a certain climax in terms of Shaw Brothers’ filmmaking, and it is also a swan song. (To fill in the blank between Invincible Fist and Killer Clans, we must turn our heads to the Shaolin series directed by the brothers LAU Ka-Fei and LAU Ka-Leung) Killer Clans was a smash hit, and Shaw Brothers was overjoyed by the success. But soon, Hong Kong cinema was mesmerized by Jackie Chan’s comic acrobatics in Drunken Master directed by YUEN Wo Ping, and Hark Tsui came out his mix of martial arts and macaroni western with the film The Butterfly Murders. And that finally meant the end of the Shaw Brothers. (CHUNG Sung-ill)