Foreverisacastironmess Amen, brother. To me this movie is Larry Cohen's damn opus, I've always mainly loved it for the awesome monster which looks like a combination of both a dragon and a bird. The stop-motion animation of it is extremely well done, and I think it still looks pretty amazing to this day, particularly during the big money shot sequence of the movie where it's slowly brought down by the armed forces of the NYPD! I feel really sorry for the creature as it nears death and pathetically clings to another skyscraper that just happens to be very temple-like in design and it cries out in an almost beseeching manner. It's simply gotta die though, the monster always exists solely to be conquered... I also love the bit of stop-motion done as it plummets to the ground and its wings furl around it, making them appear like bat wings. I always remembered the monster's terrifying shrieking roar, it's scary the way the people stand as helpless as little bugs before it to be swept up and rained back down onto the city streets in showers of blood and bones! And while the appearances of the immense winged beast may be brief, they were at least smart enough to have it appear every ten minutes or so. I hate pictures where they never reveal the monster until the very end. I think they show just enough of it that it never loses its mystery or becomes tiresome. And yeah so it does look a tad rubbery at points if you look a little closer, so what? Some things are more important than perfect special effects, I loved this as a kid, it captured my imagination in a very special way and was one of the key monster movies that I grew up with and that formed a little movie-lovin' part of my soul, nothing would ever make me see it as anything less than excellent. You really can't truly love this flick without also getting a kick out of some of the characters though, as well as that classic gritty old New York atmosphere, and the strange sense of realism that comes with it that enormously works to the film's favour. I feel they blended all the street detective stuff with the more fantastical themes of the folklore and the monster exceptionally well. The 'aerial terror' angle is highly distinctive and is something that I've never seen done quite the same way in any other horror film. The ever-present imagery of the architecture and the 'forest' of skyscrapers, it's creepy! It's a whole other unknown wind-blasted alien realm way up there... And the haunting musical score is one of my favourites, it just perfectly complements the visuals and tone. "Jaws with wings" is a very apt description, but there's more to it than just that. There's a certain fine delicate kind of eeriness to certain parts of this film, despite the fact that it's a gigantic snake-bird we're talking about here! I find a lot of the humour to be on the low-key mean-spirited side, and most of it comes from Michael Moriarty who really is the heart of the movie and steals every scene he's in with his excellent portrayal of the loser Jimmy Quinn, a self-centred conniving little man who wants to capitalise on the monster by selling his knowledge of its hiding place for the hefty sum of a million dollars because the city of New York owes him one!!! He's empowered by his discovery and begins to take control of his life, at the expense of the only person who cares about him, his girlfriend, touchingly played by Candy Clark. What a jerk, people are getting killed and all he cares about is money. Jimmy wasn't just an asshole, but an occasionally sneaky and devious one as well. He lures the two ugliest grease-ball gang members you've ever seen to the top of the Chrysler building which is where the creature lives to find some stolen loot, and they get devoured. I love to hate this guy, but I'm glad he ends up getting screwed out of his money, he didn't deserve s**t! The sadly late David Carradine also put in a solid and charming performance as a good cop who delves into Aztec mythology in an attempt to find answers to the mystery. I also quite enjoyed the gleefully pompous performance of the heavyset Irish gentleman who played the police commissioner, why was it so important that any evidence connecting the creature with the ritual sacrifices be denied? The topless woman being eaten is the scariest most suspenseful kill for me. I love how blasé the cops are about the whole thing. They treat it like it's just another everyday national disaster. It's a real "meat 'n potatoes" kinda movie, and you can really tell that it was put together by folks who were enthusiastic about what they were doing, and I find the overall picture to be a very compelling and satisfying experience. And the cracking epilogue I still find chilling as hell! Such a freaking fun and brilliantly unique movie that I'll love forever. To Dave.

ebiros2 As if New York doesn't have enough problems already, a flying serpent is on the loose picking people off as a feed.Jimmy (Michael Moriarty) is a thief, and one day he discovers a giant bird's nest at the top of the Chrysler building. Around the same time, police is looking for who killed the window washer, a construction worker, a man in bed, and a woman on the rooftop. Shepard (David Carridine) is a cop who's on this case and starts to suspect that something flying is the culprit of all the killing. When Jimmy gets caught, he uses the information he has to spring a deal with the cops.Unlikely story that a giant serpent can roam New York city and not get detected by thousands of people, but that's the plot. As far as giant monster flick is concerned this movie is crap, crap, crap because there's aren't much of a scene involving the Q itself, and all it does is fly around and pick people off of here and there. Otherwise, it's just one long boring sequence of nonsense that goes on between Jimmy and the police.Stingy is what I'd categorize this film under. Unlike Steven Spielberg, director Larry Cohen lacks the spirit to entertain and excite its viewers with visuals of the main antagonist. Don't waste your time on this one, as there's no delivery, and lots of tease. The main character of this film seems to be the greedy thief (and not the Q) that the director seems to identify a lot with.

Chase_Witherspoon Resurrected Aztec God embodied in the form of a giant winged serpent, stalks the cityscapes of Chicago, preying on rooftop dwellers and those who stumble on its lair. Perennial loser and small-time hood Michael Moriarty is menaced and intimidated into committing an armed robbery that goes wrong. Evading capture he hides out and inadvertently discovers the resting place of the prehistoric reptile, at the apex of the Chrysler building. When his ex-accomplices corner him to get even for the botched burglary, he lures them to the serpent's lair and lets Q do the rest.Genre director Larry Cohen has conjured a tight little pot-boiler with an entertaining mix of mysticism, crime-thriller, horror and comedy that employs some impressive stop-motion animation and clever photographic angles to depict the Pteradactyl-like Quetzacotal – abbreviated to Q. Aside from Moriarty's empowered weakling, Carradine is on-song as a tough detective who struggles to suspend disbelief long enough to investigate the link between ritual disembowelments and the spate of rooftop rippings that are bringing the city to its knees. Candy Clark ably supports the two leads as Moriarty's long-suffering girlfriend."Q" doesn't try to take itself too seriously, and its frantic pace and narrative, punctuated by the random, opportunistic rooftop snatchings keeps up the momentum and thrills. It plays like a cop thriller, cleverly blending the "monster movie" theme with conventional police drama, but spiced up particularly by Moriarty's manic impression of the petty loser baying for his seven minutes of stardom at any cost. The presence he brings to the character and in turn its association with the picture, is the dimension that elevates this B-grade monster-crime thriller into a minor classic. Perhaps the most satisfying aspect is that it contrives the way for a sequel that's never seen the light of day, and in doing so, preserved this film's distinction. Great movie.

ma-cortes This flick is a distinctive and haunting oddity , concerning about a winged serpent , a dragonlike , which carries out creepy killings , happening in N.Y. City . A pair of detectives (David Carradine , Richard Roundtree) are investigating the strange events . As the giant winged bird hungry for sunbathers and rooftop construction workers . Thanks help a delinquent (Michael Moriarty) who encounters the monster's hidden nest on the Chrisler building , detective Sheperd discovers that several murders committed in violent manner have been executed as bloody sacrifices to Aztec God named Quetzalcóatl , a feathered serpent whose two halves are a serpent and a bird .This is a rough-edged chiller and results to be an entertaining return to monster movies from the 50s . Simple and stop-motion monster special effects by recently deceased David Allen , usual to 'Full moon' and 'Empire' Factory . Good cast as an overacting Michael Moriarty and David Carradine , Richard Roundtree as Police Inspectors ; and nice support casting as Eddie Jones and Candy Clark as crooks'fiancée . The film is well produced by Samuel Z. Arkoff who along with James H. Nicholson financed numerous movies of various genres , including monster movies , during the 50s, 60s , and 70s for their production company called ¨American International Pictures¨ . Atmospheric photography by Fred Murphy who has a successful career as an expert cameraman . The picture was compelling and originally written/realized by Larry Cohen . He's a B series craftsman , such as : terror genre (Stuff , Return to Salem's Lot , It's alive I ,I and Island of the alive) , hard hitting crime films (FX , Ambulance) and Blaxploitation(Black Caesar , Hell up in Harlem , Original gangsters) ; plus , a prestigious screenwriter (Phone booth , The ex , Invasion of privacy) and usually writes all his own scripts . This is a cult movie to be liked for chillers and monster films admirers .