Q (1982)

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Blistering performances.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Like Jaws, you barely see the monster. Unlike Jaws, the characters are uninteresting. There are boobs in the beginning, then the entertainment value drops sharply. Skip to the last 20 minutes, when you actually see the monster in a King Kong-esque skyscraper showdown.

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.

You have to hand it to maverick filmmaker Larry Cohen: some of his films are true originals. This film here is a particularly offbeat concoction, on the surface seeming to be a typical monster movie but turning out to be anything but that. Instead, it focuses on its human characters, who turn out to be an interesting and quirky bunch.Michael Moriarty stars as Jimmy Quinn, a small time crook and full time loser who, after a jewelry robbery goes awry, runs and hides in the top of the Chrysler Building, where he comes upon valuable knowledge: this is now the nesting area for the enormous ancient Aztec "god" Quetzlcoatl (or just Q, if you prefer) that has been "prayed back into existence".The monster scenes, with special effects courtesy of David Allen, Randall William Cook, and Peter Kuran, are fun in the classic tradition, and there are some nice bits with a rooftop sunbather getting nabbed, a window washer getting decapitated, etc. However, people wanting to see a lot of this sort of thing are going to be disappointed.It's really Michael Moriarty's energetic, highly eccentric performance that makes the movie. The guy is truly something to see, especially as Jimmy tries to capitalize on his knowledge, seeing it as his ticket to fame and fortune. Writer, producer, and director Cohen found out that Moriarty had a passion for jazz and wrote it into the script, much to the actors' delight. The rest of the cast is likewise entertaining: Candy Clark as Jimmy's fed up girlfriend, and Richard Roundtree as a hostile detective; it's a lot of fun to see David Carradine wearing coat and tie as a detective who's willing to have an open mind. Look for character actors such as John Capodice, Eddie Jones, and Larry Pine in small roles.Breathtaking aerial photography of NYC and a soaring music score by Robert O. Ragland are also assets in this oddball gem, which this viewer would easily recommend to cult movie enthusiasts. It's genuinely funny and a treat to watch, and has an ending that would be ripped off by "Godzilla" 16 years later.Eight out of 10.

'Q'uite possibly one of the worst movies I have ever seen, and I am not just referring to the fifty cent FX or the cornball acting – I can excuse those as it is supposed to be a B-movie, after all. And it actually started with promise: 'Q: The Winged Serpent' gets right to the point, well of plot A, that is, by showing several "attacks" on the New Yorkers by a large claymation serpent. Then it turns into the B-Movie who yearns to be so much more! Unfortunately, however, both plot B (Michael Moriarty's – who I actually enjoyed in 'The Stuff', but here he's an absolute clown –good-guy thief) and plot C (the sacrifice kings) really scream late 70's and early 80's TV cop drama (and speaking of cops – wow, NYC cops are the coolest! They drink beer on the job, shoot/kill and leave the bodies to the maid service and even wear sunglasses inside.) The movie could've benefited if it just stuck with the movie it was meant to be: a 'Monster attacks NYC' B-movie. It worked years later for 'Cloverfield.' (Spoiler alert – if it's supposed to be a "God" to be worshiped, how come: A. It's vulnerable and B. needs to have offspring?)