Film 17/52: Q, The Winged Serpent (1982)


Q! As we've worked our way through the alphabet in this series, this was the only letter for which I had already determined the film several weeks in advance. Though I have owned the film for years, I had never gotten around to watching it (though we did go on a bit of a Larry Cohen-binge after watching Steve Mitchell's great documentary King Cohen). A stop-motion giant monster movie? What's not to love!

I'm pleased to report that we had a great time with it. That's not to say that the film isn't without its rough edges — the film often cuts between scenes abruptly — often where a little finesse with transitions would have come in handy. If I did't know better, I might have assumed that this was a cut version of the film. But that minor gripe aside, it really is a roller-coaster ride. 

The film wastes no time getting right down to business, with our winged pal Quetzalcoatl flying around New York (without being seen, mind you), biting heads off window-washers, or flying away with rooftop sunbathers. The cast is pretty impressive, including Larry Cohen regular Michael Moriarity as a loser who stumbles across Q's nest in the Chrysler building. David (Kung Fu) Carradine and Richard (Shaft) Roundtree play cops investigating the mysterious slayings, and Roundtree has my favorite scene in the film, being frightened by a kite, and then snatched by Q. Other notable performers include Candy (American Graffiti) Clark — though not her finest performance as Moriarity's girl, and Eddie (The Rocketeer) Jones as a watchman who almost catches Moriarity as he sneaks around the Chrysler building. And let's talk about the Chrysler building. There's a great showdown between man and Q in a classic reversal of Kong on the Empire State building vs biplanes. Armed with machine guns, the police-led forces unleash a barrage at poor ol' Q as she circles the building where her egg is threatened. Needless to say, many men lose their lives in this effort, so we get a handful of classic stop motion folks falling to their deaths. 

Larry Cohen films are often entertaining (and I heartily recommend the King Cohen documentary to any film fans), and Q is no exception. It was fun watching on the big screen, with plenty of laugh out loud moments (including the aforementioned Richard Roundtree jump-scare). Glad to have finally checked this one off my list!


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