The Chrysler building is 1,046 feet tall
This was fun. There is a dragon that is flying around New York City eating people. On top of that there are dead bodies showing up that appear to be… well… peeled. In the middle of this mess is a small time crook Jimmy Quinn (Michael Moriarty) who finds out where this flying serpent is nesting (the Chrysler Building). When he gets in trouble he lures his problems up to the serpents nest and lets it take care or them. Then he tries to extort the city. He’ll tell the city where the creature is if it meets his demands.
The cop in charge of finding the people peeler and the serpent is Detective Shepard (David Carradine). His investigation brings him to the cult that is responsible for the creature’s creation.
" Q The Winged Serpent" was released in 1982 and was directed by Larry Cohen. It's one of those combo genre movies, part mystery/crime, part horror. There are murders going on, but there is also a monster reeking its own havoc all over. The dragon flying around New York City is “Q” or Quetzlcoatl which means feathered serpent. Quetzlcoatl was an Aztec god that was half reptile and half bird. An Aztec cult is responsible for the resurrection of the serpent. In order for the cult to resurrect Q they need willing sacrifices. Hence the peeled people.
Despite the cast of great actors I was surprised that the acting was not as good as I would have expected. They include Richard Roundtree, Candy Clark and Fred Sccollay. Michael Moriarty was kind of a twitchy little thing. Sometimes funny sometimes annoying. His acting for his part was OK but I’m not sure how I felt about the character he was playing. The editing was also a little choppy. Despite these flaws I liked the movie.
The stop motion animation used for the serpent was OK. Not Harryhausen by any means but I was still happy with the serpent. I do love my monsters.
There’s brief nudity, bad language, lots of gore and images of willing human sacrifices so it is not for children.