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Q: The Winged Serpent

Q: The Winged Serpent is a 1982 film from the USA, directed by Larry Cohen, running 93 minutes. reelscum files it under natural horror.

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Year
1982 · 1980s films
Country
USA
Runtime
93 min
Director
Larry Cohen
Updated
10 Aug 2026
Obscurity
cult (39/100)
Also known as
The Winged Serpent · Épouvante sur New York · Q: The Winged Serpent · Q - The Winged Serpent · Q: Winged Serpent · Serpent

Defined in the glossary: Natural horror

Larry Cohen, a dragon over Manhattan, and a great Michael Moriarty.

Larry Cohen shoots a monster movie in the middle of a New York cop drama and lets Michael Moriarty walk away with the whole thing. An Aztec god nests in the spire of the Chrysler Building and picks off rooftop sunbathers, while a twitchy small-time crook who knows where it lives tries to leverage the secret. Moriarty's jittery, improvised performance is the real special effect.

Cohen made it fast and guerrilla-style, and the stop-motion creature is charmingly ropey, but the film is really a character study wearing a creature feature. David Carradine and Richard Roundtree play the cops chasing both.

Odd, funny and anchored by a great performance.

Something else

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