The reincarnation of an Aztec god is eating the people of New York and it's up to cop Shepard, with the unwilling help of petty crook Quinn, to stop it. New York Cop Shepard must track down the killer who is leaving a series of mutilated bodies across New York city and persuade his fellow officers that there is more to this killer than it at first appears.
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A window cleaner working halfway up a skyscraper is mysteriously decapitated. There are two obvious questions; how? And where is the head? Shepard believes the killing maybe linked to other bizarre deaths but his colleagues are not so sure.
Meanwhile, small time crook and frustrated pianist Jimmy Quinn is left holding the jewels after a heist goes bad. He then loses them. When the mobsters who hired him come for him Quinn hides in the top of the Chrysler building, where he is horrified to find a giant nest with an egg and a giant flying reptile. On the bright side, the monster eats the mobsters pursuing Quinn.
Shepard has now linked the strange deaths to Aztec ritual and to the cult of the feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatl, he believes that someone has been performing ritual sacrifices to bring the beast into existence. In other words, there are two killers; one a man, the other a monster. His colleagues don't buy the ritual but are now forced to admit that some kind of winged animal is killing people. Their discussion about this is overheard by Quinn who has been arrested and he seizes his chance. Quinn essentially holds the city for ransom; he will tell them where to find the monster in return for immunity from prosecution, one million dollars, and much more. The police are angry at Quinn's self-serving attitude but have no choice but to agree.
With Quinn's information the police destroy the egg at the top of the Chrysler building and, eventually, take out Q itself as well with policemen armed with machine guns. However, Quinn does not get his money owing to a legal technicality, about which he is very angry.
Elsewhere, Shepard's colleagues are trying to find the man who has been committing the ritual murders. They find him but he escapes, and when Quinn gets home the killer is waiting for him. Luckily for Quinn, Shepard bursts in at the last minute and shoots the killer, who takes five bullets to actually kill him. Quinn has learnt from the experience and resolves to be a better man in the future.
Directed by Larry Cohen, Q (or Q:The Winged Serpent) is a cult classic but, despite decent stop motion animation effects, it doesn't really hold up. Shepard is not a likeable hero while Quinn is actively unpleasant. Also the Aztec ritual part of the story is left frustratingly unexplained and for some reason all the cops find a giant monster more believable than a ritualistic serial killer.
Best part of story, including ending:
I love the monster, the special effects are not brilliant, even by the standards of the early 80s, but they give the film an old school look.
Best scene in story:
The scene where a peeping Tom observes a woman being snatched off a rooftop by the winged serpent is hilarious.
Opinion about the main character:
I dislike the lack of empathy in Shepard, he is not a likeable character at all.
