I watched The Claw b/c of Mara Corday, now 92 and hopefully in good spirits. She made for a beautiful screamer to spiders, scorpions, bug eyed birds and bad guys in a Dirty Harry movie. Just for fun, back in the '90s, I re-edited some of the movie on VHS, replacing the bird with my then, 3yo son playing with his toys, just to show at the birthday parties. I gave him the tape many years ago.
I recently discovered your channel when searching out Ronald Coleman movies and was impressed and entertained by your review of this talented actor's work. I truly enjoy the range of movies you explore, from The Giant Claw to Roshomon, and all with the same enthusiasm and insight. As a fellow movie buff I'm very much enjoying your posts and appreciate that even the stuff you don't like is fair-minded and never mean-spirited. Keep up the exceptional work!
Watched the Claw in its original broadcast on TV. Watched it as a young child @ night n at the time it scared the bejeebers out of me ! First part was the mystery of what was flying past the aircrafts. Difficult time to sleep that night. Lol. Saw it years later as an adult n could hardly believe the SPECIAL EFFECTS were funny compared to today's standards. Kudos for featuring one of the scariest movies during my childhood. Looking forward to ur next one.
When I first saw the trailer for this 1957 movie, in 1957 at age 9-10 years, I was so terrified by that ridiculous, $50 giant bird puppet, I couldn’t sleep, much less bring myself to go see the actual movie when it played at our small town Texas theater. Other “giant puppet” movies, such as “Them!” and “The Deadly Mantis”, which had much more convincing giant puppets (the “ants” in “Them!” being full-sized) I had weathered bravely and thrillingly. But there was something so bizarrely ugly and weird about that da…that darned “bird”, that is, it completely freaked out my little boy brain. Thank you for another entertaining review of what has become a favorite, very goofy guilty pleasure. Poor Jeff Morrow. I still feel sorry for him and Mara Corday having to endure the embarrassment of seeing their “co-star” for the first time at the premiere. I loved Jeff as the Metaluna alien Exeter in “This Island Earth”. Incidentally, Corday was a Playboy centerfold in 1958.
I saw this on original release at the age of 8. I laughed so hard I nearly peed myself. At that age, sci-fi movies usually gave me nightmares. "Invaders From Mars" certainly did.
While everyone seems to be laughing at this movie, the first time I saw it, it scared me to death...now, I was only 5 years old at the time and this was my first movie theater experience, so, for that reason, it will always be a bit special to me.
Oh, THIS movie! I forgot about this movie and was given a nice reminder when I got the notification for this video. I burst into laughter when you pointed out that different characters compared the bird to a battleship without having heard any other character do it before hand. Who knows what kind of battleships they've seen! 🥴
I love this movie. It's absurd enough to be funny, short enough to not outstay its welcome, but also cozy in a way that you can watch it when the hour is late and you want something easy and silly to fall asleep to. By the by, the La Carcagne is supposedly a very different folklore creature (not bird related) that appears in Samuel Hopkins Adams' story "Grandfather and a Winter's Tale".
Thanks for the additional information about La Carcagne! I wondered if it was an actual legend or just something made up for the film. I tried to find out but couldn't get the spelling close enough for Google to figure out what I meant.
The key to enjoying this movie is to not watch it. Listen to the movie without looking at the screen. The voice acting is great and your imagination will make the giant bird look much better. I think this movie could be salvaged by someone with the CGI skills to edit out the existing special effects and put new ones in with a scary bird.
Low budget movies have been in my wheelhouse since I was a teenager. I used to watch KTLA's Movies Til Dawn (back in the day when Cal Worthington was almost the sole advertiser selling used cars in Los Angeles. Cal was almost as goofy bad as many of the 4AM movies). There are a ton of dull low budget films so finding a gem that resonates with you is harder than finding a classic good movie that holds up to the modern day. That's where I first watched "The Giant Claw". If you are inclined, two films which I find fun (and were never featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000 or RiffTrax): "From Hell It Came" (1957) is a voodoo revenge film featuring a walking tree stump. "High School Confidential" (1958) is a juvenile delinquent film from MGM with a surprising group of semi-well known actors and a quick music segment with Jerry Lee Lewis playing piano on the back of a truck. It rolls up all the tropes of the JD / marijuana fear genre with people in their late 20s/30s playing teens. [EDIT: a montage collection of Cal Worthington (his segments often lasted 10 minutes as he strolled from used car to used car promising to "make you the best deal or I'll eat a bug" ruclips.net/video/QOsLdT4slsk/видео.html
Ah, I have seen From Hell It Came! A bizarre flick that, like The Giant Claw that same year (what was going on in 1957?), takes itself seriously despite its monster being truly bonkers. Re: Go See Cal, WOW. I can't believe he made it out of some of those ads alive. Is there anything he wouldn't do??
@@Weiselberry Cal was an over-the-top huckster. During commercial breaks watchers normally ran to the bathroom or grabbed something to eat and drink. It was difficult leaving the TV when Cal came on. You really felt that you were going to miss something (like an angry animal attack)! I still blush during the scene in "From Hell It Came" when the tree stump kills the voodoo priest (I think that's who it was) by backing him against a rocky embankment and repeatedly thrusting it's tree truck body against its victim. 😳
Wow I just have to watch this with my brother now! Also I have to say how much I enjoy your inclusion of the background information about the making of the films. Its always well researched and super interesting. Thanks!
Yes, that same 4-film sci-fi set is part of my own collection! Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this fun little film. I do think THE GIANT CLAW would be much more fondly remembered if only the filmmakers had invested more money in the monstrous bird, or in any event one that wasn't so threadbare. The words you use to describe it (particularly "derpy" and "goofy") are absolutely perfect, and only a dead person could fail to laugh at that absurd slideshow close-up. It's like the perfect punchline to an unexpected joke! But I do like the movie, and while you correctly point out some failings in the script and direction I don't think it's a total loss. Like you, I appreciate the performances of Jeff Morrow and Mara Corday, both of whom do excellent work (I wonder if they could have done so well if they had known what the bird was going to look like? I doubt it!). I enjoy the way the romance develops. I think it's implied early on that they both have an interest in the other and the verbal sparring matches they indulge in early on are really flirtatious in nature, up until the moment on the plane when they come clean about their mutual feelings. And hey, for us male viewers, surely the lovely Mara Corday is more than enough of a special effect to make up for that cheesy bird! lol I also like the serious tone of the movie, and while it's unfortunate the bird doesn't live up to the in-story hype I think the business-like atmosphere helps the scenes between the monster's appearances immensely. A few touches are especially nice: I think the moments when falling airmen are attacked by the giant bird are actually quite effective--being devoured by an alien animal can't be a fun thing, no matter how silly the thing looks; and moreover I like the explanation given for the creature's invulnerability...it's not just got impossibly hard skin, but an anti-matter force field. But alas, the bird just doesn't work as anything other than pure, unadulterated cheese, and it's hard for any monster movie to work when the monster in question is so...well, sorry. Even so, I like THE GIANT CLAW and hope you enjoyed viewing it. Keep those reviews coming and we'll all keep watching!
The giant claw is one of my absolute favorite science fiction films from the 1950’s. it is entertaining, engaging, hilarious, ludicrous, ridiculous and that’s what makes it great. I have seen it I always watch it through to the end because the end is so over the top. I love how the actors and the tone are so serious yet when you see the monster 30 minutes into the movie, the juxtaposition between the tones is dumbfounding. Great review! Sidenote, I recently discovered your channel, and I love every single thing you do!❤️
All right, one of my favorites. I definitely do put this movie in the so-bad-it’s-good category, but I’m glad I first saw it on TV when I was young enough to take it straight, and enjoy it in the way it was originally intended. I remember wanting to tape it, having seen a preview, and my dad telling me it wasn’t worth wasting a tape on. I ended up leaving a tape recording anyway (it was starting too late for me to stay up and watch). Somehow, I convinced my dad not to record anything over it, and it became another of the many ‘50s monster movies I would endlessly rewatch (I did end up buying that same set you have, specifically for this movie, as I already owned the others).
Thank you so much for sharing this review. This is by far one of the funniest most bizarre 50s B monster movies. And I'm not even talking about the bird. I'm so glad you pointed out the plane makeout scene. I can't get over how obnoxious the leading man is. I know it's the 50s but wow what a jerk! You are totally right it is a fun movie to watch and fun to poke fun at. But yes it does get old. I've watched it several times. Well I started watching it several times but I've rarely finished it. I get my laughs in and then I'm out.
Another great review! I grew up on this endearingly goofy movie, seeing it a few times on local TV in the 1970s, then in regular rotation on Cinemax in the late 1980s-early 1990s, then on the early version of the TNT network, back when it was basically a proto-TCM/MeTV with commercials. The special effects are silly (except for that one rather decent matte painting of the bird's huge footprint on the farmland, seen at the 0:44 mark in your review), although I do genuinely like the part when Morrow and Corday stalk the giant nest to shoot the egg, which generates a little bit of suspense, and shortly afterward, when the bird attacks those thrill-crazy teenagers in their hot rod (though the latter ends up being pretty funny, due to the poor special effects work). I'm not a musician, by any means, but a few years ago, just for fun, I came up with the lyrics for a GIANT CLAW song parody, which I'll shamelessly share with you now-- 🎼🎵🎶 “SCARY LA CARCAGNE (spelled "Lah Kah-kawn-yah")” (THE GIANT CLAW song parody, sung to the tune of “Gary, Indiana”, from the musical, “THE MUSIC MAN”, by Meredith Wilson) [Jeff Morrow]: “Scary 'La Carcagne'…” [Mara Corday]: “What an unusual name!” [Jeff Morrow]: “--Coined by French-Canadians, to their eternal shame.” [Jeff Morrow, breaking into song]: “Scary La Carcagne… --Please don’t say it in vain! For it may swoop, --and bump-for-a-loop the C.A.B. plane! Scary La Carcagne, Scary La Carcagne, Scary La Carcagne, let me warn you once again… Scary La Carcagne, Scary La Carcagne, Scary La Carcagne, --I first saw it once on “Sven”… If you’re hoping for a logical explanation… I would offer you one, only with trepidation… Sort of a thread-bare form of Supermarionation™… A turkey, they often quip, “-as big as a battleship!”… Scary La Carcagne, Scary La Carcagne, --not that tree, “Tabonga”, “Ro-Man”, “Trog” or “Gameraaaa”, but... *SCARY* La Carcagne, Scary *LA* Carcagne, Scary La *CARCAGNE* , THE GIANT CLAW!” 🎼🎵🎶 😁
Thank you, so much. I have always been so curious as to how this movie ever made it to the screen. It was so embarrassing a production. I am glad to know that I was not the only nonplussed by this film.
Rome? Reviewing The Giant Claw? I grinned and clicked instantly. (If you haven't already, see Fiend Without a Face, which is crazy but actually not-so-embarrassing fun.) Hey, this gives me an idea -- The Galactic Owl. "It's a deadly invader from a distant planet -- and yet, it's cute!" Seriously, I'd love to see a giant owl from outer space -- maybe not necessarily made of antimatter. Thank you so much tonight, Rome, and owl be seeing you.
Love the fact you watch these films that no one really talks about anymore. I watched one the other day I hadn't seen since I was a kid and it's I won't say, but it's on Amazon Prime now and you should have a look - I think your reaction and review would be awesome. It's called Hanover Street with Harrison Ford and Christopher Plummer.
I did not know they wanted Harryhausen to create the Bird. That would've been great. Still, I love this movie. Fred F Sears was a good director. Thanks for the review.
Well done, Jeri -- you mentioned that you don't want to review movies like this - I understand that these aren't the focus of your channel... But this is a refreshing change, and I do hope you bring more of your viewpoints to these kinds of films. You're always fascinating, have an informative, engaging and welcoming presence that I look forward to. It's like sharing a coffee break with a friend. - Great Stuff.
I should say rather that I don't want to *just* review movies like this or to adopt the same derisive attitude toward them that some other channels have. But I've reviewed a few films in the past that are akin to this one, and I'm sure I will cover more in the future. :) Thank you!
I haven't seen this one before but my impression pretty well matches yours. I was expecting one of your standard garden variety 1950s b-grade sci-fi/horror movies. That's not what I got. After the first laugh-out-loud moment (was it the toy plane on a string or the battleship sized flying rubber chicken?), I realised this doesn't even rise to that level. After that, a number of laugh-out-loud moments mostly kept me entertained. That and Mara Corday :) The creature looked vaguely familiar and it's just now occurred to me that it resembles the creature from the Twilight Zone movie. I got confused by your comments near the end... The movie is bad, in fact it's so bad it's good, but even as a so-bad-it's-good movie, it's still bad. Ok, I think I got that LOL! :D My favourite part of the movie (apart from Mara Corday) is when the creature is plucking the guys in parachutes out of the air and there's a very satisfying crunch!
Haha, yes, that came out more confusing than it was supposed to. Basically, it's bad, but it's not the worst movie ever made. And it achieves "so bad it's good" status, but I don't think it's the BEST so-bad-it's-good movie. The key word was superlative, ha. :)
I have never heard of this movie but it looks like a comic winner! I loved the shots you showed. My favorite "so awfully bad its good" sci fi movie is 1958's Attack of the 50-Foot Woman. The story, the special effects are sooo horrible but its very entertaining! 2nd place is 1957's Attack of the Crab Monsters. The monsters looked ridiculous but it was great fun to watch. Also on my list of good/bad sci-fi is 1953's Invaders from Mars. It was actually really good and had pretty stellar special effects but I was very disappointed in the ending. I got a double DVD and it had the British ending that the director wanted and was so much better the the American one. I watched most of these B-movies on a program called Chiller Theater. Its opening scene was a montage of clips set to ominous music and was great! It showed a lot of sci fi but also horror like the Wolfman, Creature from the Black Lagoon and Mothra vs. Godzilla! It was a favorite show of my brothers and I growing up in the 60's. We'd get under our blankets with popcorn and drinks and be totally entertained. Sci Fi and Horror were so much fun then! I love these old movies. Thanks for your review. It was as informative and as fun as ever.
After watching this I think I've found the Muppets next movie redo. Gonzo and his chickens as the giant Claw, Kermit and Miss Piggy as the scientific couple and Fozzie Bear as the general who keeps bringing up that it's the size of a battleship to everyone else. Add a few live action cameo actors and we've got a Muppet Movie!!
The proud owner here of the Sam Katzman 4 movie box set. I enjoy this movie.😬 One of my very favorites however is The Creature With the Atom Brain. Have watched it numerous times!
YES!!!! Love The Giant Claw! This review put yet another smile on my face. Great to see Robert Shayne in this film and Mara Corday was great. Tremendously fun movie.
Great review JW. Such a fun movie. But if you want a laughably bad monster, it's hard to beat From Hell It Came, and The Horror of Party Beach. Both are amazingly bad movies I'd love to see you review.
I never knew that I needed a review of the Giant Claw from Weiselberry. As far as the man giving a bad description of the monster, I think he was describing a harpy. I personally would have likened it to the Roc, the giant bird of middle eastern legend. Thank you for showing such exuberance and passion for one of this "great" bad movie (great at being bad?)
Love your take, J, thanks. Watched this today and unlike Seinfeld, I had to make sarcastic comments to my cat, who didn't seem amused. I really feel this was an okay movie and could have been better with a redesigned bird. Someone mentioned a chicken hawk near the beginning, so why not make a Rodan-sized hawk instead of a flying ostrich? The final result was very goofy, very 1950's, so that counts for something. I did check out Mara Corday's IMDb page which made for interesting reading. Overall I'm glad I saw this, so thanks again.
Sooner or later, every reviewer has to face the Giant Claw! Ha ha! You make the excellent point that while the movie is fun, it is still NOT a good movie. I feel that both Plan 9 from Outer Space and Dracula vs. Frankenstein (1971) are also not good movies, but I also don't think they're fun (but obviously, other people do). The Giant Claw's claim to fame is indeed that silly bird, and perhaps if someone competent had done the special effects, it would have remained an obscure B movie. Anyway, my main reason for watching The Giant Claw is the gorgeous Mara Corday!
She took on n overgrown goofy bird, giant scorpions, and a robber who had a gun to her head, while Dirty Harry is giving his most famous dare to the bad guy ("Go ahead...make my day"). In fact, Mara Corday and Clint Eastwood were old friends going back to the 1950s.
I saw this turkey as a kid, with my parents and siblings in attendance. All of us laughed until our sides ached. To my mind, the ostrich ("Tomari") on the old Conan 0"Brien show was more terrifying than the bird in this awful, but fun movie. Thanks, Jerome Weiselberry, for critiquing this flicker.
I had never seen The Giant Claw.I have now.Thank you Lady Weiselberry.There is nothing like watching this film, anticipating your thoughts,then watching your review.Your talk acts like an audio visual version of the introduction you often read before a modern printing of classic literature.Except more fun.And this ain't no classic.Not in the conventional sense.But it is entertaining.The movies called the worst movies are usually not.Because the worst movies are truly unwatchable.This is very watchable and funny.The actors deserve our respect.People always win Oscars for reciting superb dialogue.This cast delivers their fruity lines with full conviction.That is acting.It was a wise movie not to show them the monster.It would have caused a mutiny.The farmer Pierre builds us up to believe that the beast is terrifying.Then we see it.It is wrong to chuckle.The Giant Claw is deadly.Even if it looks ridiculous.It kills many and destroys much.Just to be serious for a moment.The world has seen great danger from some silly looking men.I'm thinking of one now.We get to learn about atoms.Which I have already forgotten. C'mon it's been over an hour.We see some aerial dogfights.Which makes me think.Top Gun Maverick is coming out soon.Tom Cruise fights The Giant Claw.I wish.Maybe they were too quick too destroy the monster.It seemed to have an answer for the juvenile delinquent problem.$50 bucks for the Claw puppet.Take that Godzilla vs.Kong VFX department.The squawk noise will give me nightmares tonight.Night of the Lepus.They are some funny monsters! Did you film this and your Invasion of the Body Snatchers book review on the same day?How is that even possible? Thank you.
I definitely agree that the movies that are actually the worst are usually close to unwatchable. And there are oodles of them out there! When I'd seen the film before, I hadn't picked up on how awkward some of the lines were. I guess I was so distracted by the bird that I didn't notice. The actors certainly do deserve credit for making the dialogue as convincing and sincere as they could. Haha, yes, I filmed this video first (took a little over an hour) and then the Invasion of the Body Snatchers book review right after, following a 10-20 minute water/bathroom/vocal chord break. When I have the opportunity to film, I try to make the most of it. :)
@@Weiselberry It must have been like "Rock around the Clock!" the day you filmed the two reviews. Do you listen to music when you write and edit?That would have been a 50's kind of day.As long as you didn't end up referring to your father as Daddy O'. Thank you for Leave her to Heaven 1945.That one knocked me out and left me on the floor winded.Gene Tierney burned the screen.The only way her character was ever going to be happy was if she and Cornel Wilde were the last two people on earth.The mother claimed that her daughter loved too much.That is putting it mildly. Oh!How I feared for little brother Danny.Then we get to her final act of revenge.I was shocked.Was this believable.Then I think.Deranged people often perform illogical acts of violence to satisfy their rage. Vincent Price chews it up in the courtroom.So satisfying to see such a good film that I didn't know about. And I have you to thank for it.
@@earthcreature5824 Ha, no, I don't usually listen to music when I'm writing, since I'm too tempted to sing along and I might lose my train of thought or start typing out lyrics by mistake. Exceptions include times when I'm reviewing a movie and put the score on for immersive inspiration. But I do listen to music when I'm collecting and placing images. :) Woohoo, you checked out Leave Her to Heaven! It's a great thriller that doesn't get enough attention. I'm glad you found it so engaging.
@@Weiselberry Yeah.The words can get in your head.The IMdB claims that Leave Her to Heaven! is a favourite of Martin Scorsese.He should know.I read this story about a test screening of the film The Woman in the Window where the audience did not like the Amy Adams character.The director Joe Wright contended that people don't like seeing bad women on film(I love em).I thought. Give them Tierney in Heaven.They'll think Adams is a girl scout by comparison.Did I mention that your The Giant Claw review was really funny.Thank you so much.
Thanks, Jerome, for another entertaining review! I love the word you used..."derpy"! Hilarious! The cry of this monster is pretty bizarre! I think it would have been great if they had done a fourth Creature From the Black Lagoon with Mara Corday as the leading lady. She's very pretty, though women smoking is a huge turn-off for me.
This one is a good example of the '50s scifi thing where planes magically transform into completely different aircraft between shots. IIRC, at one point the USAF is apparently flying British Gloster Meteor fighters (complete with RAF markings).
I've seen this pic twice. I first saw it with my brother as children. We liked the movie, and called the bird, Goofy. I saw it again last year when I couldn't sleep. It seems to have a cast made up of "B" actors with other SF or horror movie experience. I found it entertaining. I use to love the psuedo-science talk as a kid. I am a science guy still, so it's fun to see this 50's baloney. Spot on review.
This was the age of the low budget quickie designed to make a fast buck at the drive in theaters back in those days. The Giant Claw, Beginning Of The End, Earth Vs The Spider, films with non existant budgets and atrocious special effects, these were the norm for what passed for monster movies in the fifties and sixties....
Groovy vid. Though I don't get why everyone considers this movie to be so humorous. I found it to be a particularly bone-chilling thriller with a terrifying antagonist. I still wake up sweating 40 years after I last saw the film, and often my dreams are plagued with the staring, deadly images of the avioid's devilish debauchery. Woe to they that cross paths with The Giant Claw!
@@Weiselberry There's a favorite movie of mine, Bert I. Gordon's TORMENTED, that, although low-budgeted, has a pervasive, eerie atmosphere that reminds me of a nightmare, the sort that vaporizes upon awakening, leaving only an unnerving residue. You might enjoy a look, if you haven't already seen it. I love your take on reviews, not slick, not snarky, but enthusiastic and informed, without being gushy. I would enjoy spending a long, pleasant evening with you, talking movies, books, life, and such. Slainte', mam'zelle.
HA!---You finally got to this one! --I well remember seeing this giant turkey...of a movie on its original run on a rainy Sunday evening. It was the second film of a double bill, the top of which was the somewhat scandalous (at the time) film version of PEYTON PLACE! ---I had to sit through that in a theater packed with adults (I probably wasn't technically supposed to be let in, but I was big for my age and they didn't ask for any identification that I was 16 (or maybe it was supposed to be 18...I forget the rules for admissions of that era). I actually thought there was a bit more character development than usual for this type of film. Setting aside, for the moment, the bad Big Bird design, i thought there were a few clever low-budget effects tricks they employed, such as using photo-cut-outs of the New York buildings---until I noticed that the lighting directions on the photos didn't match. Oops. I had a certain empathy/sympathy for Morrow upon seeing this again. I knew him somewhat. He hung his head low in amused embarrassment when I asked him (politely, mind you) about this film (though he did say that he and his fellow actors thought the script was actually pretty good, which was another reason he was so unhappy when he saw the finished product! (The guy who was in charge of the special effects had a good reputation, Ralph Hammeras: Check out some of his groundbreaking ---NO PUN INTENDED---colossal earthquake effects in the old old film DELUGE. Primitive, but pretty spectacular. A capable, talented guy who probably was humiliated when he first saw that Turkey-dactyl from Space puppet! Thanks again for the review. Well done! (Hmm, speaking of "well done", maybe this would be the kind of turkey to run on Thanksgiving?)
3:34 "The Werewolf" is truly poignant for a super-low-budget horror. It's like "I Was a Teenage Werewolf" only much better. (The MST3K writers wouldn't dare try to riff this tragic tale, whereas they did a classic riff on IWATW.) Gene Fowler, Jr. was trying to leech some James-Dean-style teenage angst/alienation in his film, which is why Michael Landon got the lead, but the character isn't that sympathetic. Tony Rivers is pretty nasty even without the werewolf injections and he treats his girlfriend shabbily from time to time. Whereas Duncan Marsh (played by Steven Ritch) is the truly innocent victim of the nastiest pair of mad scientists in sci-fi/horror history. Not only is he unaware of his identity as a werewolf, Marsh doesn't even know who he is or how he came to be where he is. All he knows is he's being pursued by armed men, it's freezing cold, and his feet are bare. Then his wife and son show up in the town that has been terrorized by a murderous and mysterious lupine beast. Poor Duncan Marsh is a righteous sufferer like the Biblical Job. The one saving grace of "I Was a Teenage Werewolf" is it contains the classic line, "And you call yourself a scientist!"
Yes, it's a case of "one of these things is not like the other." The other three films are great fun with effects that for the most part still stand up. And then there's The Giant Claw... I think it's worth seeing, though. :)
Saw this as a kid, and saw it again pro-CV19 at a giant monster 2-day festival at Canton (OH) Palace Theatre. When I saw it at the festival, I was struck that, even though Sally Caldwell (Mara Corday) is a mathematician, its Mitch MacAfee (Morrow, admittedly a civil aeronautical engineer) that discovers and explains to her the spiral pattern. I do like Corday, but her character in this film seems to be mainly a kissing-objective. (As a kid, I mostly wondered who'd win a three-way between Giant Claw, Rodan and Gyaos).
The '50s low budget sci fi often used the documentary buildup, unscientific science, and the romantic tie in. The puppet for a monster is what separated "The Giant Claw" from the others. Another film wrecked by the monster was "Reptilicus", a Danish production.
I think you hit the nail on the head: it’s not bad enough all the way through to be fun and the dead spots make it feel much longer than it actually is. I usually have a soft spot for movies that aspire to be better than they are, but this just doesn’t do it for me.
I just watched this before I watched this video. It was a really good time. The monster awesomely bad, anticlimactic effect in the final confrontation. Love the mu mesons "science", especially since mesons are real particles made up of quarks and anti quarks, so I actually see where extrapolated the idea from. The very beginning reminds me of the opening of The Deadly Mantis, if I remember that correctly. Your right about so much here as always. Unlikely jokes, total lack of lead chemistry. I didn't find this dull, but I've only seen it this one time. I can see it getting that way in further viewings.
Personally I am happy that the movie is a bit more wide known in modern times. I would probably attribute that to the AVGN when he put it in his top 10 Giant monsters list as a joke. I personally saw the movie back in the early 90's on TNT's Monstervision. Back when TNT use to show movies like that. The Giant Claw, The Monster that Challenged the World, The Giant Behemoth, and Beast of Hollow Mountain were on that night. I taped them all and watched that tape until it nearly fell apart. I like how the monster looks. It's goofy, but at least memorable. But think about it though. When it has it's antimatter shield up, it could literally run head long into any monster like Godzilla or the Blob, and instantly destroy them. The Giant Claw could be the true King of the Monsters. Problem is the bird is stupid and drops its shields often to lash out with its beak and claws.
The bird design was outsourced to a Mexican effects company to save money. When it arrived, it was too late to start over, so they were forced to go ahead with the goofy turkey buzzard.
I started watching The Giant Claw decades ago and as soon as the bird showed up I stopped watching. But the greatest compliment I can give your review is that it made me want to watch the whole thing... at least if I get in the right mood. Ha!
You might have this, but if not there is a 2 volume book called "Keep Watching the Skies , 21st Century Edition" by Bill Warren. It's a must have for 50's science fiction fans. Check it out if that sounds interesting. It's really awesome.
Another great review and this movie still comes on TCM every once in a while. If I'm around I will still. check it out do to some reason but still love the movie.
I wonder what the creator of the bird marionette thought of the uproarious laughing reactions to his bird. I feel really bad for whoever was working at that effects studio.
I watched The Claw b/c of Mara Corday, now 92 and hopefully in good spirits. She made for a beautiful screamer to spiders, scorpions, bug eyed birds and bad guys in a Dirty Harry movie. Just for fun, back in the '90s, I re-edited some of the movie on VHS, replacing the bird with my then, 3yo son playing with his toys, just to show at the birthday parties. I gave him the tape many years ago.
I recently discovered your channel when searching out Ronald Coleman movies and was impressed and entertained by your review of this talented actor's work. I truly enjoy the range of movies you explore, from The Giant Claw to Roshomon, and all with the same enthusiasm and insight. As a fellow movie buff I'm very much enjoying your posts and appreciate that even the stuff you don't like is fair-minded and never mean-spirited. Keep up the exceptional work!
Thank you!
Watched the Claw in its original broadcast on TV. Watched it as a young child @ night n at the time it scared the bejeebers out of me ! First part was the mystery of what was flying past the aircrafts. Difficult time to sleep that night. Lol. Saw it years later as an adult n could hardly believe the SPECIAL EFFECTS were funny compared to today's standards. Kudos for featuring one of the scariest movies during my childhood. Looking forward to ur next one.
Of course you mean, any days standards. 😲😁
I saw it in the theatre, a double feature with It Came from Beneath the Sea. My best friend and I took the bus downtown.
Oh, that "I'm going to eat only one potato chip" like bite sound at 2:43 is priceless! 😂
When I first saw the trailer for this 1957 movie, in 1957 at age 9-10 years, I was so terrified by that ridiculous, $50 giant bird puppet, I couldn’t sleep, much less bring myself to go see the actual movie when it played at our small town Texas theater. Other “giant puppet” movies, such as “Them!” and “The Deadly Mantis”, which had much more convincing giant puppets (the “ants” in “Them!” being full-sized) I had weathered bravely and thrillingly. But there was something so bizarrely ugly and weird about that da…that darned “bird”, that is, it completely freaked out my little boy brain. Thank you for another entertaining review of what has become a favorite, very goofy guilty pleasure. Poor Jeff Morrow. I still feel sorry for him and Mara Corday having to endure the embarrassment of seeing their “co-star” for the first time at the premiere. I loved Jeff as the Metaluna alien Exeter in “This Island Earth”. Incidentally, Corday was a Playboy centerfold in 1958.
I saw this on original release at the age of 8. I laughed so hard I nearly peed myself. At that age, sci-fi movies usually gave me nightmares. "Invaders From Mars" certainly did.
While everyone seems to be laughing at this movie, the first time I saw it, it scared me to death...now, I was only 5 years old at the time and this was my first movie theater experience, so, for that reason, it will always be a bit special to me.
How old are you? 90?
Oh, THIS movie! I forgot about this movie and was given a nice reminder when I got the notification for this video. I burst into laughter when you pointed out that different characters compared the bird to a battleship without having heard any other character do it before hand. Who knows what kind of battleships they've seen! 🥴
13 mentions !
I understand the producers hired an animation studio in Mexico to do all the SFX based on some storyboard sketches.
I love this movie. It's absurd enough to be funny, short enough to not outstay its welcome, but also cozy in a way that you can watch it when the hour is late and you want something easy and silly to fall asleep to. By the by, the La Carcagne is supposedly a very different folklore creature (not bird related) that appears in Samuel Hopkins Adams' story "Grandfather and a Winter's Tale".
Thanks for the additional information about La Carcagne! I wondered if it was an actual legend or just something made up for the film. I tried to find out but couldn't get the spelling close enough for Google to figure out what I meant.
The bird is actually quite scary!
Like an Ed Wood movie perfect for 2 AM .
Today we would call it Le Trudeau.
The key to enjoying this movie is to not watch it. Listen to the movie without looking at the screen. The voice acting is great and your imagination will make the giant bird look much better. I think this movie could be salvaged by someone with the CGI skills to edit out the existing special effects and put new ones in with a scary bird.
Low budget movies have been in my wheelhouse since I was a teenager. I used to watch KTLA's Movies Til Dawn (back in the day when Cal Worthington was almost the sole advertiser selling used cars in Los Angeles. Cal was almost as goofy bad as many of the 4AM movies). There are a ton of dull low budget films so finding a gem that resonates with you is harder than finding a classic good movie that holds up to the modern day. That's where I first watched "The Giant Claw".
If you are inclined, two films which I find fun (and were never featured on Mystery Science Theater 3000 or RiffTrax):
"From Hell It Came" (1957) is a voodoo revenge film featuring a walking tree stump.
"High School Confidential" (1958) is a juvenile delinquent film from MGM with a surprising group of semi-well known actors and a quick music segment with Jerry Lee Lewis playing piano on the back of a truck. It rolls up all the tropes of the JD / marijuana fear genre with people in their late 20s/30s playing teens.
[EDIT: a montage collection of Cal Worthington (his segments often lasted 10 minutes as he strolled from used car to used car promising to "make you the best deal or I'll eat a bug"
ruclips.net/video/QOsLdT4slsk/видео.html
Ah, I have seen From Hell It Came! A bizarre flick that, like The Giant Claw that same year (what was going on in 1957?), takes itself seriously despite its monster being truly bonkers.
Re: Go See Cal, WOW. I can't believe he made it out of some of those ads alive. Is there anything he wouldn't do??
@@Weiselberry Cal was an over-the-top huckster. During commercial breaks watchers normally ran to the bathroom or grabbed something to eat and drink. It was difficult leaving the TV when Cal came on. You really felt that you were going to miss something (like an angry animal attack)!
I still blush during the scene in "From Hell It Came" when the tree stump kills the voodoo priest (I think that's who it was) by backing him against a rocky embankment and repeatedly thrusting it's tree truck body against its victim. 😳
Wow I just have to watch this with my brother now! Also I have to say how much I enjoy your inclusion of the background information about the making of the films. Its always well researched and super interesting. Thanks!
I'm sure you'll have a good time watching it! :) Thank you!
Yes, that same 4-film sci-fi set is part of my own collection! Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this fun little film. I do think THE GIANT CLAW would be much more fondly remembered if only the filmmakers had invested more money in the monstrous bird, or in any event one that wasn't so threadbare. The words you use to describe it (particularly "derpy" and "goofy") are absolutely perfect, and only a dead person could fail to laugh at that absurd slideshow close-up. It's like the perfect punchline to an unexpected joke! But I do like the movie, and while you correctly point out some failings in the script and direction I don't think it's a total loss. Like you, I appreciate the performances of Jeff Morrow and Mara Corday, both of whom do excellent work (I wonder if they could have done so well if they had known what the bird was going to look like? I doubt it!). I enjoy the way the romance develops. I think it's implied early on that they both have an interest in the other and the verbal sparring matches they indulge in early on are really flirtatious in nature, up until the moment on the plane when they come clean about their mutual feelings. And hey, for us male viewers, surely the lovely Mara Corday is more than enough of a special effect to make up for that cheesy bird! lol I also like the serious tone of the movie, and while it's unfortunate the bird doesn't live up to the in-story hype I think the business-like atmosphere helps the scenes between the monster's appearances immensely. A few touches are especially nice: I think the moments when falling airmen are attacked by the giant bird are actually quite effective--being devoured by an alien animal can't be a fun thing, no matter how silly the thing looks; and moreover I like the explanation given for the creature's invulnerability...it's not just got impossibly hard skin, but an anti-matter force field. But alas, the bird just doesn't work as anything other than pure, unadulterated cheese, and it's hard for any monster movie to work when the monster in question is so...well, sorry. Even so, I like THE GIANT CLAW and hope you enjoyed viewing it. Keep those reviews coming and we'll all keep watching!
A back alley RODAN copy on a budget .
Hello Jerome! I hope you have a blessed weekend! Thank you for this review! Gods bless
Corday and Morrow are so earnest, particularly in the scene on the airplane where they both deliver solid performances...but, that derpy bird...
The giant claw is one of my absolute favorite science fiction films from the 1950’s. it is entertaining, engaging, hilarious, ludicrous, ridiculous and that’s what makes it great. I have seen it I always watch it through to the end because the end is so over the top. I love how the actors and the tone are so serious yet when you see the monster 30 minutes into the movie, the juxtaposition between the tones is dumbfounding. Great review! Sidenote, I recently discovered your channel, and I love every single thing you do!❤️
Thank you!
I love the bird's hair! LOL
Oh no i so remember this movie. I was in my early teens & scared me ha!! Thx for the Memories.
One of my favorites. You're reviews are always great.
Thanks!
I love this movie. Pure campy fun. Reptilicus is another movie so bad it's good.
Totally agree. "Reptilicus" is so terrible it's wonderful. That shot of the cut-out photo of the man being eaten makes me scream with laughter.
@@joseluisherreralepron9987 Yup, "Reptilicus" was similar and terrible. I loved it.
2:34 I forgot about the Chomping sound!! LMAO!!
It's as big as a battleship!
All right, one of my favorites. I definitely do put this movie in the so-bad-it’s-good category, but I’m glad I first saw it on TV when I was young enough to take it straight, and enjoy it in the way it was originally intended. I remember wanting to tape it, having seen a preview, and my dad telling me it wasn’t worth wasting a tape on. I ended up leaving a tape recording anyway (it was starting too late for me to stay up and watch). Somehow, I convinced my dad not to record anything over it, and it became another of the many ‘50s monster movies I would endlessly rewatch (I did end up buying that same set you have, specifically for this movie, as I already owned the others).
Thank you so much for sharing this review. This is by far one of the funniest most bizarre 50s B monster movies. And I'm not even talking about the bird. I'm so glad you pointed out the plane makeout scene. I can't get over how obnoxious the leading man is. I know it's the 50s but wow what a jerk! You are totally right it is a fun movie to watch and fun to poke fun at. But yes it does get old. I've watched it several times. Well I started watching it several times but I've rarely finished it. I get my laughs in and then I'm out.
Thanks for the review. I liked the crunching sound as the creature munched the parachutist!He,he. Now, I'm off to find/ watch.....OCTAMAN! Yay.
Great review! I enjoy so much your well researched v-blog. Thank you.
Thanks!
I love the crunching sound when it eats the aircrew 🤣
Another great review!
I grew up on this endearingly goofy movie, seeing it a few times on local TV in the 1970s, then in regular rotation on Cinemax in the late 1980s-early 1990s, then on the early version of the TNT network, back when it was basically a proto-TCM/MeTV with commercials. The special effects are silly (except for that one rather decent matte painting of the bird's huge footprint on the farmland, seen at the 0:44 mark in your review), although I do genuinely like the part when Morrow and Corday stalk the giant nest to shoot the egg, which generates a little bit of suspense, and shortly afterward, when the bird attacks those thrill-crazy teenagers in their hot rod (though the latter ends up being pretty funny, due to the poor special effects work).
I'm not a musician, by any means, but a few years ago, just for fun, I came up with the lyrics for a GIANT CLAW song parody, which I'll shamelessly share with you now--
🎼🎵🎶
“SCARY LA CARCAGNE (spelled "Lah Kah-kawn-yah")” (THE GIANT CLAW song parody, sung to the tune of “Gary, Indiana”, from the musical, “THE MUSIC MAN”, by Meredith Wilson)
[Jeff Morrow]: “Scary 'La Carcagne'…”
[Mara Corday]: “What an unusual name!”
[Jeff Morrow]: “--Coined by French-Canadians,
to their eternal shame.”
[Jeff Morrow, breaking into song]: “Scary La Carcagne…
--Please don’t say it in vain!
For it may swoop,
--and bump-for-a-loop
the C.A.B. plane!
Scary La Carcagne,
Scary La Carcagne,
Scary La Carcagne,
let me warn you once again…
Scary La Carcagne,
Scary La Carcagne,
Scary La Carcagne,
--I first saw it once on “Sven”…
If you’re hoping for
a logical explanation…
I would offer you one,
only with trepidation…
Sort of a thread-bare form
of Supermarionation™…
A turkey, they often quip,
“-as big as a battleship!”…
Scary La Carcagne,
Scary La Carcagne,
--not that tree, “Tabonga”,
“Ro-Man”, “Trog” or “Gameraaaa”,
but...
*SCARY* La Carcagne,
Scary *LA* Carcagne,
Scary La *CARCAGNE* ,
THE GIANT CLAW!”
🎼🎵🎶
😁
Thank you, so much. I have always been so curious as to how this movie ever made it to the screen. It was so embarrassing a production. I am glad to know that I was not the only nonplussed by this film.
Rome? Reviewing The Giant Claw? I grinned and clicked instantly. (If you haven't already, see Fiend Without a Face, which is crazy but actually not-so-embarrassing fun.) Hey, this gives me an idea -- The Galactic Owl. "It's a deadly invader from a distant planet -- and yet, it's cute!" Seriously, I'd love to see a giant owl from outer space -- maybe not necessarily made of antimatter. Thank you so much tonight, Rome, and owl be seeing you.
Love the fact you watch these films that no one really talks about anymore. I watched one the other day I hadn't seen since I was a kid and it's I won't say, but it's on Amazon Prime now and you should have a look - I think your reaction and review would be awesome. It's called Hanover Street with Harrison Ford and Christopher Plummer.
That Giant Claw is so goofy and adorable. Fun review as always!
I did not know they wanted Harryhausen to create the Bird. That would've been great. Still, I love this movie. Fred F Sears was a good director.
Thanks for the review.
Spot on. Thanks👍!
Glad you enjoyed it!
The flaring nostrils are the best part of the movie.
Peace on earth.
Well done, Jeri -- you mentioned that you don't want to review movies like this - I understand that these aren't the focus of your channel... But this is a refreshing change, and I do hope you bring more of your viewpoints to these kinds of films. You're always fascinating, have an informative, engaging and welcoming presence that I look forward to. It's like sharing a coffee break with a friend. - Great Stuff.
I should say rather that I don't want to *just* review movies like this or to adopt the same derisive attitude toward them that some other channels have. But I've reviewed a few films in the past that are akin to this one, and I'm sure I will cover more in the future. :) Thank you!
I haven't seen this one before but my impression pretty well matches yours. I was expecting one of your standard garden variety 1950s b-grade sci-fi/horror movies. That's not what I got. After the first laugh-out-loud moment (was it the toy plane on a string or the battleship sized flying rubber chicken?), I realised this doesn't even rise to that level. After that, a number of laugh-out-loud moments mostly kept me entertained. That and Mara Corday :)
The creature looked vaguely familiar and it's just now occurred to me that it resembles the creature from the Twilight Zone movie.
I got confused by your comments near the end... The movie is bad, in fact it's so bad it's good, but even as a so-bad-it's-good movie, it's still bad. Ok, I think I got that LOL! :D
My favourite part of the movie (apart from Mara Corday) is when the creature is plucking the guys in parachutes out of the air and there's a very satisfying crunch!
Haha, yes, that came out more confusing than it was supposed to. Basically, it's bad, but it's not the worst movie ever made. And it achieves "so bad it's good" status, but I don't think it's the BEST so-bad-it's-good movie. The key word was superlative, ha. :)
Yes, that CRUNCH! :o
I have never heard of this movie but it looks like a comic winner! I loved the shots you showed. My favorite "so awfully bad its good" sci fi movie is 1958's Attack of the 50-Foot Woman. The story, the special effects are sooo horrible but its very entertaining! 2nd place is 1957's Attack of the Crab Monsters. The monsters looked ridiculous but it was great fun to watch. Also on my list of good/bad sci-fi is 1953's Invaders from Mars. It was actually really good and had pretty stellar special effects but I was very disappointed in the ending. I got a double DVD and it had the British ending that the director wanted and was so much better the the American one.
I watched most of these B-movies on a program called Chiller Theater. Its opening scene was a montage of clips set to ominous music and was great! It showed a lot of sci fi but also horror like the Wolfman, Creature from the Black Lagoon and Mothra vs. Godzilla! It was a favorite show of my brothers and I growing up in the 60's. We'd get under our blankets with popcorn and drinks and be totally entertained. Sci Fi and Horror were so much fun then! I love these old movies.
Thanks for your review. It was as informative and as fun as ever.
After watching this I think I've found the Muppets next movie redo. Gonzo and his chickens as the giant Claw, Kermit and Miss Piggy as the scientific couple and Fozzie Bear as the general who keeps bringing up that it's the size of a battleship to everyone else. Add a few live action cameo actors and we've got a Muppet Movie!!
The proud owner here of the Sam Katzman 4 movie box set. I enjoy this movie.😬 One of my very favorites however is The Creature With the Atom Brain. Have watched it numerous times!
As a 7 yearold i begged to see it "with all the other kids"--mom warned me--had nightmares for weeks!
YES!!!! Love The Giant Claw! This review put yet another smile on my face. Great to see Robert Shayne in this film and Mara Corday was great. Tremendously fun movie.
U just made my Saturday night. Thank you!
You're welcome!
Great review JW. Such a fun movie. But if you want a laughably bad monster, it's hard to beat From Hell It Came, and The Horror of Party Beach. Both are amazingly bad movies I'd love to see you review.
Anybody who gives a thoughtful review of both "Marty" and "The Giant Claw" gets a thumbs up from me.
I never knew that I needed a review of the Giant Claw from Weiselberry.
As far as the man giving a bad description of the monster, I think he was describing a harpy. I personally would have likened it to the Roc, the giant bird of middle eastern legend.
Thank you for showing such exuberance and passion for one of this "great" bad movie (great at being bad?)
i love your voice it's so soft and appealing. im glad i discovered this channel
Love your take, J, thanks. Watched this today and unlike Seinfeld, I had to make sarcastic comments to my cat, who didn't seem amused. I really feel this was an okay movie and could have been better with a redesigned bird. Someone mentioned a chicken hawk near the beginning, so why not make a Rodan-sized hawk instead of a flying ostrich? The final result was very goofy, very 1950's, so that counts for something. I did check out Mara Corday's IMDb page which made for interesting reading. Overall I'm glad I saw this, so thanks again.
Guys, imagine Godzilla if he ever fought the Giant Claw?
Sooner or later, every reviewer has to face the Giant Claw! Ha ha! You make the excellent point that while the movie is fun, it is still NOT a good movie. I feel that both Plan 9 from Outer Space and Dracula vs. Frankenstein (1971) are also not good movies, but I also don't think they're fun (but obviously, other people do). The Giant Claw's claim to fame is indeed that silly bird, and perhaps if someone competent had done the special effects, it would have remained an obscure B movie. Anyway, my main reason for watching The Giant Claw is the gorgeous Mara Corday!
I know what you mean.
She took on n overgrown goofy bird, giant scorpions, and a robber who had a gun to her head, while Dirty Harry is giving his most famous dare to the bad guy ("Go ahead...make my day"). In fact, Mara Corday and Clint Eastwood were old friends going back to the 1950s.
The squawk is funny too
I saw this turkey as a kid, with my parents and siblings in attendance. All of us laughed until our sides ached. To my mind, the ostrich ("Tomari") on the old Conan 0"Brien show was more terrifying than the bird in this awful, but fun movie. Thanks, Jerome Weiselberry, for critiquing this flicker.
I had never seen The Giant Claw.I have now.Thank you Lady Weiselberry.There is nothing like watching this film,
anticipating your thoughts,then watching your review.Your talk acts like an audio visual version of the introduction
you often read before a modern printing of classic literature.Except more fun.And this ain't no classic.Not in the
conventional sense.But it is entertaining.The movies called the worst movies are usually not.Because the worst
movies are truly unwatchable.This is very watchable and funny.The actors deserve our respect.People always win
Oscars for reciting superb dialogue.This cast delivers their fruity lines with full conviction.That is acting.It was
a wise movie not to show them the monster.It would have caused a mutiny.The farmer Pierre builds us up to
believe that the beast is terrifying.Then we see it.It is wrong to chuckle.The Giant Claw is deadly.Even if it
looks ridiculous.It kills many and destroys much.Just to be serious for a moment.The world has seen great danger
from some silly looking men.I'm thinking of one now.We get to learn about atoms.Which I have already forgotten.
C'mon it's been over an hour.We see some aerial dogfights.Which makes me think.Top Gun Maverick is coming
out soon.Tom Cruise fights The Giant Claw.I wish.Maybe they were too quick too destroy the monster.It seemed
to have an answer for the juvenile delinquent problem.$50 bucks for the Claw puppet.Take that Godzilla vs.Kong
VFX department.The squawk noise will give me nightmares tonight.Night of the Lepus.They are some funny monsters!
Did you film this and your Invasion of the Body Snatchers book review on the same day?How is that even possible?
Thank you.
I definitely agree that the movies that are actually the worst are usually close to unwatchable. And there are oodles of them out there!
When I'd seen the film before, I hadn't picked up on how awkward some of the lines were. I guess I was so distracted by the bird that I didn't notice. The actors certainly do deserve credit for making the dialogue as convincing and sincere as they could.
Haha, yes, I filmed this video first (took a little over an hour) and then the Invasion of the Body Snatchers book review right after, following a 10-20 minute water/bathroom/vocal chord break. When I have the opportunity to film, I try to make the most of it. :)
@@Weiselberry It must have been like "Rock around the Clock!" the day you filmed the two reviews.
Do you listen to music when you write and edit?That would have been a 50's kind of day.As long as you
didn't end up referring to your father as Daddy O'.
Thank you for Leave her to Heaven 1945.That one knocked me out and left me on the floor winded.Gene Tierney
burned the screen.The only way her character was ever going to be happy was if she and Cornel Wilde were
the last two people on earth.The mother claimed that her daughter loved too much.That is putting it mildly.
Oh!How I feared for little brother Danny.Then we get to her final act of revenge.I was shocked.Was this
believable.Then I think.Deranged people often perform illogical acts of violence to satisfy their rage.
Vincent Price chews it up in the courtroom.So satisfying to see such a good film that I didn't know about.
And I have you to thank for it.
@@earthcreature5824 Ha, no, I don't usually listen to music when I'm writing, since I'm too tempted to sing along and I might lose my train of thought or start typing out lyrics by mistake. Exceptions include times when I'm reviewing a movie and put the score on for immersive inspiration. But I do listen to music when I'm collecting and placing images. :)
Woohoo, you checked out Leave Her to Heaven! It's a great thriller that doesn't get enough attention. I'm glad you found it so engaging.
@@Weiselberry Yeah.The words can get in your head.The IMdB claims that Leave Her to Heaven!
is a favourite of Martin Scorsese.He should know.I read this story about a test screening of the film
The Woman in the Window where the audience did not like the Amy Adams character.The director
Joe Wright contended that people don't like seeing bad women on film(I love em).I thought.
Give them Tierney in Heaven.They'll think Adams is a girl scout by comparison.Did I mention
that your The Giant Claw review was really funny.Thank you so much.
This sounds like one that I should explore . Thank you for the ( qualified ) recommendation !
A Thanksgiving tradition at my house!!
Speaking of dangerous birds... I don't want to alarm you, but I think the owls behind you might be multiplying...
Thanks, Jerome, for another entertaining review! I love the word you used..."derpy"! Hilarious! The cry of this monster is pretty bizarre! I think it would have been great if they had done a fourth Creature From the Black Lagoon with Mara Corday as the leading lady. She's very pretty, though women smoking is a huge turn-off for me.
This one is a good example of the '50s scifi thing where planes magically transform into completely different aircraft between shots.
IIRC, at one point the USAF is apparently flying British Gloster Meteor fighters (complete with RAF markings).
I've seen this pic twice. I first saw it with my brother as children. We liked the movie, and called the bird, Goofy. I saw it again last year when I couldn't sleep. It seems to have a cast made up of "B" actors with other SF or horror movie experience. I found it entertaining. I use to love the psuedo-science talk as a kid. I am a science guy still, so it's fun to see this 50's baloney. Spot on review.
That bird was so awesome! 🤣Great compositing work too! I got to see this movie! Did you do a review of Forbidden Planet yet? Great vid!
No, I haven't reviewed Forbidden Planet yet. Thanks! :)
Thanks for this fun movie review! 🙆♀️
You're welcome!
I grew up on this film. Campy yes, but it's one of my favorites.
This was the age of the low budget quickie designed to make a fast buck at the drive in theaters back in those days. The Giant Claw, Beginning Of The End, Earth Vs The Spider, films with non existant budgets and atrocious special effects, these were the norm for what passed for monster movies in the fifties and sixties....
hmm i have heard of this movie before but never really put thought into watching it. it sound interesting
Groovy vid. Though I don't get why everyone considers this movie to be so humorous. I found it to be a particularly bone-chilling thriller with a terrifying antagonist. I still wake up sweating 40 years after I last saw the film, and often my dreams are plagued with the staring, deadly images of the avioid's devilish debauchery. Woe to they that cross paths with The Giant Claw!
I recommend Ed Wood's "Bride of the Monster." The B-movie oddness never lets up.
I've seen several reviews of THE GIANT CLAW, and yours is my favorite.
Ah, thank you!
@@Weiselberry There's a favorite movie of mine, Bert I. Gordon's TORMENTED, that, although low-budgeted, has a pervasive, eerie atmosphere that reminds me of a nightmare, the sort that vaporizes upon awakening, leaving only an unnerving residue.
You might enjoy a look, if you haven't already seen it.
I love your take on reviews, not slick, not snarky, but enthusiastic and informed, without being gushy. I would enjoy spending a long, pleasant evening with you, talking movies, books, life, and such.
Slainte', mam'zelle.
@@Weiselberry I forgot; TORMENTED can be found on RUclips.
HA!---You finally got to this one! --I well remember seeing this giant turkey...of a movie on its original run on a rainy Sunday evening. It was the second film of a double bill, the top of which was the somewhat scandalous (at the time) film version of PEYTON PLACE! ---I had to sit through that in a theater packed with adults (I probably wasn't technically supposed to be let in, but I was big for my age and they didn't ask for any identification that I was 16 (or maybe it was supposed to be 18...I forget the rules for admissions of that era).
I actually thought there was a bit more character development than usual for this type of film. Setting aside, for the moment, the bad Big Bird design, i thought there were a few clever low-budget effects tricks they employed, such as using photo-cut-outs of the New York buildings---until I noticed that the lighting directions on the photos didn't match. Oops.
I had a certain empathy/sympathy for Morrow upon seeing this again. I knew him somewhat. He hung his head low in amused embarrassment when I asked him (politely, mind you) about this film (though he did say that he and his fellow actors thought the script was actually pretty good, which was another reason he was so unhappy when he saw the finished product! (The guy who was in charge of the special effects had a good reputation, Ralph Hammeras: Check out some of his groundbreaking ---NO PUN INTENDED---colossal earthquake effects in the old old film DELUGE. Primitive, but pretty spectacular. A capable, talented guy who probably was humiliated when he first saw that Turkey-dactyl from Space puppet!
Thanks again for the review. Well done! (Hmm, speaking of "well done", maybe this would be the kind of turkey to run on Thanksgiving?)
Your content is so wholesome I love it
Haha, thanks! :)
I love the posters for these movies!
Great review! Never seen this one, but I feel like I should now.
It's definitely an experience. :)
I always think of the Claw as the Jim Henson-on-acid-turkey-buzzard. But that's just me.
I watched this movie when I was child and It was super shocking for me !!!
3:34 "The Werewolf" is truly poignant for a super-low-budget horror. It's like "I Was a Teenage Werewolf" only much better. (The MST3K writers wouldn't dare try to riff this tragic tale, whereas they did a classic riff on IWATW.) Gene Fowler, Jr. was trying to leech some James-Dean-style teenage angst/alienation in his film, which is why Michael Landon got the lead, but the character isn't that sympathetic. Tony Rivers is pretty nasty even without the werewolf injections and he treats his girlfriend shabbily from time to time. Whereas Duncan Marsh (played by Steven Ritch) is the truly innocent victim of the nastiest pair of mad scientists in sci-fi/horror history. Not only is he unaware of his identity as a werewolf, Marsh doesn't even know who he is or how he came to be where he is. All he knows is he's being pursued by armed men, it's freezing cold, and his feet are bare. Then his wife and son show up in the town that has been terrorized by a murderous and mysterious lupine beast. Poor Duncan Marsh is a righteous sufferer like the Biblical Job.
The one saving grace of "I Was a Teenage Werewolf" is it contains the classic line, "And you call yourself a scientist!"
Love the thumbnail.
You're like "Yikes!"
The special effects were on the level if what i did in my stop action movies i did when i was 10
I have the same 4 movie collection! I enjoyed the other 3 films but I’ve been gearing myself up for The Giant Claw. Poor Jeff Morrow!
Yes, it's a case of "one of these things is not like the other." The other three films are great fun with effects that for the most part still stand up. And then there's The Giant Claw... I think it's worth seeing, though. :)
Great review of one of my all time favourite movies. In fairness, the film would actually be quite good if not for the giant Turkey!
Saw this as a kid, and saw it again pro-CV19 at a giant monster 2-day festival at Canton (OH) Palace Theatre. When I saw it at the festival, I was struck that, even though Sally Caldwell (Mara Corday) is a mathematician, its Mitch MacAfee (Morrow, admittedly a civil aeronautical engineer) that discovers and explains to her the spiral pattern. I do like Corday, but her character in this film seems to be mainly a kissing-objective. (As a kid, I mostly wondered who'd win a three-way between Giant Claw, Rodan and Gyaos).
The '50s low budget sci fi often used the documentary buildup, unscientific science, and the romantic tie in. The puppet for a monster is what separated "The Giant Claw" from the others. Another film wrecked by the monster was "Reptilicus", a Danish production.
I think you hit the nail on the head: it’s not bad enough all the way through to be fun and the dead spots make it feel much longer than it actually is. I usually have a soft spot for movies that aspire to be better than they are, but this just doesn’t do it for me.
I just watched this before I watched this video. It was a really good time. The monster awesomely bad, anticlimactic effect in the final confrontation. Love the mu mesons "science", especially since mesons are real particles made up of quarks and anti quarks, so I actually see where extrapolated the idea from.
The very beginning reminds me of the opening of The Deadly Mantis, if I remember that correctly.
Your right about so much here as always. Unlikely jokes, total lack of lead chemistry. I didn't find this dull, but I've only seen it this one time. I can see it getting that way in further viewings.
Again, I watched to see Mara Corday.
i saw this on the exact same dvd set as you!
It’s free on RUclips!That’s my evenings viewing sorted ✈️ 🦅
Would love to hear your take on 1979's 'Salem's Lot' some time. Thank you!
james rolfe introduced me to this hilarious flick too
Personally I am happy that the movie is a bit more wide known in modern times. I would probably attribute that to the AVGN when he put it in his top 10 Giant monsters list as a joke. I personally saw the movie back in the early 90's on TNT's Monstervision. Back when TNT use to show movies like that. The Giant Claw, The Monster that Challenged the World, The Giant Behemoth, and Beast of Hollow Mountain were on that night. I taped them all and watched that tape until it nearly fell apart.
I like how the monster looks. It's goofy, but at least memorable. But think about it though. When it has it's antimatter shield up, it could literally run head long into any monster like Godzilla or the Blob, and instantly destroy them. The Giant Claw could be the true King of the Monsters. Problem is the bird is stupid and drops its shields often to lash out with its beak and claws.
You have an smile. Keep up the great work.
The bird design was outsourced to a Mexican effects company to save money. When it arrived, it was too late to start over, so they were forced to go ahead with the goofy turkey buzzard.
Ah yes! A classic
I started watching The Giant Claw decades ago and as soon as the bird showed up I stopped watching. But the greatest compliment I can give your review is that it made me want to watch the whole thing... at least if I get in the right mood. Ha!
You might have this, but if not there is a 2 volume book called "Keep Watching the Skies , 21st Century Edition" by Bill Warren. It's a must have for 50's science fiction fans. Check it out if that sounds interesting. It's really awesome.
Sounds cool! Thanks for the recommendation.
I love these 1950s sci-fi films, weather they are fantastic to the outright off the wall bad, it's all good fun.
Another great review and this movie still comes on TCM every once in a while. If I'm around I will still. check it out do to some reason but still love the movie.
I wonder what the creator of the bird marionette thought of the uproarious laughing reactions to his bird. I feel really bad for whoever was working at that effects studio.
I caught this on TV back in the 1970s. Teenage ME probably did not fully appreciate the _impressiveness_ of the monster bird...🤭