The Giant Claw (1957)

User Rating:

2.9/10   

Director:

Fred F. Sears

Writers:

Paul Gangelin (writer)
Samuel Newman (writer)

Release Date:

June 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Flying beast out of prehistoric skies!

Plot:

Global panic ensues when it is revealed that a mysterious UFO is actually a giant bird that flies at supersonic speed and has no regard for life or architecture.

Plot Keywords:

UFO | Giant Bird | French Canadian | Radar | Supersonic Speed

Cast

Jeff Morrow	...	Mitchell 'Mitch' MacAfee
Mara Corday	...	Sally Caldwell
Morris Ankrum	...	Lt. Gen. Edward Considine
Louis Merrill	...	Pierre Broussard (as Louis D. Merrill)
Edgar Barrier	...	Dr. Karol Noymann
Robert Shayne	...	Gen. Van Buskirk
Frank Griffin	...	Pete, pilot (as Ruell Shayne)
Clark Howat	...	Maj. Bergen
Morgan Jones	...	Lieutenant, Radar Officer

Also Known As:

The Mark of the Claw (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

75 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Company:

Clover Productions

Trivia:

The producers originally planned to use a stop-motion model created by Ray Harryhausen for the bird. However, due to budgetary limitations they were forced to use a marionette.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: As the plane carrying the meson cannon flies towards the bird (who is on top of the United Nations building in New York City), the footage of the plane shows it over San Francisco.

Quotes:

Gen. Van Buskirk: Three men reported they saw something. Two of them are now dead.
Mitch MacAfee: That makes me Chief Cook and Bottle Washer in a one-man Bird Watcher's Society!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Fantastic Fantasy Fright-o-Rama Show Vol. 1 (1996) (V)

Somebody had to have thought this monster was scary. But who?

People always blast this movie and in some ways that is justified; I mean the monster does look like Sesame Street's "big Bird" on acid, but let's face it, the fact that it is laughable is not the fault of director Fred F. Sears (who had also done the very effective EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS and THE WEREWOLF). Nor can we blame it on the cast who do their jobs very well. Sam Katzman was an old hand at saving money even if he had to sacrifice quality so he had the special effects done in Mexico after the principal photography was done. Maybe someone south-of-the-border thought the giant bird-beast really was scary. I guess we will never know for sure. You have to love the dialogue. Robert Shayne's line "It's just a bird, a big bird. Enough firepower to wipe out a regiment can't even slow it down! Sure, it's just a bird." or Jeff Morrow's: "I don't care if that bird came from outer space or Upper Saddle River, NJ." and you can't forget the classic: "You keep your shirt on and I'll get my pants on." They just don't write gems like that anymore. Oh, has anyone else noticed that there is a character in this film named "Dr. Karol Noymann"? The same name was used for John Carradine's character in the 1959 film INVISIBLE INVADERS. Coincidence?