A colossal, antimatter-powered bird terrorizes skies, cities, and scientific credibility.
THE GIANT CLAW
Flying beast out of prehistoric skies!
Global panic ensues when it is revealed that a mysterious UFO is actually a giant turkey-like bird that flies at supersonic speed and has no regard for life or architecture.
The Giant Claw is a 1957 United States fantasy, horror, science fiction, and thriller film directed by Fred F. Sears about a gigantic, antimatter-powered bird from outer space that attacks cities and incites global panic.
Synopsis
When MacAfee and mathematician Sally Caldwell (Corday) fly back to New York, their aircraft also comes under attack by a UFO. With their pilot dead, they crash-land in the Adirondacks, where Pierre Broussard (Lou Merrill), a French-Canadian farmer, comes to their rescue, and reports seeing a monster he calls La Carcagne. MacAfee's report is met with bewilderment and skepticism, but the military authorities are forced to take his story seriously after several more aircraft disappear. They discover that a gigantic bird "as big as a battleship", purported to come from an antimatter galaxy, is responsible for all the incidents. MacAfee, Caldwell, Dr. Karol Noymann (Edgar Barrier), Gen. Considine (Morris Ankrum), and Gen. Van Buskirk (Robert Shayne) work feverishly to develop a way to defeat the seemingly invincible creature.
The climactic showdown takes place in Manhattan, when the gigantic bird attacks both the Empire State Building and United Nations building. It is defeated by a special type of exotic atom, muonic atoms, deployed from the tail gun position of a B-25 bomber aircraft, which successfully collapses the creature's antimatter shield and allows missiles to hit and kill the monster. The giant bird plummets into the Atlantic Ocean outside New York, and the last sight of it is a claw sinking beneath the ocean.
- Director
- Fred F. Sears
- Writers
- Paul Gangelin, Samuel Newman
- Release
- 1957
- Runtime
- 1h 15m
- Country
- United States of America
- Language
- English
- Genres
- Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction, Thriller
- Also Known As
- O Ataque Vem do Polo, La garra gigante, Il mostro dei cieli, Szpon, Гигантский коготь, Kanatli Canavar
Why Cult
The film’s monster is a gigantic bird powered by antimatter, a rare twist in the giant creature subgenre.
Famed for its low-budget special effects, the titular bird is a hand-crafted, puppet-driven spectacle in true grindhouse tradition.
From the Arctic to New York, watch a feathered menace outfly jets and wreak havoc on architecture and sanity alike.
The straight-faced performances and wild monster design have cemented this film's cult status for fans of psychotronic oddities.
Themes & Keywords
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Giant Claw about? +
The Giant Claw follows civil aeronautical engineer Mitch MacAfee as he discovers a giant, antimatter-powered bird from outer space that terrorizes cities and ignites mass panic.
When was The Giant Claw released? +
The Giant Claw was released in 1957.
Who directed The Giant Claw? +
The Giant Claw was directed by Fred F. Sears.
How long is The Giant Claw? +
The Giant Claw has a runtime of 75 minutes.
What genre is The Giant Claw? +
The Giant Claw is a fantasy, horror, science fiction, and thriller film.
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