A Catholic detective hunts a cult leader who may be his half-brother, born from the same extraterrestrial visitation.

This film is a police procedural, then a religious thriller, then a science fiction film, finally combining all three into a conspiracy of alien virgin births and psychic messiahs.

Larry Cohen wrote, directed, and produced GOD TOLD ME TO (1976), shooting guerrilla-style on the streets of New York City. The St. Patrick's Day Parade sequence was filmed at the actual parade, with Andy Kaufman - in his first film appearance - antagonizing real crowd members until some of them tried to climb the barricades and attack him.

Cohen said he drew inspiration from the Bible because he considered God one of the most violent characters in literature.

Bernard Herrmann - fresh off Taxi Driver - had agreed to score the film. He came to see an early cut and within fifteen hours he was dead.

Cohen asked Miklós Rózsa to step in. Rózsa declined, saying: "God told me not to."