DEC112122
From the Criterion Collection! Godzilla is the roaring granddaddy of all monster movies. It's also a remarkably humane and melancholy drama made in Japan at a time when the country was still reeling from nuclear attack and H-bomb testing. Its rampaging radioactive beast, the poignant embodiment of an entire population's fears, became a beloved international icon of destruction, spawning more than twenty sequels. This first thrilling, tactile spectacle continues to be a cult phenomenon; here, we present the original, 1954 Japanese version, along with Godzilla, King of the Monsters, the 1956 American reworking starring Raymond Burr.
Disc Features
New high-definition digital restoration (with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition)
Audio commentary by David Kalat (A Critical History and Filmography of Toho's Godzilla Series)
New high-definition digital restoration of Godzilla, King of the Monsters, Terry Morse's 1956 reworking of the original, starring Raymond Burr
Audio commentary for Godzilla, King of the Monsters by Kalat
New interviews with actor Akira Takarada (Hideto Ogata), Godzilla performer Haruo Nakajima, and effects technicians Yoshio Irie and Eizo Kaimai
Interview with legendary Godzilla score composer Akira Ifukube
Featurette detailing Godzilla's photographic effects
New interview with Japanese-film critic Tadao Sato
The Unluckiest Dragon, an illustrated audio essay featuring historian Greg Pflugfelder describing the tragic fate of the fishing vessel Daigo fukuryu maru, a real-life event that inspired Godzilla
Theatrical trailers
New and improved English subtitle translation
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic J. Hoberman
In Shops: Feb 01, 2012
SRP: $29.95
