The first release of Godzilla vs. Hedorah on Blu-ray, beating out Toho's own release by a few months, this title by Section 23 under their Kraken Releasing label is a good effort. It has pluses and minuses, with good video quality mixed with a good audio presentation and a bare bones extra presentation, but is a worthwhile addition to fans' collections.
Video: |
|
While not stunning for a 1080p transfer, the video quality here is generally great versus most other Toho films on the format. On a low point, it contains an okay level of detail and sharpness. It does shine on occasion when the object is closer to the frame, though, like the scene with the kitten. Noise is also low here, including visible grain, so some of this might be due to the noise reduction technology used. The colors here are also spot on, but could be a tad more vibrant like they were on the Tristar Godzilla vs. Hedorah DVD. The disc does manage a better use of blacks, though, without going overboard and making the night scenes hard to pick up some details like they were on the Tristar release.
The print used for this release is the
international version with the added ® and ™ symbols for Godzilla and Hedorah respectively. The print has some damage toward the start during the opening sequence, with very minor scratches, but as a whole the print is in good condition.
Godzilla vs. Hedorah is presented in its
original aspect ratio of 2.35:1.
Audio: |
|
This release has two audio tracks each with its own subtitle option. The first audio track, which is in mono, is the International English dub version. Sadly, this is not the AIP version that contains the famous "Save the Earth" song, but the one that was previously found on the Tristar DVD. The track has no distortions, but the dialogue lacks a bit in clarity. Given that the sound effects are clear, this might be something with how the English dialogue was originally recorded in Hong Kong. The removable subtitle option for this audio track translates displayed text into English. For example, the text during the cartoon sequences has English subtitles overlaying it.
The other track is the original Japanese audio in mono. The clarity is good on this track and features no notable audio discrepancies. It contains removable English subtitles that correspond to the Japanese dialogue.
Extras: |
|
The Blu-ray features the original Japanese trailer with subtitles that translate both the dialogue and text into English. The colors are muted but are spot on, but the trailer is really soft. It lacks detail, especially for the high definition format.
On a side note, all of the releases are a little lazy on the design side of things. The covers are simple with not a whole lot of care placed into their design, using poster art, solid green side labels and stills on the back of differing quality. However, this release does take the honor of having the worst menu design of the Kraken Releasing Godzilla titles, featuring a
cropped Toho logo and Japanese text straight from the poster. At the very least it would have been nice if someone Photoshopped these out, which should not have taken a great deal of effort.
Overview: |
|
For all Godzilla fans that don't already own the movie, they shouldn't hesitate to pick up the Kraken Releasing Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster! Godzilla vs Hedorah title. The 2004 DVD release goes for a premium price, and its very nice to see a more affordable version hit the market. For those that already own the Tristar DVD, this Blu-ray is a slight step up. If that's worth full retail price or not is up to the buyer although I enjoy owning both.
|