Commissions Earned

The 1954 film “Godzilla” is officially coming to 4K UHD Blu-ray on November 5th via The Criterion Collection. The movie, originally titled “Gojira” in Japan, was directed by Ishirô Honda.

This has received a new 4K digital restoration. The tech specs for the 4K release include a Black & White 2160p video presentation in the 1.37:1 aspect ratio in SDR (standard dynamic range) with Japanese Uncompressed PCM Mono sound. This includes English subtitles. HDR (high dynamic range) will not be included in this release. The release will come as a “combo pack” with its Blu-ray Disc counterpart included. The 4K UHD Blu-ray is now available for preorder at Amazon and direct via Criterion’s website. The bonus materials set to be included with the release are listed below.

• High-definition digital restoration of Godzilla, King of the Monsters, Terry Morse’s 1956 reworking of the original, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• Audio commentary for both movies by film historian David Kalat
• Interviews with actors Akira Takarada and Haruo Nakajima and special effects technicians Yoshio Irie and Eizo Kaimai
• Interview with legendary Godzilla score composer Akira Ifukube
• Featurette detailing Godzilla’s photographic effects, introduced by special effects director Koichi Kawakita and special effects photographer Motoyoshi Tomioka
• 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
• Trailers
• PLUS: An essay by critic J. Hoberman
• Cover by Bill Sienkiewicz