Gorgo - Widescreen Destruction Edition

Description

A volcanic eruption in the North Atlantic brings to the surface a 65-foot prehistoric monster. Two treasure divers capture the creature and take him to London where he is put on display in a circus. A scientist is thoughtful enough to point out that the sailors' bonanza is only an infant, and that a full-grown specimen would be over 200 feet in height. Sure enough, Gorgo's mama comes thundering ashore, reclaims her offspring and heads back to sea — but not before she trashes a generous portion of London. The special effects in GORGO, provided by Tom Howard — two-time Academy Award winner, are truly admirable. The monster is quite ferocious — except when he wiggles his ears. Released by MGM in 1961. DVD Bonus: Digitally Remastered, Behind the Scenes Short| Photo Gallery, Scene Selection, Animated Menus, Original Theatrical Trailer|,Widescreen/Letterboxed| DVD-9| Dolby Digital 5.1

Customer Reviews:

A Giant Monster Favorite.......2007-08-25

I always had a yen to see this film ever since the title monster appeared on the cover of an early issue of "Famous Monsters of Filmland" magazine. I finally caught up with it much later in life and found it to be great fun. While I always prefered the stop-motion effects work in films like THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS (also directed by GORGO's Eugene Lourie) I was never completely put out by a well done man-in-suit effect as we have here. The film plays out as a grand fable and clearly has a little bit of "dream logic" to it. The "Destruction Edition" DVD is a fine rendering of the film with strong color and decent clarity (I doubt if the film will ever look razor-sharp on disc). The extras are meager but palatable.

Horrible Audio.......2007-07-04

They absolutely butchered the audio on this release. The sound would echo from the front to the rear speakers which was very annoying. It was almost unwatchable. This DVD might wind up in the trash.

not anamorphic widescreen!!.......2007-06-17

I bought this on dvd upon it's original release (which left much to be desired but was better than VHS), so I was thrilled to see that it was to be re-released toting that it was widescreen. I bought it hoping that it was anamorphic, but for some reason...it's not. In this day and age where many older and oscure titles now get the red carpet treatment I am sad that this film did not. This was always my favorite non-Godzilla kaiju film and I always hear positive things about it. I'm sure in a couple of years, we'll get the ultramilked, super duper version that will hopefully get better treatment than this release.

The Irish Godzilla.......2007-05-25

First - the DVD. VCI has done an excellent job in cleaning up the print. It's by far the clearest, cleanest one I've seen. And widescreen! (I also think they've fiddled some parts of the sound, too - you'll hear what I mean.) Nice extras, too - including a "making of".

Ah, well, yes, London stands in for Tokyo, but young Gorgo hails from the Emerald Isle, or more specifically, "Nara Island", first cousin of "Oto Island". The islanders are indeed a surly lot of Gaelic-speaking, sweater wearing, Sasanach-hating fishermen. No women to be seen on the island, which probably accounts for their foul tempers. In fact, there's no woman in a lead or supporting role here, either. Strange - even eye-patch wearing Dr. Serizawa had a girlfriend...... But I digress.

Where "Godzilla" was a horrifying response to the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, "Gorgo"'s moral center is a warning about avarice and disregard for nature. Young Sean's prescience is consistently disregarded by everyone else, much to their regret. The MST3K guys had a go at this one, but I think they should have saved the "treatment" for more deserving flicks. The blue-screen work here is better than Hitchcock's in "The Birds", and the miniature work is really outstanding. Sure, it's a "guy in a rubber suit" flick, but certainly light years ahead of REAL junk like "Sting of Death" or "Octaman". Russian-born director Eugène Lourié had quite an interesting career, including the outrageous anti-marijuana exploitation flick "She Shoulda Said No", and two earlier "giant lizard" movies: "Beast From 20,000 Fathoms" and "The Giant Behemoth".

Minor trivia: greedy salvage captain William Sylvester later appeared in Kubrick's "2001" as terminally bored space traveller Dr. Heywood R. Floyd.

All-in-all, a very welcome cleanup and release, and for this reviewer, fond memories of a Saturday matinee. Recommended to all.

Where "Widescreen" = "Letterbox"; Come On Guys.......2007-05-18

Can't really add to any other comments about this film. It's great fun and very enjoyable.

However the "Widescreen Destruction Edition" is actually a LETTERBOX edition.
OK, it is widescreen, but it's not anamorphic widescreen. Just a little annoying.

Extras; Making Of featureete, photo gallery, Bios, Gorgo trailer & others. And a wonderful animated menu.

And the film runs 74 minute, not 86. Maybe they counted the delightful "Making Of" featurette thats' also included.
The film includes the manatory shot of little girl fleeing monster who drops her dolly which is then trampled by crowd.

Average customer rating:

A Giant Monster Favorite
Horrible Audio
not anamorphic widescreen!!
The Irish Godzilla
Where "Widescreen" = "Letterbox"; Come On Guys

Gorgo
Starring: Bill Travers , William Sylvester , Vincent Winter , Christopher Rhodes , and Joseph O'Conor
Director: Eugène Lourié
Manufacturer: Vci Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: 6305989419
Release Date: 2000-09-26

Customer Reviews:

A Giant Monster Favorite.......2007-08-25

Horrible Audio.......2007-07-04

They absolutely butchered the audio on this release. The sound would echo from the front to the rear speakers which was very annoying. It was almost unwatchable. This DVD might wind up in the trash.

not anamorphic widescreen!!.......2007-06-17

The Irish Godzilla.......2007-05-25

Where "Widescreen" = "Letterbox"; Come On Guys.......2007-05-18

Average customer rating:

Gorgo/Phantom from 10000 Leagues
Starring: Gorgo/Phantom from 10000 Leagues
Manufacturer: Krb Music
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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4-for-3 Horror | 4-for-3 DVD | Stores | DVD | Video

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Product Features:

Dolby Digital Souond
Interactive Menus
Standard Full Frame
This Disc is Compatible with all DVD players Worldwide
Color

ASIN: B000EN178M
Release Date: 2006-04-04

Product Description

This DVD includes 2 Cartoons: Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend & A Superman Cartoon. It also includes some old-fashioned TV Commercials! Gorgo Gorgo is an attempt to make a Japanese-style "giant reptile" flick in an English setting. The story begins when underwater volcanic activity in the Irish Sea brings forth a 65-foot monster called Gorgo. Enterprising Joe (Bill Travers) and Sam (William Sylvester) capture the beast and transport it to London, where Gorgo is put on display as a seaside carnival attraction. This proves to be a major mistake when Gorgo's even larger mother lumbers to the surface in search of her cute li'l baby. In short order, London is trampled and trashed. Phantom From 10,000 Leagues A series of mysterious deaths of fishermen and swimmers along a stretch of beach attract the attention of scientist Dr. Ted Stevens (Kent Taylor) and government investigator William Grant (Rodney Bell) -- they both want to know why the victims and their boats all show signs of exposure to atomic radiation, and if there's a connection between the deaths and the nearby Pacific College of Oceanography, run by Professor King (Michael Whalen); and they're also interested in why King's assistant, George Thomas (Phillip Pine), is always lurking around the beach, often armed with a spear gun. Stevens establishes a friendship with King's daughter Lois (Cathy Downs) that turns to romance, but he's principally concerned with finding out about an apparent source of radiation on the ocean floor, and what its connection might be with the unearthly sea creature rumored to be stalking that section of the beach. Helene Stanton hangs around in a fairly revealing (for the time) bathing suit, waiting on the beach for some top-secret information, and Vivi Janiss overacts nicely as a woman with too much on her mind for her own good

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