Colors of Autumn: A Look Back at Godzilla '94's Widescreen Release

As fall rolls around each year, many classic horror fans turn their attention towards one beloved monster movie franchise above all others - the King of Monsters himself, Godzilla. While the big lizard may not always be as fearsome or awe-inspiring on screen these days compared to his glory years in the 1950s and '60s, there's no denying that he still holds a special place within our collective pop culture consciousness.

One particularly memorable installment from Toho Studios' long-running Godzilla film series is undoubtedly 'Godzilla' (also known as 'Gozilla'), released stateside under its more generic title of simply 'Godzilla 94.' Directed by the talented Roland Emmerich and starring up-and-coming heartthrob Matthew Broderick, this campy creature feature follows an American naval officer who teams up with his love interest to stop a giant prehistoric reptile from leveling New York City.

Now available in high definition for modern audiences to enjoy on their own home theaters are two different versions of 'Godzilla 94' - one presented in the original full-screen ratio, and another newly remastered in widecreen (16:9) format. For those unfamiliar with these terms, simply put, a widescreen transfer means that more of the picture is visible than it would be on an older standard definition TV set.

So how does this new 'Godzilla 94' Blu-ray disc stack up against its predecessor? In my opinion - and I'll get into some specific observations below - quite well. While not perfect by any stretch, Shout! Video's transfer of this classic monster flick is certainly worth checking out for fans who haven't seen it since the days when MST3K was still a relatively new phenomenon.

As one might expect given its age (over 25 years have passed since initial release), some minor flaws do crop up here and there. However, considering that we're dealing with material shot on film back in the early '90s using primitive digital technology at best - think of it like trying to watch an old VHS tape recorded off a grainy cable feed through a fuzzy CRT TV set - overall image quality is actually quite impressive.

For those curious about specific technical details, I watched 'Godzilla 94' on my trusty 46-inch Samsung LCD flat-screen television via upconversion courtesy of a Panasonic BDP-215 Blu-ray disc player. The results were more than satisfactory enough that even if full-blown high-definition versions become widely available in the future (which seems increasingly likely given recent trends), I'm not sure there would be much incentive to upgrade from this particular release.

In terms of audio, 'Godzilla 94' is presented here in Dolby Surround 5.1 surround sound - a marked improvement over earlier DVD editions that were limited to mere mono or stereo mixes at best. While the bass levels may occasionally strain my speakers slightly during particularly intense sequences (such as when Godzilla unleashes his signature atomic breath upon the Manhattan skyline), overall fidelity is more than adequate for an older title like this.

Now onto some specific observations about picture quality itself...While watching 'Godoma' (as I've come to affectionately refer to it in certain circles) on Blu-ray, I did notice one minor quibble - during a pivotal scene where our hero's love interest finds herself trapped inside Godzilla's mouth after he chomps down on the battleship she was fleeing from earlier. For reasons unknown, there appears to be some slight digital 'pillarboxing' occurring here; in other words, black bars appear at both sides of the frame, as if someone had literally cut off portions of each side of the image with a pair of giant electronic scissors.

This minor complaint aside however, overall transfer quality is otherwise excellent throughout. I couldn't find any noticeable instances of macroblocking or other artifacts commonly associated with older digital transfers - which says something given that we're dealing here primarily with material shot on film in high definition no less!

As for extras, 'Godzilla 94' includes a number of worthwhile bonus features worth mentioning...

Colors of autumn 94 ass