DVD review RODAN

[Xenorama ™]

now this is more fun- i do love this movie.

this is the Classic Media DVD for review. picture looks quite good, and they give you the option of two different sound channels- a mono mix and a dolby 5.1 as well. i can't really hear a difference, but that's me.

it's as nice a picture as i've seen. the menu that comes up is kind of fun as well. box is OK, i'd much rather have seen a poster cover. the back is nice though.

any more comments?

[Giganfan]

It probably the only Calssic Media disc that's worth buying, with the exception of GODZILLA KOTM. But that's only if you don't have the Simitar DVD. I'm particularly happy with it. I mean, so long as it's out there, right? The box cover is pretty cool too. The cool thing about the RODAN disc is that it doesn't specifically have to be in widescreen like all the other movies (because it was never shot in widescreen obviously). Also, you don't really need the Japanese version, because despite the changes, the U.S. version is atleast on par with it's predecessor.

[Xenorama ™]

heck, i'd say it's better than the original version, but that's just me. i have some nice ad mattes for RODAN, i may just make my own cover.
it's too bad they didn't include the trailer, that would have made it even better. but whattya want for $7?

[Garasharp]

I thought it was a pretty cool dvd, and the print was nowhere near as bad as I'd heard. These days I tend to take most fans' opinions of these dvds with a grain of salt, since I reckon they complain if the dvd isn't an exact replica of the Japanese disc.
I do like the US cut more than the Japanese one as well. The pacing seems quicker near the end of the film.
It's a great dvd, and I'm glad to have it.

[RedKing]

This is a good dvd,I enjoy it a great deal,and I also agree with Garasharp on other fan reviews.Way to critical of everything! The film print used here is better than the one Paramount had been using previously and looks about as good as the ancient vestron video from 1983 that I have had for 20 years(man,I'm getting old!)I also like the US version better than the Japanese one except for a few scenes-the attack on Fukuoka(there's no such city as Sasebo) is better in the Japanese version with several shots of Rodan swirling those huge wings of his that were trimmed in our cut plus Ifukube's score is great in this scene.This was an odd score and not typical of ifukube's style,the only "standard" cues were the jet march during the dogfight between Rodan and the Sabre jets(which is cut in the US version as the scene is reedited) and during the attack on Fukuoka.In the Japanese version the other Rodan just appears out of nowhere during the city attack,the US cut is much better in unfolding the story.

[Xenorama ™]

i agree, most "fans" these days are so hyper critical of any DVD that doesn't meet their expectations. i've only seen the Japanese version once, and it was OK. i knew the city scenes were longer, but didn't know exactly how they were different.

[RedKing]

I couldn't agree more about the hyper criticalness of fans these days! heaven forbid if a disc is just a pan and scan old TV print! Heck,those are what we all grew up watching-well,actually,I guess now,there are fans young enough to have not grown up on pan and scan TV prints late at night.How sad is that?
As for RODAN the movie itself,the main difference is the soundtrack-not just the music but Rodan's roar as well.In the Japanese version,Rodan sounds the same as he always has since,but the US version played with his roar and used both a sped up and slowed down version along with the regular version,which I actually thought sounded better.If you run the city attacks from both versions back to back they feel quite different even though most of the footage is the same.The soundtrack is completely different and along with some short clips cut out,the US version also reedited some scenes.I believe they recycled a few shots of the female Rodan flying over Rodan's head a couple times.

[stareater]

>> they give you the option of two different sound channels- a mono mix and a dolby 5.1 as well. i can't really hear a difference, but that's me.<<

I'm curious as to what type of audio system you use for viewing. The difference bewteen Mono and Dolby 5.1 will become glaringly apparent if you have a home theater setup.If you just use the television speakers, it won't matter much. Mono soundtracks will be much more screechy and lacking bass and depth, and will come from the center speaker (1.0) . Dolby 5.1 uses all the speakers of the common home theater setup: a center, two fronts, two rear surround, and a subwoofer.

The difference is huge when using a surround setup. For example, I have two versions of my favorite film of all-time, The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly: the mono version, and the collector's version which was treated to a 5.1 remastering. I bought the 2-disc set for two reasons; the 5.1 audio track and the full, uncut version of the film. The difference in sound quality is astounding. The mono disc acutally hurts your ears at certain points in the track, and there are all sorts of peaks and valleys that have you turning it up or down. The 5.1 disc is fantastic, with beautiful sound that takes full advanatge of every speaker. It was a wonderful thing finally hearing that masterpieve soundtrack in full aural glory, with bass! No more screechiness either.

In normal viewing, you won't really hear a difference just watching two different audio tracks on TV speakers; 5.1 has no way to shine in that setting. You'll hear a massive difference if you view a mono and 5.1 disc throught a home theater setup for comparison.. I'm a musician, so sound is very important to me and I'm picky about it if I have a choice with a film. It may not be as important to anyone else. If you have a stereo receiver with A/V inputs and a decent pair of speakers, that alone can make a dramatic difference in sound quality on discs with a 2.0 or better audio track. I have home theaters set up in our living room and basement, but just a receiver and pair of Cerwin-Vegas in our bedroo, and it sounds great for a non-surround setup.

For anyone interested in a surround setup who doesn't already have one, you can buy one at a very affordable price. Don't waste time with those cheap "home theater in a box" sets. Find a price search tool and look up Sherwood receivers, and then do the same or go on Ebay for Audiosource speaker systems. They are both high-qualtiy products that don't advertise or make you pay for the brand name, and you can buy a nice set for around $200 with a subwoofer. The speaker set I have in my basement is 5.1 with an 80-watt sub, and cost only $60 on Ebay. Don't waste money on Sony or Bose; you're only paying for ads and infomercials.

[Xenorama ™]

wow, great info, thanks! i only have a stereo tv, and my ancient stereo (complete with turntables) hooked up through the DVD player, so i get stereo if i want it, and the rest is not an issue. so you are correct about my non-existant 5.1 sound system.
but i am going to look into what you said as well. i appreciate all the info.
i do find most of these cheaper DVDs that have 5.1 remixes are not very good. i'll take whatever the movie had when it was originally released in the theater, so i'm more forgiving for older films.

David

[celamowari]

If you take into account the the crappy mastering on the Simitar discs, the Classic Media ones are treasures. It doesn't matter if it's in in widescreen or not if the picture is pixelated to hell.

Stick to Simitar's VHS tapes! Burn them to DVD-R if you must have them on DVD! I'm not kidding!

[Xenorama ™]

i've never noticed a problem with those Simitar DVDs that i have. but you aren't the only person to complain about them. weird.

[WaverBoy]

Garasharp said:

I thought it was a pretty cool dvd, and the print was nowhere near as bad as I'd heard. These days I tend to take most fans' opinions of these dvds with a grain of salt, since I reckon they complain if the dvd isn't an exact replica of the Japanese disc.
I do like the US cut more than the Japanese one as well. The pacing seems quicker near the end of the film.
It's a great dvd, and I'm glad to have it.

Don't get me wrong, it is nice to have the classic RODAN on DVD, and I do own it myself, but...

There's no way this DVD can realistically be called "great", or even "good", unless you're judging DVDs by the standards of 1982 video transfers, which is about when this was done. It is the exact same transfer used by Vestron Video for their VHS, LD, and CED release of the film. It's watchable, nothing more. In this day and age, it's extremely substandard. In fact, this transfer was substandard ten years ago. I'd expect such quality from a cheapjack public domain outfit like Alpha, but not from officially licensed product. And since these films ARE officially licensed product, Classic Media's transfers are pathetic. Oh well, at least the RODAN disc can be had for $7.99.

At least Classic Media has said they're going to properly remaster the films they have the rights to. I really hope this comes to pass.

Re: the Simitar discs, the artifacting is pretty bad, and I can't see how people don't notice it, especially on GODZILLA VS. MOTHRA. But at least, unlike the Classic Media "treasures", some of the films are in widescreen. I believe these widescreen masters were originally done for proposed Criterion laserdisc releases, which for some reason failed to materialize. As has been stated, the best option for the Simitar releases is the widescreen videocassettes.