Icons of Sci-Fi: Toho Collection

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment calls a press conference to announce the release of Icons of Sci-Fi: Toho Collection on DVD.

Icons of Sci-Fi: Toho Collection is a great look at some of the classic films of Ishiro Honda and Toho Studios. This DVD set, which streets on August 18, includes H-Man (1958), Battle in Outer Space (1959), and Mothra (1961).  Each film has been digitally re-mastered for the best possible picture and includes the original Japanese versions and the U.S. versions, and commentaries on Battle in Outer Space and Mothra.

Mothra was one of my favorite Saturday afternoon monster movies beating out the original Godzilla by a mile. There’s something about the awesome, paintbox colors and bad split screen images that just screams Creature Double Feature. Back in the day, the films of Toho Studios were known for their patented widescreen technique, the Japanese version of Cinemascope, named TohoScope. I can still hear Lenny and Squiggy on Laverne & Shirley expressing their delight over an 18-hour monster movie marathon “in TohoScope!” Must have been something to see.

But, since I can’t see these cool movies on the big screen, I’ll settle for the remastered versions on DVD. Since I’ve only ever seen them on TV, I imagine I’ve been missing quite a lot.

H-Man (1958)

The Tokyo sewer system is an oozing mess after a radioactive liquid turns people into slimy blobs that float down the drains following a rainstorm. To add to the havoc, the gelatinous masses then begin to reproduce. The blobs are ultimately destroyed in a fire that lights up the city.

Battle in Outer Space (1959)

A series of mysterious catastrophes sweep the globe, causing the world’s scientists to conclude that beings from another planet are attacking earth. Two earth space ships damage the attackers, giving the world time to prepare for a gigantic battle in outer space.

Mothra™ (1961)

Members of a Japanese expedition to a heavily-radiated island find two tiny, beautiful girls and take them home for observation. When the girls are taken off the island, a mysterious egg hatches, producing a gargantuan moth which destroys everything in its path as it searches for the girls.

Icons of Sci-Fi: Toho Collection hits stores on August 18.

Photos courtesy of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.