Gamera vs. Viras Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		2.5

Gamera vs. Viras Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman October 25, 2020

Note: This version of this film is available as part of Gamera: The Complete Collection.

There’s a venerable old maxim that states “what’s sauce for the goose is sauce for gander”, and in that regard, this deluxe Arrow release may be thought of as being at least kinda sorta the same “sauce” for an iconic kaiju that Criterion’s Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954-1975 was for what is arguably the most iconic kaiju in the annals of Japanese cinema. The Criterion release aggregated fifteen Godzilla films ranging from the monster’s 1954 debut to Terror of Mechagodzilla from 1975, while this collection covers the Gamera films from the 1965 debut of the creature through 2006's Gamera the Brave. The comparison between the two franchises is perhaps particularly apt in that, as August Ragone gets into in some of the bounteous supplemental features included on this release, Gamera was Daiei’s attempt to duplicate the success that Toho had had with the Godzilla films. As such, there’s an undeniably derivative aspect to quite a few (maybe all) of the Gamera films, plus there is a perhaps equally undeniable comedic element in that Gamera is in essence a giant, marauding turtle, as opposed to the arguably more threatening dinosaur-like ambience of Godzilla. Aside from the inclusion of retooled American versions of some of the films that this Arrow set offers as ostensible supplements, all of the original versions of the twelve "Japanese" films in this set save one were included in Gamera HD Bundle Collection from Mill Creek Entertainment several years ago, albeit with pretty shoddy technical merits according to my colleague Martin Liebman's reviews (the parent entry for the collection does not have a separate review, but if you go to the product Overview tab, Marty has reviewed all but one of the films in the set linked to in the parent review). Mill Creek also released Gamera Trilogy, which Marty reviewed separately, and which includes his only review of Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris. I'll refer to Marty's reviews in my reviews of the shared films in this set for those who want plot recaps, leaving the bulk of my reviews to both technical assessments and detailing of the supplementary material. The one outlier that wasn't released by Mill Creek, the aformentioned Gamera the Brave, was released by Tokyo Shock a few years ago and was reviewed at that time by Brian Orndorf, so in my review of that particular film I'll be referring to Brian's review for plot information. As always it can also be instructive to look at the various reviews in order to compare screenshots. I will say that I evidently have more of a soft spot for some of these films than my colleagues, and my scores for the films reflect that opinion. Arrow, long the champion of cult items, has outdone itself with this release, offering all of the Gamera films in a really handsomely appointed package that includes a glut of both on disc bonus features as well as accompanying non-disc swag (the disc related supplements are detailed in the individual reviews of each film, while the non-disc supplements are listed in the Gamera: The Complete Collection Blu-ray review).

As with many of the films in this set, this film was part of the Mill Creek Entertainment release from several years ago. For those interested in a plot recap, I refer you to Martin Liebman's Gamera vs. Viras Blu-ray review of that version.

Gamera vs. Viras Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Gamera vs. Viras is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Arrow Video with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Arrow's oversized booklet containing information on the films lumps the entire series together in its descriptions of the transfers:

The masters for all twelve original Japanese films were prepared and supplied to Arrow Films by the Kadokawa Corporation. Gamera the Guardian of the Universe, Gamera 2: Attack of Legion, and Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris were restored in 4K by Kadokawa and approved by director Shusuke Kaneko in 2015.

Original 16mm and 35mm materials relating to the English language versions originally distributed in the United States by American International and Filmways were accessed through the kind courtesy of Metro Goldwyn Mayer, in association with the Kadokawa Corporation. The English dubbed audio was restored from the original magnetic and optical tracks by Deluxe, who also conformed it to the Japanese masters. Some additional 16mm materials were sourced from UCLA Film Archive. The film elements, which include English language credit sequences, insert shots and trailers, were scanned at EFilm and restored at R3Store Studios. Additional English language materials for the series were kindly supplied by Shout! Factory, ADV Films and Media Blasters, with additional thanks to Paulie Senkawsky and Will Offutt.

For Gammera the Invincible, the American theatrical version of Gamera, the Giant Monster, attempts were made to access the original negative held at UCLA Film Archive, but this is no longer legally accessible. A 35mm exhibition print was scanned in high definition by Legend Films, who provided this HD master to Arrow. This print was missing some shots of a jet pilot at the start of the film, and another film source for these shots could not be found. To insure an uncut presentation, these missing shots were reintegrated into the master using the HD master for Gamera, the Giant Monster for the video and an analog tape master for the dubbed English audio. As a result, some of these shots have burnt in Japanese subtitles that did not feature on the original American theatrical release and could not be removed here; we hope these do not affect your enjoyment of the film. Additional restoration took place at R3Store Studios.

While I found this a general step up from Gamera vs. Gyaos, this presentation still has a pretty swarthy looking grain field which can overpower things, especially during some of the (many) opticals, giving a kind of rough, gritty, even pocked looking appearance at times. There are also some slight variances in quality in some of the material unique to the two non-theatrical versions. The palette is generally nicely suffused, though there's a prevalence of oranges that can make things look unnatural, with flesh tones assuming a kind of peach colored hue. The outdoor material featuring the scouts pops with considerable gusto, offering solid blues and reds.

Gamera vs. Viras Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The original Japanese language track or an English dub are available in DTS-HD Master Audio Mono, and in switching between the two, I didn't hear any huge differences in sound quality between them (perhaps due to the fact that this disc has three versions of the film, you can't actually toggle between audio options, and need to select audio from the Pop Up Menu to make a change). The Japanese track supports the film's goofy sound effects, and some of the Star Trek-like effects on the spaceship are vibrant and fun. Dialogue and score are both supported without any major issues. Optional English subtitles are available.

Gamera vs. Viras Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Three Versions of the Film

  Theatrical Version (1080p; 1:12:14)

  
  

  Director's Version (1080p; 1:21:17)

  
  

  US Extended Version (1080p; 1:30:24)

• Commentary by Carl Craig & Jim Cirronella


• Introduction by August Ragone (1080p; 11:14)


• Gamera vs. Viras - 52 Years Later (1080i; 12:29) is a piece by commentary participant Jim Cirronella, who profiles his commentary partner Carl Craig and Craig's souvenirs from the filming, including original props.


• G-Fest 2003 Highlights (720p; 1:00:59) features Carl Craig and Noriaki Yuasa.


• The 4th Nippon Jamboree (720p; 6:18) is kind of a hilarious promotional film made for the Boy Scouts of Japan done by Noriaki Yuasa in 1966. In Japanese with English subtitles.


• Alternate English Credits (1080p; 1:28) feature the Destroy All Planets title.
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• Theatrical Trailers

  Japanese Trailer (1080p; 2:32)

  
  

  US TV Spot (1080p; 1:04)

• Image Gallery (1080p; 18:11)

Gamera vs. Viras Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Gamera vs. Viras finds the franchise settling into the template (some might argue rut) that would define many of the following films. This version offers decent video and good audio, and the supplementary package is excellent.