The Giant Gila Monster Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		2.5

The Giant Gila Monster Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman September 23, 2023

If you're old enough to remember broadcast television when only three basic networks were available, and when affiliates often offered cheesy locally produced horror anthology shows that typically ran late Friday nights and featured both classic and lesser known films, you may have some "history" with the two outings Film Masters has aggregated for this set. For that and some other reasons, there's a potent if inherently kind of silly sense of nostalgia in revisiting them now, with part of that nostalgia coming from a greater awareness of the production team responsible for both of the films. In that regard, some appealing supplements included with this two disc set provide some really fun information about a semi-motley crew of folks including the rather fascinating character of Gordon McLendon, a Texas based entrepreneur who was an early version of what is now called a "multi-hyphenate", and who in the medium of radio founded the Liberty network (where McClendon pioneered broadcasting Major League Baseball, if only after he became famous for "recreating" games that had already been played, courtesy of after the fact announcing and a plethora of studio sound effects) and who is reportedly responsible for coming up with the Top 40 Playlist format. McClendon also had a rather interesting history in the film industry, not just limited to these two films which he produced (along with, somewhat incredibly, Gunsmoke 's Ken Curtis). He was a large stakeholder in Columbia Pictures, he owned a bunch of actual theaters (including lots of drive- ins, which would have been the natural place to exhibit these particular films), and he was evidently an ad campaign wizard who at least helped fashion marketing for any number of notable pictures. Part of the nostalgia attending this release may also come courtesy of the fact that Film Masters have provided both 1.85:1 and (for those old enough to remember those television viewings) 1.33:1.

For reviews of the films in this set, please click on the following links:

The Giant Gila Monster Blu-ray review

The Killer Shrews Blu-ray review

The Giant Gila Monster Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Video quality is assessed in the above linked reviews.

The Giant Gila Monster Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Audio quality is assessed in the above linked reviews.

The Giant Gila Monster Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Supplements on each disc are detailed in the above linked reviews. Additionally, Film Masters provides a nicely appointed insert booklet with essays by Don Stradley and Jason A. Ney.

The Giant Gila Monster Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I grew up in Salt Lake City, and somewhat hilariously daytime kiddie host "Fireman Frank" returned in a somewhat more sinister guise to host a long running show called Nightmare Theater, a series that ran "late" (for Salt Lake City) Friday nights and which introduced me to (on those occasions when my parents let me stay up to the ungodly hour of 10:30 p.m.) any number of iconic movies like Frankenstein and The Mummy , and frankly some considerably less stellar fare like I Was a Teenage Frankenstein (which I think actually scared me more than the Karloff film due to its horrific makeup for the teen monster). I'm pretty sure that's where I first saw The Giant Gila Monster and/or The Killer Shrews , and as mentioned above, watching the films again from a goodly distance and considerable 20/20 hindsight was both nostalgic and kind of unabashedly silly. Lovers of this kind of low budget fare should find this release enjoyable, and it features generally solid technical merits and enjoyable supplements.