The release of Toho Studio’s original Japanese version of the first Godzilla film was one of DIMP’s picks for Best DVDs of 2006. In our capsule review, we said that Godzilla is “a cultural artifact and a work of art that holds its own against some of the greatest genre films ever made.” But Godzilla was just the beginning of a franchise that would result in the production of twenty-four films starring the  gargantuan reptile. The quality of the sequels is inconsistent to say the least, but the fourth film, 1964’s Mothra vs Godzilla, stands well above the others.
The action begins when a typhoon washes an inconceivably large egg onto the beach. No one knows where the egg came from, but the local fishermen claim that it belongs to them since it came out of their waters. Professor Miura, newspaper reporter Ichiro Sakai and female photographer Junko Nakanishi arrive to investigate but are quickly turned away when the fishermen reveal that they’ve sold the egg to an investor named Mr. Kumayama who plans to build a theme park around it and charge visitors to watch the egg hatch. Seems like a sound entrepreneurial scheme, right? What could possibly go wrong?
Construction on the park proceeds over the objections of Professor Miura and under the scrutiny of the local paper. Mr. Kumayama is determined to turn the egg into a gold mine, much to the pleasure of his boss, the decidedly Bond-villain-esque Mr. Torahata. But on the cusp of the park’s debut, Kumayama and Torahata are visited by two six-inch tall twin women who, speaking in unison, explain that the egg belongs to them. These are the ‘tiny beauties’ or the ‘Mothra fairies’ and they warn that if the egg is not returned to their homeland (Infant Island) it will hatch and the creature within, the child of their ‘god’, Mothra, will wreak havoc on all of Japan. Needless to say, the money hungry businessmen choose to ignore their pleas.
The tiny beauties turn to Professor Miura, Sakai and Junko for help but their efforts are thwarted. As the mysterious fairies return to Infant Island, a new threat arises. It seems that the egg isn’t the only thing that the storm washed up, and Godzilla himself belatedly emerges from the mud to begin terrorizing everything in his path. Fearing that the military will wilt in the face of the rampaging dinosaur, Miura, Sakai and Junko journey to Infant Island in order to ask the tiny beauties if they can summon the great Mothra to save Japan. Thus the stage is set for one of the most memorable monster battles in the history of fantasy science fiction on the big screen.
 If you think that’s a crazy plot, consider the fact that all of that action happens in the first third of the movie. Things get increasingly surreal as the story unfolds, and it all culminates in a completely unexpected and unforgettable sequence of final shots.
Mothra vs Godzilla succeeds on almost every level where it could just as easily have failed. The plot itself is surprisingly engaging. The characters are interesting and well rendered. The special effects, especially the many finely crafted miniatures, are exceptionally well made and convincing. The environments are rendered with such care that the monsters seem almost naturalistic within them. Even details that are often neglected in other Godzilla films such as costumes, set dressings and the performances of minor characters are handled with a great deal of care. Like icing on the cake, Akira Ifukube delivers one of the best monster movie scores of all time, replete with the kind of haunting leitmotifs that were his trademark.
 Of course, all of these elements wouldn’t have added up to a classic film if the overall effect weren’t an entirely enveloping experience. Mothra vs Godzilla is relentlessly surreal but at the same time builds up an internal logic that allows easy suspension of disbelief. As with other great fantasy films, including The Wizard of Oz and Jason and the Argonauts, Mothra vs Godzilla presents a bizarre but internally consistent world in which to play out tremendously satisfying set pieces, blazing battles and even a few legitimate emotional peaks.
Unlike later Godzilla pictures, Mothra vs Godzilla treats its subject matter seriously. The monsters aren’t cute or humanized in any way. Rather, they’re handled like forces of nature. They don’t attack humans out of malice, but because they happen to be in the way. The serious tone is reflected in the finely crafted battle scenes, where the “man in a rubber suit” effect is greatly diminished thanks to an earnest and sober approach to the material. I mentioned Jason and the Argonauts above because, in many ways, Mothra vs Godzilla’s monster scenes seem more akin to Harryhausen’s stop motion work than the heavy handed lumbering that’s a fixture of the later Godzilla films. I have very little trouble forgetting that there’s a man inside the Godzilla suit, smashing finely rendered miniatures. There’s a satisfying strangeness and believability to the film that’s unique in the Toho catalogue.
Packaging and Presentation
 Part
of the Toho Master Collection, Mothra vs Godzilla comes
in a slim digipack case that inherits its design elements from
last year’s Godzilla/Gojira release. The front
cover features the original Japanese poster and the menus also use
original publicity materials in an attractive collage. Assuming that
subsequent Toho Master Collection releases follow this format, these
will look nice on any collector’s shelf.
Video
The video transfers for the two versions of the film on this disc couldn’t be more different. The Japanese language cut is presented in the original Tohoscope aspect ratio of 2.35:1 and it looks, in a word, spectacular. The image is free from dirt, scratches and other signs of wear, the color saturation and contrast are excellent, there’s no edge sharpening evident and the film looks as good as I imagine it must have when it was originally released in 1964. Watching Mothra vs Godzilla in Tohoscope is nothing short of a revelation for those of us who are familiar with the film from its pan and scan broadcasts on American TV. The compositions use the frame from end to end, meaning that many scenes that didn’t
quite make visual sense or that seemed overly claustrophobic in the
US cut make perfect sense in the Japanese version. If you’ve never seen Mothra
vs Godzilla in its original aspect ratio, you’re in for a huge treat.
 The American cut of the film doesn’t fair as well. Bad splices, plentiful scratches, dirt, holes in the frames, poor contrast and a whole host of other flaws mar the print used for the transfer. It would have been fun to see a restored version of the American cut, but I actually like the fact that the print shows its age. It reminds me of watching the film on TV when I was a boy and it provides a nice comparison to the beautifully restored Japanese version. It’s also important to note that this isn’t a 4:3 pan and scan transfer but a fully anamorphic version matted to 1.85:1.
Audio
The mono sound track on both the American and Japanese versions of the film is serviceable if not spectacular. The dialogue is crisp and clear throughout, but the tracks are lacking in deep dynamic range due to the limitations of the original recordings. There is some minor clipping in the louder scenes but nothing that wasn’t there in the film’s original release.
Extras
 Audio Commentary by Ed Godziszewski and Steve Ryfle – Godziszewski and Ryfle are both experts on the Godzilla films and they deliver a fact filled and fun commentary on the American version of the film. They provide historical context, critical analysis, behind the scenes anecdotes, technical details and more in a screen-specific track that really enhances the experience for hardcore and casual fans alike. Though I would have liked to hear a commentary on the Japanese version of the film, too, Godziszewski and Ryfle go into great detail on the differences between the two cuts and give one of the better commentaries I’ve heard recently.
Slide Show of Original Movie Posters – This feature includes images of about a dozen posters from the original release and various re-releases of the film in Japan and America. It’s a video segment where the posters get the Ken Burns pan and zoom treatment accompanied by selections from the score. It’s nice to see the artwork, but I find the pre-programmed presentation bothersome. I prefer slide shows where the user can skip forward and backward through the images.
Akira Ifukube Biography – This excellent thirteen-minute mini-documentary details the life and work of composer Akira Ifukube. It’s fascinating to learn how he became involved with the Godzilla films and why he chose to keep working with Toho’s monster movies throughout his entire career.
Original Japanese Trailer – Though the original trailer is in great shape, the transfer is non anamorphic.
 Conclusion
If you’re a fan of the Godzilla films, then this release is going to make a fantastic addition to your collection. The Japanese version in the original Tohoscope aspect ratio is beautifully transferred and worth the price of admission alone. The American version, with an excellent audio commentary and a handful of other nice extras added to the mix, really lives up to the Special Edition name. If you own the previous release (titled Godzilla vs Mothra in an obvious marketing ploy) you’re going to want to upgrade to this one at the first opportunity. Mothra vs Godzilla is arguably the best film in the entire franchise and this special edition finally offers American audiences the chance to see it as it was originally intended.
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