War of the God Monsters (SRS Cinema) Blu-ray Review + Screenshots

Can recycling monster footage from an old Kaiju show make for a good film? War of the God Monsters answers this question and more.

Studio: SRS Cinema

Release Date: January 12th, 1985 (theatrical)

March 2021 (blu-ray)
Run Time: 1 hour 26 minutes 38 seconds
Region Code: FREE
Picture: 1080p (1.33:1 aspect ratio)
Sound: Korean Dolby Digital 2.0
Subtitles: English
Slipcover: No
Digital Copy: No
Starring: Nam Hye-Gyeong, Da-Hye Kim, Ki-Ju Kim, and Moon Tai-sun

Written by ?
Directed by Jeong-Yong Kim

Rating: Not Rated (creature violence)

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Poster

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What's It About?

A young reporter named Kang Ok-hee is writing a story about the theories of Dr. Kim, a scientist who believes that dinosaurs still exist in the modern world. When gigantic creatures suddenly appear and cause massive destruction, the doctor and journalist must find a way to save the world.

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Film Review

WAR OF THE GOD MONSTERS is a confusing mess of a film that combines a family drama with stock footage of monsters attack towns and cities taken from RETURN OF ULTRAMAN. These two elements don't mesh all that well and feel very much from two different sources. The human element is ok with the actors giving overdramatic performances all while screaming the names of the other characters. Back in the 80's, Roger Ebert reviewed HELLBOUND: HELLRAISER II and he said that he definitely knew the names of the main characters because everyone was yelling for them throughout the film. I felt the same way here. Once the monsters attack, there isn't a minute that goes by without someone yelling "Soeii" or "Papa". I get that the monsters have separated the characters, but yelling out the names all the time was overkill. The monster footage is great, but that is to be expected when it is taken from the same guy who created the effects for the GODZILLA films. The fact that the footage doesn't mesh well is a testament to how great the monster footage is and how not so great the human footage is. I will give the filmmakers credit in that they did do their best and there is clearly talent behind the camera. The film is ok at best.

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Video/Audio

The first thing you will notice is there is no grain whatsoever here. The picture has been scrubbed free of it and it leaves us with very waxy looking skin. I don't know why companies insist that old movies have to look like they were shot yesterday. The DNR here isn't horrible like the remaster of TERMINATOR 2 done a few years ago, but it is completely noticeable and it might take you out of the film. That being said, colors look nice and skin tones are accurate, so if you can look past the DNR, then you might like what you see.

The audio isn't all that great here, either. It has not been cleaned up at all. Pops, hisses, and other imperfections are found all over this track. The mix is too loud, causing the sound to become distorted throughout. The score wobbles from time to time as well. There are two different tracks found on the disc, but they appear to be the same track just with different clarity.

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Extras/Packaging

All we get are trailers for WAR OF THE GOD MONSTERS as well as other Kaiju films that SRS Cinema has released. There are no SRS trailers as the packaging indicates unless they are counting the Kaiju trailers as both the Kaiju trailers as well as the SRS trailers the packaging lists.

Special Features:

Trailer (1m 5s, HD, 1.33:1)

Kaiju Trailers

Monster Seafood Wars (1m 36s, HD, 1.78:1)

Howl From Beyond the Fog (1m 8s, HD, 2.35:1)

God Raiga vs King Ohga: The War of the Monsters (1m 3s, HD, 1.78:1)

Attack of the Giant Teacher (1m 20s, HD, 1.78:1)

Raiga: God of the Monsters (1m 5s, HD, 2.35:1)

Reigo: King of the Sea Monsters (1m 2s, HD, 2.35:1)

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Overall

This is an ok release for this long-lost Kaiju film, but you have to be understanding of why this wasn't a better release. The film has never been released in the States before, so SRS had to use what they were given. The picture quality is ok, but would have been so much better without the DNR and the audio would have benefitted from a remaster as well. I would have loved a video essay from a Kaiju expert to put the film into perspective. That being said, I am sure that kaiju fans will love this release.

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Menus/Extras