She Say Heisei

I received the Godzilla Heisei Series DVD boxset from Eastern Eye today.  Eastern Eye is a branch of Madman Entertainment of Australia that distributes Asian films on video.  With the Heisei Series, the 1990s Godzilla films are released as Western Godzilla fans can only wish Sony had.

The set includes the five 1990s films, Godzilla vs King Ghidorah, Godzilla vs Mothra, Godzilla vs MechaGodzilla, Godzilla vs Space Godzilla and Godzilla vs Destroyah.  Each film is presented in it's original 16x9 aspect ratio with Japanese 5.1 audio, dual mono and English 2.0 with English Subtitles.  Extras include trailers, stills and poster galleries. 

Each disc is a dual layer DVD-9.  Now the catch.  To watch this set, you must have a DVD player that can play all regions and play a PAL DVD as Australia is in DVD region 4 and broadcasts their TV signals in PAL format.  I have an OPPO DV-980H 1080p Up-Converting Universal DVD Player. 

So far, we have watched Godzilla vs MechaGodzilla.  To put it mildly, I have never heard is sound or see it look this good.  The 5.1 audio mix jumps from the sound system and puts you in the middle of the action.  The fight between Godzilla and Rodan on Adonoa Island is amazing.  Helicopters fly around the speakers as the explosions shake the walls.  Very impressive.

Also impressive is the cost of the set.  With shipping direct from Madman, it cost right around $50.  That's a nice price for a five disc set of thsi quality.  This set comes highly recommended.  Until Sony re-releases these films in North America, this is as good as it will get for Western fans looking for these films with English Subtitles.

Two box sets with the Showa series from the 1960s and 70s have also been released,  Order your copy today.