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Criterion Offers Godzilla: The Showa Era Films Collection in October

The Criterion Collection company announced last week that it will release an eight-disc Blu-ray Disc set for the Godzilla franchise titled Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films, 1954–1975, containing 15 films in the franchise from the indicated years. The collection will ship on October 29.

The Criterion Collection describes the collection:

In 1954, an enormous beast clawed its way out of the sea, destroying everything in its path—and changing movies forever. The arresting original Godzilla soon gave rise to an entire monster-movie genre (kaiju eiga), but the King of the Monsters continued to reign supreme: in fourteen fiercely entertaining sequels over the next two decades, Godzilla defended its throne against a host of other formidable creatures, transforming from a terrifying symbol of nuclear annihilation into a benevolent (if still belligerent) Earth protector.

Collected here for the first time are all fifteen Godzilla films of Japan's Showa era, in a landmark set showcasing the technical wizardry, fantastical storytelling, and indomitable international appeal that established the most iconic giant monster the cinema has ever seen.

The collection will include HD transfers of the films with uncompressed audio, including the Godzilla, King of the Monsters U.S. release, the King Kong vs. Godzilla Japanese release, audio commentaries, English subtitles with new translations, English dub tracks for some of the films, interviews, documentaries, audio essays, and an artbook with essays, notes, and illustrations.

Source: City on Fire (JJ Bona)