The improved 1080p HD reconstruction of the original US version of Destroy All Monsters, dubbed at Titan Studios and released by AIP, is completed and available to download! Look spleenward or send a private message for details.
Now that a decently polished 720p version of Godzilla 1985 is out and available, and another TK member is working on recreating the Walter Reade-Sterling version of Godzilla vs. the Sea Monster (which I was originally planning as a follow-up), I’ve decided to undertake another, less labor-intensive project while we wait for the Kraken Blu-ray of The Return of Godzilla. I’m going to attempt a widescreen, HD reconstruction of the AIP version of Destroy All Monsters.
While I know that the AIP dub was included on the OOP version of the Media Blasters Blu-ray, that track was altered to account for minor edits made to the original US release of the movie so it would sync properly to the Japanese print used for Toho’s transfer. What I’m talking about making is a complete recreation of the AIP version as originally released, cuts, credits and all.
I’ll be using the current Media Blasters Blu-ray (which I have) as my main source, but at the moment I don’t have an audio source/visual reference on hand for the AIP version. I do have an old DVD bootleg back home that’s got the AIP version on it, and I could have my family mail it to me, but I could get started sooner if someone could either direct me to a non-torrent download option or send it to me via Google Drive, MEGA, MediaFire or some other file storage/transfer service.
Basically what I’m predicting this will entail is remaking the credits and such in widescreen (I already downloaded the font AIP seemed to generally use for titles/credits a while ago just because I liked it), then syncing the MB footage to the AIP version and replicating whatever edits there are. This should be a much simpler and easier job than Godzilla 1985, and I already have access to a 1080p source, so this should be completed in far less time than my last project was/will be.
TL;DR: Anyone have/know where to find a copy of the AIP version?
Toho Kingdom thread
The AIP Destroy All Monsters reconstruction is available now!
The 1080p HD reconstruction of the original US version of Destroy All Monsters, dubbed at Titan Studios and released by AIP, is completed and available to download! Send a private message for details.
UPDATE 10/30/2016: I’ve just made an MKV of the reconstruction that features higher quality, chapter stops and is encoded for easy remuxing and burning to Blu-ray! Hit me up for the details, or check the usual spot if you know where to look.
Notes on this release:
- The bulk of film was sourced from the Media Blasters Blu-ray. The aspect ratio was corrected to the original 2.35:1 from something like 2.41:1 and the contrast was increased to alleviate some of the weaknesses of the Toho transfer.
- The AIP logo, main title card, “the end” title card and end credits have all been carefully digitally recreated.
- There are a several splices in the print of the AIP version that I used as a guide and audio source for this version, which result in a few missing frames each. These have been duplicated in this version to maintain proper synchronization with the original source.
- One such splice occurs in a spot which interrupts an optical wipe present in the widescreen Japanese print; in that case, a digital wipe was employed to hide the problem and mimic the editing of the Japanese version while maintaining proper synchronization with the AIP version. This is the only such embellishment made in this edit; it is otherwise wholly faithful to the editing of the AIP version.
For those interested, here’s a more comprehensive list of the edits made in the AIP version:
- The Toho logo and the accompanying section of Ifukube’s score are cut. The AIP logo and title card appear over the background originally used for the Japanese title card, and the score picks up at the appropriate spot as well.
- The opening credits are removed. There is a straight cut from the shot of the Moonlight SY-3 cockpit to the overhead shot of Ogasawara Island that comes after the credits in the Japanese version.
- The scene transition from Dr. Otani aboard the SY-3 leaving Monsterland to him riding in the back of a car with Katsuo and Dr. Yoshida is altered; where the Japanese version used an optical wipe to transition from a close-up on Dr. Otani to a close-up of Katsuo that pans over to Otani and Yoshida, the AIP version cuts directly from Otani aboard the rocket to Otani in the car, keeping his face framed in almost the same spot. (This was the edit noted above that was changed to a digital wipe.)
- The pan across the aftermath of Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra and Manda’s rampage through Tokyo ends sooner in the AIP version. The Japanese version ends by zooming in on a sign in Japanese bearing the name of some sort of emergency bunker or headquarters, then cuts to Katsuo inside. The AIP version cuts the sign and goes straight from the wreckage to Katsuo.
- There is one shot of the SY-3 landing in the Kilaak base on the moon that seems to be longer in the AIP version; this was matched by slowing down the shot that appears in the Japanese version - It’s a brief shot but it is notable.
- Not one, but two shots of Minilla are cut from the battle with King Ghidorah: One as Mothra and Kumonga spray Ghidorah with silk and webbing, and one as Angilas loses his grip on Ghidorah’s neck and falls to the ground.
- The final shot of Ogasawara Island, there the “The End” title appears, is longer in the AIP version, and the title appears much later.
- Finally, the film’s credits are displayed at the end over a black background, using the music cue that played under the opening credits in the Japanese version. Notably, Ishiro Honda’s name is spelled correctly, as opposed to the commonly-used incorrect Romanization “Inoshiro.”
