Customer Reviews
Invasion of Astro-Monster 
2008-07-22
My friend Stuart Galbrath IV (Steve Ryfle who interviewed me for Shock Cinema Magazine United States "Black Actress On The Make!" Fall 2000) sent me a copy of the 1965 "Invasion of Astro-Monster" which he did the audio commentary for the 2008 re-release. The film stars Nick Adams ("The Rebel" 1959-1961 Television Series with Johnny Cash singing the title song "The Ballad of Johnny Yuma) Akira Kubo, Kumi Mizuno, and Harvo Nakajima. "Invasion of Astro-Monster (Monster Zero)" which puts me in mind of the 1954-1955 classic Flash Gordon Television Series is a must see for true Godzilla fans.
Great Godzilla Movie 
2008-07-02
Just as I remember the movie when I was young. Perfect condition DVD. A must for any Godzilla lovers collection.
Toho comic book Kaiju fun at is 1960s best 2008-04-01
Classic Media has done a wonderful service to Godzilla fans by releasing a number of the original Godzilla films on DVD the way they should be....with both the original Japanese versions with subtitles and also with the Original American releases with the dub tracks intact, allowing viewers to see the films the way they like, and with their widescreen format intact!.
Monster Zero is the 6th of the Godzilla series...and one of the most colorful and enjoyable. It finds the Godzilla series and TOHO at its near peak of creative powers...providing a wild, colorful comic book style Godzilla science fiction epic. The plot is familiar to Godzilla fans, so no need to recap it here. The film has a lot going for it...from its wild pop sci fi look, to plentiful monster battles...hissable aliens in full DEVO dress, great cinematography and music, and some fine effects. That is not to say there are not some problems. Rodan is as goofy looking as ever, and would have to wait for 1993s GODZIILLA vs MECHA GODZILLA to regain some dignity. Godzilla's dance o' joy on planet X is groan inducing (Director Honda hated the change of Godzilla into a campy anthropomorphic character, but was over ruled by Tsuburaya and producer Tanaka...too bad) and the film has way too much clumsy and obvious stock footage inserted. Some from RODAN and MOTHRA) and the plot is ludicrous...but the film is such fun that it overcomes these issues to be one of the best of Godzilla's 1960s adventures.
The film also includes a commentary track, as do all the classic media releases. This one is done by Stuart Galbraith author of the excellent and recommended books " Japanese Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films" and" The Emperor and the Wolf, The Lives and Films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune." The commentary is fact filled....but also deadly dull. Names and dates are provided...but the commentary seems too mannered...too paced...and without a trace of the joy and fun of the film that it accompanied. One can almost hear the pages being turned as Galbraith speaks....not really conducive to a pleasurable listening experience. One longs for a commentary like the ones Tom Weaver has provided on films like THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON and THE WOLFMAN. Those commentaries and both informative and very entertaining. If only more were of that quality. Of the classic media releases...all suffer the same problem, with comments that seem like a laundry list of names and dates. Only the commentary on the GHIDRAH DVD escapes this problem...being almost too enthusiastic...but it is still far more interesting and entertaining. It is however still better than the commentary on the MOTHRA vs GODZIILLA DVD. That one seemed too fawning over the film and its creators.
The print and sound quality on the film is quite good, and the DVD belongs in Any Godzilla Fans collection...high marks for the movies release and middling marks on the extras
A not very Godzilla Godzilla movie 
2008-01-27
Well, the spaceship effects are nice, and the look is great - but, boy! Nothing much happens in this movie. There's a lot of aliens and boring plot and about five minutes of Godzilla. If you scratch your head as an adult and wonder how you could have possibly drudged through all that horrible drama in order to get to the fighting - this is the one. It is really boring! Don't let this episode lead you astray - they're not all this talky and dull. There are a lot of super, entertaining Godzilla films -but this one, for all of the production value, is a movie about people and aliens. Godzilla is hardly in it, and the fights and destruction don't amount to a hill of beans. Plus it's not a very good suit performance. You are better off with many other Godzilla pictures - serious or kid-friendly. This one is a talky snoozefest. Too bad, too - because it had a lot of potential, but all the action is in the last five minutes. Not worth the wait - check out other G-titles instead!!
I LIKE THE TITLE "MONSTER ZERO" BEST. DON'T YOU? 2008-01-18
I remember the first time I saw this on tv. I think it was early 1970s on Chiller... Theater... Saturday night WPIX Channel 11 New York. Fullscreen of coarse, on a 19 inch black and white tv screen. And I loved it. When the same station broadcasted a two day GODZILLATHON in the late 1980s I recorded all the movies. but i made sure this movie got its own tape. Then Simitar released a widescreen version on VHS and it looked really good. Now this awesome classic is available on dvd with both the English dubbed and Japanese spoken version. The information provided by Amazon states this is presented in an aspect ratio of 1:66.1 (at least for the English version) which offers more scope than the fullscreen 1:33.1 but not quite wide enough. But then something happens. After the opening credits are over. It converts to the full cinemascope 2:35.1 widescreen presentation. At least that's what happens on mine. And believe me I'm not complaining. There is no shot cooler than seeing Rodan, Godzilla and Ghidorah all in the same shot spread out across the screen in that big open field. I really appreciate Classic Media's efforts on these new dvds. But I wish they had subtitles for the English versions so I can follow the story while listening to the commentary.
LOVE IT !!!!!!!!!!! 2007-09-21
(Sci-Fi) Invasion of Astro-Monster/Godzilla vs. Monster Zero -- Aliens from Planet X borrow our monsters for a little extermination project, but they've got something else up their sleeves: world domination! Using mind-control technology, these vinyl-and-sunglasses wearing spacemen turn Godzilla, Rodan and King Ghidorah loose in Japan, demanding Earth's surrender! It's up to American astronaut F. Glenn, his galaxy-trotting buddy Fuji, and nerdy inventor Tetsuo to break the aliens' hold on the monsters and save our planet from certain doom.
Invasion of Monster Zero 
2007-09-17
Fun and campy classic involving King Ghidorah, Godzilla, and Rodan. The only time I've ever seen Godzilla do a jig. Movie was a birthday gift for a Godzilla fan. He loved it. Ordering was easy and I received it very quickly. Recommended for any fan of monster movies.
rubber suit classic 2007-07-16
This movie, being the "Sequel" to Ghidora, the three headed monster, surpasses that movie in both action shots and story. for those into classic Godzilla movies, this is a must have.
Classic Godzilla well handled 2007-07-05
This is a sillier Godzilla then in the previous movies of this series. However, it is still entertaining. Classic Media does a wonderful job with the commentary on the American version and by having the Japanese version as well.
A CLASSIC GODZILLA FAVORITE 2007-07-05
I love that these old monster flicks are being produced on good, quality DVDs. CLASSIC MEDIA has done a wonderful job!
