Metaluna 4 antwortet nicht - This Island Earth (Ul (FSK 16 Jahre) Blu-ray

A great product great service

THIS ISLAND EARTH [1955 / 2015] [Limited Edition] [Blu-ray] [German Release] The Supreme Excitement of Our Time in Color by Technicolor! Over 2 1/2 Years in the Making!Mortal rays, mutant monsters hypnotized nuclear scientists and a visit to Island Earth and all that happens in this film, which is considered the primordial science fiction strip fifties today. A pair of rocket scientists is kidnapped by the mysterious aliens Exeter from Earth in order to assist him in defending his planet Island Earth against the warlike Zahgons. But the two romantically inclined scientists are determined to escape and even if this means that they have to pass a battle for life and death against eerie creatures, a flight through a meteor storm and a race through space in Exeter flying saucer. Alone on the incredible special effects worked to 2 1/2 years and was filmed in magnificent Technicolor. The world's first Blu-ray release and in the awesome 1.77:1 aspect ratio.FIM FACT: Principal photography for ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ took place from 30th January to 22nd March, 1954. Location work took place at Mt. Wilson, California. Most of the sound effects, the ship, and the “interociter,”is an alien device with unusual and strange properties and the concept was invented by science fiction writer Raymond F. Jones, which is a fictional multi-functional device that first appeared in the 1949 story "The Alien Machine," which appeared the four chapters of the 1952 novel “This Island Earth,” and were simply recordings of radio teletype transmissions picked up on a short wave radio played at various speeds. The film was praised by critics, who cited the special effects, well-written script and eye-popping colour prints by Technicolor as being its major assets. The Metaluna scenes, however, were re-shot by Jack Arnold after Universal-International expressed their dissatisfaction with Joseph M. Newman’s work.Cast: Jeff Morrow, Faith Domergue, Rex Reason, Lance Fuller, Russell Johnson, Douglas Spencer, Robert Nichols, Karl Ludwig Lindt, Jack Byron (uncredited), Spencer Chan (uncredited), Richard Deacon (uncredited), Coleman Francis (uncredited), Marc Hamilton (uncredited), Edward Hearn (uncredited), Edward Ingram (uncredited), Charlotte Lander (uncredited), Orangey (Neutron the Cat), Regis Parton (Mutant) (uncredited), Manuel París (uncredited), Olan Soule (uncredited), Les Spears (uncredited), Lizalotta Valesca (uncredited) and Robert Williams (uncredited)Directors: Jack Arnold and Joseph M. NewmanProducer: William AllandScreenplay: Edward G. O'Callaghan, Franklin Coen and Raymond F. Jones (novel)Composers: Joseph Gershenson (music supervision), Hans J. Salter (uncredited), Herman Stein (uncredited) and Henry Mancini (uncredited)Cinematography: Clifford StineVideo Resolution: 1080pAspect Ratio: 1.77:1 and 1.33:1 [Technicolor]Audio: English: 2.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, German: 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio Stereo and German: 2.0 DTS-HD Master AudioSubtitles: GermanRunning Time: 86 minutesRegion: Region B/2Number of discs: 1Studio: Universal-International / OSTALGICAAndrew’s Blu-ray Review: In 1949 and 1950 a science fiction serial by Raymond F. Jones appeared in “Thrilling Wonder Stories.” Within half a decade that serial would make history as the basis of the first science fiction film about interstellar travel and interstellar war. The next Hollywood film to venture to another solar system was the stunning ‘Forbidden Planet,’ a wholly original construct of the prestige studio M-G-M. But solid and reliable Universal Studios had the forethought to produce the most colourful, spectacular, wildly imaginative sci-fi film, and it lived up to everything you could possibly want, and gosh! wow! this film genre scenario has it all and its plot motivation in the screenplay is derived from the frantic efforts of the men of the interstellar planet, Metaluna, to find on Earth a new source of atomic energy, but do they succeed? But is helped along the way with its death rays, mutant bugs, and college sweethearts turned nuclear fission experts and a visit to the planet Metaluna via spaceship in this 1955 science fiction film which is now regarded as the archetypal sci-fi film of the Fifties.In this sci-fi extravaganza film ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ we find Electronics specialist Dr. Cal Meacham [Rex Reason], who is close to discovering how to convert lead and uranium into copious, free nuclear energy leaves a conference and flies himself home to Los Angeles in a jet. Just before landing, his plane loses power, but he is rescued by a mysterious green light that envelops the plane and brings it safely to earth. Dr. Cal Meacham and his shaken assistant, Joe Wilson [Robert Nichols], who has witnessed the landing, return to their lab, where Joe Wilson demonstrates the tiny but amazingly strong converter part sent by an unknown company called Direct Electronic Services.Soon, the company sends another package, consisting of an instruction manual made of paper-like metal. Dr. Cal Meacham orders all the pieces in the book and assembles them according to the directions. The result is a large machine with a screen that instructs them verbally how to turn it on. A man named Exeter [Jeff Morrow], with a large forehead and snow-white hair, appears on the screen and congratulates Dr. Cal Meacham for passing the test. Exeter invites Dr. Cal Meacham to join an elite team of scientists, and intrigued, Dr. Cal Meacham agrees to meet the plane that will take him to Exeter's headquarters the next evening.Although the night is thick with fog, the plane arrives easily, and Dr. Cal Meacham climbs aboard the empty jet over Joe Wilson's objections. Without a pilot, the plane touches down in Georgia, where Dr. Cal Meacham is greeted by scientist Dr. Ruth Adams [Faith Domergue], who pretends she does not recognise him from a conference years earlier. Dr. Ruth Adams brings him to Exeter's lovely offices, where she appears nervous and has a brief coded exchange with physicist Dr. Steve Carlson. Exeter explains to Dr. Cal Meacham that he has assembled the planet's best scientific minds to find a quick way to produce nuclear power. After Dr. Ruth Adams and Dr. Cal Meacham leave his office, Exeter, who is really an extra-terrestrial serving a superior named The Monitor [Douglas Spencer] receives a message insisting he finish his task immediately.After dinner, Dr. Ruth Adams and Dr. Steve Carlson take Dr. Cal Meacham on a tour of the labs, where Dr. Cal Meacham confronts them. Attempting to block the screen on which they can be watched, he asks why they are so nervous, and they reveal that they are the only scientists not to be brainwashed by Exeter. Meanwhile, Exeter's cold assistant, Brack [Lance Fuller], spies on them and urges his boss to brainwash them, but Exeter replies that the machine takes away its subjects' initiative.The next day, Exeter demonstrates a deadly "neutrino" ray to Dr. Cal Meacham and asks him not to meet again with Dr. Ruth Adams and Dr. Steve Carlson. Later that week, however, the three make an escape attempt in a station wagon, just as The Monitor instructs Exeter to bring Dr. Ruth Adams and Dr. Cal Meacham with him to their planet, Metaluna. Exeter boards his spaceship while Brack attacks the station wagon with neutrino rays. Dr. Steve Carlson stops the car to let Dr. Cal Meacham and Dr. Ruth Adams run to safety, but then is quickly killed by a ray. Dr. Cal Meacham and Dr. Ruth Adams race on foot to a nearby helicopter, but once in the air, they are apprehended by Exeter and sucked into the spaceship. In the control room, Exeter, who is dressed in a silver suit along with his fellow Metalunans, asks them to join him peaceably in order to help save his planet, which is being attacked by the enemy planet Zahgon.The shield around Metaluna is powered by atomic energy, but they are running out of fuel and must find a replacement process immediately. Dr. Cal Meacham and Dr. Ruth Adams must don the silver suit and stand in a tube that will condition them for atmospheric changes, and although they are reluctant to trust Exeter, the procedure works as he has promised. Approaching Metaluna, the spaceship is attacked by the same Zahgonian meteors that are pummelling Exeter's planet, and although the ship avoids danger, they can see on the ship's screen that Metaluna is sustaining great damage. They land in the war-ravaged planet's underground society, Exeter points out the destroyed schools and recreation centres on the way to The Monitor's headquarters.There, “The Monitor” explains that they must abandon the planet immediately, with plans to peacefully relocate to Earth. When Dr. Cal Meacham blanches at his claim to be superior in intelligence, “The Monitor” scorns his arrogant belief that Earthlings must be the most advanced peoples of the universe, and Dr. Cal Meacham replies that Earth's true size is the size of its God. Against Exeter's pleas, “The Monitor” then insists that the humans be brainwashed, and along the way Dr. Cal Meacham and Dr. Ruth Adams try to run, but are stopped by the sight of a huge mutant half-man, half-insect. Dr. Cal Meacham then punches Exeter and pulls Dr. Ruth Adams outside. Exeter follows and, promising he wants only to help, directs them to the spaceship, but just before they board, another mutant attacks the Metalunan.Dr. Cal Meacham pulls him off, but Exeter is wounded, and the mutant follows them on board. As they take off, Exeter watches his planet explode into a radiated ball of light, and wishes only that its heat will nourish another planet. They manage to avoid the attacks of the Zahgons, but as soon as they enter the tubes, the mutant attacks again, and only collapses after Dr. Cal Meacham struggles out of the tube and protects Dr. Ruth Adams against it. They soon reach Earth, where Exeter states that he will continue to search for like life forms, and refuses to join Dr. Cal Meacham and Dr. Ruth Adams and the scientists says goodbye and fly their helicopter home. But what will befall Exeter in his search for a new planet and a new life?Blu-ray Video Quality – ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ Universal-International and OSTALGICA Blu-ray release is brought to you with a very good quality 1080p encoded image and an equally excellent 1.77:1 aspect ratio. What you get delivered is a nice looking picture that is brilliant in some spots but mostly a notch above solid for most of the time. The picture again is pretty sharp for the most part, running into a few soft spots. Detail is pretty colourfully at times throughout the film, with some solid depth work here. Foreground and background is discernible with free moving characters and objects throughout. Blacks are pretty natural and accurate and no real problems to report and the dark scenes are a tad grainy and colours look nice and bold, and sometimes you get some wild vivid colours shine through without bleeding or being too overpowering. But most important is that it is also natural and consistent and most of the time detail is very good for the most part of the film.Blu-ray Audio Quality – ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ Universal-International and OSTALGICA Blu-ray release audio presentation is a nice, clean track, but I really felt there was an opportunity for it to get more “in your face.” Voices, effects and music score has some given you most of the time a good deep thrust to really feel completely satisfying. I kind of feel that the like the English: 2.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track gives some satisfactory of degree, but a shame they could not of upgraded it to a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track with the modern technology we have today. There are some fun noises and bits of unique action that impressively comes from the speakers and you get some really excellent loud and audible sound experience and throughout the film the dialogue is excellent. Please note before viewing the film, you have to first click on the “Sprachen” to view the language you require, as otherwise if you do not, the film always get viewed with the German language.Blu-ray Special Features and Extras:Special Feature: Super-8 Trailer [1958] [480i] [1.33:1] [2:03] This has got to be the most atrocious quality American trailer and looks like someone had filmed the film trailer in the cinema with their Super-8mm cine camera.Special Feature: Super-8 Fassung s/w slumn [1958] [480i] [1.33:1] [7:57] This again is another most atrocious quality Super-8mm Black-and-White CASTLE FILM presentation and what is very strange about this particular item is that the company has given it the title ‘War of the Planets’ and also very strange is that it is completely silent. I personally suspect what you are viewing is a cut down version of the film because of a licencing deal with Universal-International, because of the time of the release there was no VHS video format available and this is the only way amateur collectors could afford to buy films available at the time and was originally licenced to the Piccolo-Film Company in Germany.Special Feature: Super-8 Fassung Farbe Mit Ton [1958] [480i] [1.33:1] [15:50] This film trailer is in colour and is presented by Universal Eight and we get presented excerpts from the film Metaluna 4 Antwortet Nicht: Krieg Der Planten’ [‘This Island Earth’] and is dubbed in German. Again I suspect someone had filmed the film in a German cinema with their Super-8mm cine camera, but could only film certain parts of the film because of the length of the film in the camera. Once again the quality of this print is atrocious.Special Feature: Trailers from Hell with Joe Dante on ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ [2013] [1080i] [1.33:1] [2:48] Here we see Joe Dante talks about his favourite sci-fi film ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ which he first viewed in the cinema when he was 9 years old which made a great impression on him and here introduces the proper Hollywood film trailer and comments that the 1958 film was its ‘Star Wars’ of its time and Joe Dante also says that he was also very impressed on the special effects that was only available at the time. Joe Dante also mentions that this film when released in 1958 was in competition with the film ‘Forbidden Planet’ which he feels had a much better presentation, especially as it is based on a Shakespeare play. German subtitles appear at the bottom of the screen. Sadly it ends abruptly without warning.Special Feature: Original Trailer [1958] [480i] [1.78:1] [2:18] Once again we have another really atrocious quality trailer that is presented in very extreme soft focus, and I cannot understand why they decided to include this, as I feel it was a complete waste of time.Special Feature: Picture Gallery: This, Island Earth [2015] [1080p] [4:00] Here we get presented lots of very colourful and stunning promotional images, which includes classic 1958 cinema posters and other cinema posters from overseas; promotional rare colour and black-and-white photographs; as well as some other black-and-white promotional items. But as a bonus you get the stunning composed music you hear at the start of the film while viewing a very professional presentation.Special Feature: ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ [1958] [408i] [1.33:1] [86:00] This is another chance to view this sci-fi film, but this time you can only view it in the 1.33:1 aspect ratio. Although it is not a bad presentation, but sadly it is unfortunately only able to be viewed in the German language.TRAILERS: Here you get to view 99.9% of the most atrocious quality film trailers I have ever viewed and I cannot understand why they included them in this extra, as it was a complete waste of time, but one slight bonus is that a couple of the trailers were in English, whereas most are either dubbed or shown in the German language, and here what you will get to view:Jim Profit [3-DVD Set] [2012] [1080p] [1.85:1] [1:12]Feuer und Schwert – Die Legende von Tristan und Isolde [2 DVD] [Special Edition] [2009] [1080p] [1.77:1] [1:44]Scarletto: Schloss der Blutes [Bloody Pit Of Horror] [DVD] [1965] [480i] [1.85:1] [2:28]Jim Profit Teaser 1 and 2 [3-DVD Set] [2012] [1080p] [1.33:1] [1:36]Planet des Schreckens [Galaxy of Terror] [DVD] [2013] [1080i] [1.33:1] [0:59]Das Gift des Bösen 1 and 2 [Twice Told Tales] [Limited Special Edition] [DVD] [English] [2015] [480i] [1.33:1] [3:32]The Questor Tapes [DVD] [2012] [480i] [1.33:1] [1:08]Frankenstein [Special Edition] [2 DVD] [2013] [480i] [1.33:1] [1:38]Die Nacht der unheimlichen Bestien – Galerie des Grauens 4 [Limited Edition] [DVD] [2009] [480i] [1.78:1] [2:08]Seddok [2 DVD] [2013] / The Elephant Boy [2 DVD] [2014] / Angriff der Bienenmädchen [Uncut] [2 DVD] [2014] [480i] [1.33:1] [1:03]Horrorbox [3 DVD] Monster des Schreckens / 3D Horror / The Manster [480i] [1.78:1] [1:58]Diary of a Madman [DVD] [English] [480i] [1.78:1] [3:46]BONUS: You have an 8 page colourful booklet entitled “Metaluna 4 . . . Antwortet Nicht” which has lots of colourful photos from the film and the cinema poster, but sadly all the wording is in German, but still a nice little extra.Finally, with this brilliant sci-fi film ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH,’ where you have a the sequences showing the huge flying saucer arriving at the ravaged planet, and the subsequent scenes of alien ships bombing the planet’s surface with giant meteors, are the most spectacular in the film. A psychedelic light-show impressive for its spectacular artificiality, created by a combination of model work, matte paintings and super-imposing, all the work of special effects artist Stanley Horsley and master cinematographer Clifford Stine. So it is totally logical with the films exciting imagery tells a different story of wonder and especially with its garish wonderful Technicolor that ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH,’ was sadly slightly handicapped by a poorly executed screenplay and by a long delay before we see the action moves into outer space, but it’s saved by its truly and totally amazing visual special effects, especially for a film that came out in the 1950s and so it deserves an important place in the history of the sci-fi genre film for bringing to the screen for the first time familiar scenes that had previously only existed in the minds of science fiction pulp writers and the lurid imaginations of their readers. But most important of all ‘THIS ISLAND EARTH’ is one of my favourite science fiction films of the 1950s, and in fact, of all time and it has everything a B movie enthusiast could want, starting with a stellar cast. The Universal-International film as a whole is totally great fun and satisfying piece of science fiction, and withstands repeated viewings and believe me, I know, as I have watched several times, as it is a vast improvement over the inferior DVD release. Highly Recommended!Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film FanLe Cinema ParadisoWARE, United Kingdom