Seeing 'The Mysterians' in 4K!

The Mysterians (a.k.a. Chikyu Boeigun) starts at 10:00 a.m. at Toho Cinemas Nihonbashi. Photo by Brett Homenick.

This morning (Monday, August 7), I went to Toho Cinemas Nihonbashi to catch a screening of The Mysterians (1957) in 4K. The Mysterians has always been one of my favorite movies, and I had the privilege of catching a rare screening of the film in 35mm last year. But I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see it in 4K.

The ticket to get into the screening. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Before the movie started, the usual batch of trailers played. The one that had the biggest impact, of course, was the teaser for Godzilla: Minus One (2023), which was certainly an added bonus to see on the big screen. 

The Mysterians in 4K. Photo by Brett Homenick.

So how was the picture quality? It was awesome! It looked just about flawless to my eye. I would say it was even better than Rodan's 4K remaster, as well as the 35mm print of The Mysterians I saw last year. The picture never looked clearer to me, and I noticed a few minor details that I missed in all the times I'd seen the film before. 

The screening also had a great turnout, despite being a Monday morning. All in all, I couldn't think of a better way to start my week!

GO, RODIE BABY, GO! Attending a Screening of 'Rodan' at Toho Cinemas!

Signage for Rodan just outside the theater screening room. Photo by Brett Homenick.

Tuesday, December 20, proved to be a rather unusual morning. Just before 9:00 a.m., I arrived at Toho Cinemas Nihinbashi to take in a 4K screening of the kaiju classic Rodan (1956), remastered from the original camera negative. 

I'm not so sure a movie from 1956 counts as "new." Photo by Brett Homenick.

The quality, of course, was top-notch. Rodan has truly never looked better, and I could spot a lot of details that I never could before. I had a lot of fun trying to read the signs and billboards during Rodan's attack, but the scene would usually cut away before I could finish reading them. Yumi Shirakawa was absolutely radiant (when is she not?), I never noticed that Haruo Nakajima was in that much of the movie as an extra, and the ending still packs one heck of a punch. I was moved all over again.

After the showing, I sat in one of the comfy leather chairs that were available to patrons (never seen these before at a Toho Cinemas) and had a blast messing around on Facebook with my buddies. It sure made the mad dash to the movie theater battling the morning rush hour worth it. I'm still kicking myself for not checking out the remastered Mothra (1961) screenings last year, but I'm glad I didn't repeat that mistake with Rodan. 

Can't wait for this one to come out on Blu-ray!