The Cyclops Blu-ray - Gloria Talbott

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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r

directed by Bert I. Gordon
USA 1957

Lovely Susan Winter organizes an expedition deep into the wilds of Mexico. She hopes to find her aviator fiancé, lost after his plane crashed. Instead she and her three male companions find behemoth bugs, giant battling lizards, mountains practically glowing with uranium, and a 25-foot-tall human beast with a single eye, a melted-cheese-sandwich face and a very scary attitude. If you like nifty ’50s horror, The Cyclops is the kind of over-the-top frightfest that’ll have you spilling your popcorn. Among the cast: Lon Chaney (The Wolf Man) as a manipulative wheeler-dealer who’d just love to become a uranium millionaire…no matter the danger to the rest of the expedition. Writer/director Bert I. Gordon (Beginning of the End, The Amazing Colossal Man) masterminds the menace.

Poster

Theatrical Release: July 28th, 1957

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Comparison

Warner Home Video (Warner Archive Collection) - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray

1) Warner - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT

2) Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray - RIGHT

Box Cover
Distribution	Warner Home Video Region 0 - NTSC	Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray
Runtime	1:05:34	1:05:54.116
Video	1.78:1 Aspect Ratio Average Bitrate: 6.51 mb/s NTSC 720x480 29.97 f/s	1,78:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 20,164,852,337 bytes Feature: 19,265,329,152 bytes Total Video Bitrate: 34.98 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate
Bitrate Blu-ray
Audio	Dolby Digital 1.0 (English)	DTS-HD Master Audio English 1988 kbps 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1988 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 2.0 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Subtitles	None	English (SDH), None
Features	Release Information: Studio: Warner Home Video Aspect Ratio: - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • None DVD Release Date: October 12th, 2010 Keep Case Chapters 16	Release Information: Studio: Warner Archive 1,78:1 1080P Dual-layered Blu-ray Disc Size: 20,164,852,337 bytes Feature: 19,265,329,152 bytes Total Video Bitrate: 34.98 Mbps Codec: MPEG-4 AVC Video Edition Details: • Textless Theatrical Trailer (1:43) Blu-ray Release Date: September 25th, 2018 Standard Blu-ray Case Chapters 16

Comments

NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray - September 2018': The new Warner Archive release of The Cyclops, on Blu-ray looks solid. It is also in the 1.78:1 aspect ratio but shows a bit more information in the frame. The visuals are lighter but contrast is more layered and the bitrate is max'ed out. It's smooth in-motion, no artifacts or damage, and the 1080P provides a pleasing presentation with the 10-seconds (removed from the original DVD) intact here on the Blu-ray.

Warner Archive use a DTS-HD Master 2.0 channel mono (24-bit) track in the original English language. There are plenty of growls that have somwe depth. The score is by Albert Glasser (Attack of the Puppet People, Abilene Town, The Spider, I Shot Jesse James, Behind Locked Doors) that is largely unremarkable but keeps pace with the creature-esque sequences. There are optional English subtitles (SDH) on the Region FREE Blu-ray.

Marginally advancing beyond the 2007 DVD the Blu-ray has an extra - only a textless trailer.

Well, The Cyclops is typical Bert I. Gordon cheese with the transformed 'creature' looking too much like the one in his War of the Colossal Beast. Also having the giant's evolution in 'mysterious Mexico'. Fun schlock and short enough not to be annoying - perfect for the start of a double-feature night in the home theatre one rainy Sunday. Might I suggest Jack Arnold's significantly more polished Tarantula!

***

ON THE DVD: The fan rub here is that about ten seconds are missing from this Warner Archive DVD presentation - at the point when the big guy bawls like a baby when he removes the burning stick after it is thrust into his lone ocular. If Warner doesn't have the missing few seconds - I wonder who, the heck, does?

It's standard single-layered but progressive and looks exceptionally good. This is labeled under the Warner's new "Re-mastered Edition" marquee and the image is very impressive with solid contrast, textured grain and no untoward damage. The 1.78 anamorphic visuals look surprisingly good despite the single-layering.

The mono sound is decent but unremarkable and there are no subtitles offered. There are also no supplements - not even a trailer and only one single menu screen.

As long as you aren't going to get flustered over the missing 10-seconds - this should give you all you are looking for in a 'B' creature feature of this era. Meaning - hokey monster effects, barely a plot, the earthy sexiness of Gloria Talbott and the assuring visage of Lon Chaney Jr. . When I was about 11 or 12 and my parents were grocery shopping on a Saturday afternoon - it was films like The Cyclops that kept me entertained. The illusions are shattered but funny how it still does today - only now it's a late Friday night with buttered popcorn.

NOTE: Warner Archives has re-pressed The Cyclops, adding the missing 10-second footage. People who purchased the original pressing can call Warner customer service (866) 373-4389 and request a free updated disc. You just have to prove that you purchased the disc before December 1st, 2010 (thanks Curt!).

- Gary Tooze

DVD Menu

Warner Archive - Region FREE - Blu-ray