The Guyver (Limited Collector’s Edition): 4K UHD Review
Arriving on 4K UHD for the very first time is 1991’s The Guyver, directed by Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang. Produced by Brian Yuzna, the film is loosely based on Yoshiki Takaya’s Japanese manga series of the same name. I remember renting the VHS multiple times back in the early 90’s and getting a kick out of the awesome monster effects and action. While much of the humor really feels overdone, more-so now that I am older, I love that The Guyver feels like a much grittier version of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. The 1994 sequel definitely goes darker.
Sean Barker (Jack Armstrong) is just your average college student, who sometimes lets his temper get the best of him. It doesn’t help that he is one of the worst students in his martial arts class. When Sean’s girlfriend’s father, Dr. Segawa is murdered by a group of thugs that have the ability to transform into superpowered mutants, he stumbles upon the alien device that the Doctor hid before being killed. The leader of the thugs is Lisker (Michael Berryman) and his boss is the evil head of the Chronos Corporation, Fulton Balcus (David Gale). Balcus wants The Guyver (a symbiotic alien bio-armor) back and will stop at nothing until he has it in his possession.
Unfortunately for the bad guys, the symbiotic armor has merged with Sean and even the mutant thugs are having a hard time taking him down. The film also stars Mark Hamill as CIA Agent Max Reed who was originally supposed to meet up with the doctor before the Chronos creatures got to him. The Guyver is silly fun and a film that has always held a place in my heart. I love the nods to Yuzna’s earlier projects. A Great one is Jeffrey Combs as Dr. East (which is funny because he played Dr. West in Re-Animator). Of course, David Gale as the villain is also fun since he was Dr. Carl Hill in that same film. The Guyver is like a body-horror action movie for the younger crowd and that’s pretty cool.
Unearthed Films delivers a new 2160p 4K restoration of the original R-rated 35mm camera negative and the movie has never looked better. Up until now, I have only ever watched The Guyver on VHS (Haven’t even seen the DVD). One of the major things I noticed were how detailed the creature costumes were. For a straight-to-video feature that was shot in just a few weeks, they really did a great job with the practical effects. The nighttime sequences also look great. A perfect example is when the monsters wind up on a movie set with scream queen Linnea Quigley. The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 brings the action to life, which also is a great addition to the release.
Included in the set is a 1080p Blu-ray of the new restoration and the film’s soundtrack, composed by Matthew Morse on CD. The second disk also includes a stacked selection of new bonus content. If you are a fan of The Guyver, I highly recommend picking up this release.
Bonus Materials:
- 4K ULTRA HD + BLU-RAY + CD SOUNDTRACK | LIMITED COLLECTOR’S EDITION CONTENTS
- NEW 4K restoration of the original R-rated 35mm camera negative by Unearthed Films
- Blu-ray of the feature film and all new extras
- The Guyver Soundtrack composed by Matthew Morse
- Booklet
DISC ONE – FEATURE (4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)
- NEW 4K restoration of the original R-rated 35mm camera negative by Unearthed Films presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio in HDR
- NEW Commentary with co-directors Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang, moderated by Dom O’Brien, the author of Budget Biomorphs: The Making of The Guyver Films
- DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
- Optional English SDH Subtitles
DISC TWO – FEATURE & EXTRAS (BLU-RAY)
- NEW 4K restoration of the original R-rated 35mm camera negative by Unearthed Films presented in 1080p HD in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio
- DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
- Optional English SDH Subtitles
- NEW Commentary with co-directors Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang, moderated by Dom O’Brien, the author of Budget Biomorphs: The Making of The Guyver Films
- NEW Interview with producer Brian Yuzna
- NEW Interview with co-director Screaming Mad George
- NEW Suit Tests with commentary by co-directors Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang
- NEW Outtakes with commentary by co-directors Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang
- NEW Gag Reel with commentary by co-directors Screaming Mad George and Steve Wang
- NEW Production & Artwork Gallery
- Alternate Title Sequence
- Trailers
DISC THREE – SOUNDTRACK (COMPACT DISC)
- The Guyver Soundtrack composed by Matthew Morse
By: Marc Ferman