Sci-fi and horror collide in 3 bone-rattling and bizarre B-Movie classics! THE UNKNOWN TERROR (1957) – A millionaire (John Howard) leads a remote jungle expedition to find the legendary “Cave of the Dead” where his wife’s (Mala Powers) brother had disappeared long ago. Instead, they stumble upon a mad doctor who has created a horde of foam-spewing, fungus-covered monster-men! Directed by Charles Marquis Warren (Back from the Dead) and shot by Joseph F. Biroc (Bwana Devil) in spine-chilling “Regalscope.”

THE COLOSSUS OF NEW YORK (1958) – When a brilliant scientist (Ross Martin) is accidentally killed, his preserved brain is transferred to the body of a giant robot so that it can continue to serve mankind. But when it gains awareness of its own hideousness, this steel colossus embarks on a rampage of destruction! Directed by Eugène Lourié (Gorgo) and co-starring Mala Powers as the deceased man’s horrified wife and Otto Kruger as his obsessed, mad-scientist father.

DESTINATION INNER SPACE (1966) – When an object of unknown origin is detected in the area of an underwater laboratory, scientists investigate and come face to face with the object—an extraterrestrial saucer! They board the craft and discover a mysterious cylinder, which they take back to the lab for closer inspection. It is then that events take a monstrous turn! Directed by Francis D. Lyon (Castle of Evil) and starring Scott Brady, Sheree North and Gary Merrill. Destination Inner Space was shot in Eastmancolor by cinematographer Brick Marquard (Foxy Brown).

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Video Quality

The Sci-Fi Chillers Collection comes to Blu-Ray with three films spread across two discs. While this might normally be a concern, given the relative brevity of the first two features, the disc they share is not pushed to the limits of its capacity. These films share a lot of the same qualities, so I will mostly be judging them in groups while pointing out noticeable differences when necessary. The Unknown Terror, The Colossus of New York, and Destination Inner Space all receive new 4K scans courtesy of Paramount, and the results are mostly terrific. No one presentation in this set represents a 5-star effort, but the quality stays very high. Even after the remastering process, the films succumb to a bit of print damage and other source anomalies from time to time.

The sumptuous black-and-white photography sparkles in high definition with natural grain intact. The grain field becomes a bit heavy on occasion, but all transfers are resolved well. There are not very many moments where anything appears clumpy, swarming, or unnatural. There is a welcome amount of detail present with vital texture on the creature costumes and within the distinct production design. Black levels are decently deep with no noticeable occurrences of black crush or compression artifacts. The contrast is deftly defined, but the track does exhibit moments of density fluctuation in the print. These films are the type often relegated to cheap multi-film sets, but we are glad they have finally been given the respect they deserve. The quality of these transfers is as strong as the source material will allow. Kino Classics has made genre fans happy with this release.

Audio Quality

The Blu-Ray comes with a surprisingly good DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track for each of these three films that suits them well. These tracks do exhibit a very minor amount of age-related wear and tear including some faint hissing, humming, and crackles that likely date back to the source elements. Dialogue and background noises are represented in impressive harmony with all competing elements. The music never overshadows the dialogue or other important information, but it does sound a little delicate at its highest peaks. The team at Kino Classics has done their best to provide the most stable track possible for these. There are optional English (SDH) subtitles included for all feature films.

Special Features

Audio Commentary for The Unknown Terror: Film Historian Stephen Bissette provides a worthwhile commentary track in which he discusses the history and production of the film, the background of the performers, the career of director Marquis Warren, the importance of the music in the film, the special effects work, and more.

Audio Commentary for The Colossus of New York: Film Historians Tom Weaver, Larry Blamire, and Ron Adams provide a great commentary track that is stitched together and explores the history of the film, the themes at play in the story, the performers, the work of Eugène Lourié, the shooting locations, and more.

Audio Commentary for Destination Inner Space: Film Historians David Del Valle and Stan Shaffer provide the final commentary track which delves into the historical details, the barriers that were broken, the careers of the performers, how it influenced future works, and more.

Sidebar on The Colossus of New York with Tim Lucas and Stephen R. Bissette: An impressive 63-minute discussion with the two film historians about the importance of this science fiction film including details about the performers, analysis of the story, the legacy of the feature, and more.

Sidebar on Destination Inner Space with Tim Lucas and Stephen R. Bissett: Another great 39-minute conversation between the two historians that follows a similar pattern as before.

Trailers: There is a trailer provided for The Colossus of New York (1:36). There are also trailers provided for The Man From Planet X, The Quatermass Xperiment, The Land Unknown, It! The Terror From Beyond Space, 4D Man, Dinosaurs!, The Day The Earth Caught Fire, Master of the World, Village of the Giants, The Last Man on Earth, Planet of the Vampires, Beyond the Time Barrier, The Time Travelers, They Came From Beyond Space, The Amazing Transparent Man, and The Astro-Zombies.

Final Thoughts

The Sci-Fi Chillers Collection is an incredibly fun and occasionally silly blast from the past that shines a spotlight on an era and genre that too often gets mocked. Yes, some of the creature costumes and special effects are hokey, but there is something about the earnestness of these features that is transfixing. The Colossus of New York is the premiere title of this bunch, but we don’t count any of them as a failure. Even when certain elements come up short, you still appreciate what these films accomplish. Kino Classics has released a Blu-Ray set featuring a good A/V presentation and an impressive assortment of special features. If you are a fan of gloriously cheesy sci-fi films, you should consider this release a must-own. Recommended

Sci-Fi Chillers Collection is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Kino Classics has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.