Godzilla to Get a Criterion release?

Citing several insider sources from Criterion, film writer and translator August Ragone is reporting on his blog that the mighty distributor Janus Films has finally acquired the rights to Godzilla, the original 1954 film in which the city-smashing monster made his, erm, giant debut.

Criterion had been hinting at this possibility for months as speculation raged over how the company would be able to gain access to the highest-quality prints given that most American editions are notoriously damaged or dirty.  Yesterday Criterion answered this question by posting a photo of a film canister on their Facebook page without comment.  The Japanese label confirms that Criterion is using the original image master of the film, which means that a high-quality complete edition of this iconic film could be coming to DVD and Blu-ray at last.

The facebook picture, though unofficial, is as good as a press release from Criterion, and film fans everywhere could be heard breathing a sigh of relief at the thought that the monster movie is finally in good hands.

Now, if we can just get Criterion to take a look at Prince of Space…

(via Aint It Cool Anime.)