As part of a growing list of 3-D restorations on Blu-ray, Kino Lorber presents this classic Ivan Tors production, one of the first of a handful of 1950s science fiction pictures to utilize color photography as a way of prying viewers away from their television sets and into their neighborhood theaters.

At an underground U.S. government experimental base, scientists have perfected a way of safely dry-freezing animals (actually monkeys) in an experiment to send humans up safely into space, with the proposal that robots will man the controls. A scientist is accidentally locked in a freeze chamber, and along with his female assistant who haphazardly follows him in, quickly dies after it is set full blast. Due to the mysterious circumstances of these deaths, government security agent David Sheppard (Richard Egan, LOVE ME TENDER) is sent in to carry out a full investigation. Greeted by the head of the project, Dr. Van Ness (Herbert Marshall, THE FLY) and his old flame Joanna (Constance Dowling, who became the wife of Tors), Sheppard soon comes to the deduction that sabotage may be involved and that the culprit could be one of the staff, as more accidental deaths follow. As the entire base is controlled by the computer NOVAC and its two robots Gog and Magog, it’s possible that the menace is of a mechanical kind, with a strange aircraft showing up on the radar seemingly assuming full control of them.

With its futuristic themes of man vs. his own created machine (some 15 years before 2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY and a good 26 years before SATURN 3) and its concentration on technological modernization, GOG is innovative of its type. Although the film can be rather talky and spends too much screen time explaining things, the overall story is original and entertaining (in a rainy Saturday afternoon kind of way), and the climax is somewhat rewarding. It plays out as sort of a sci-fi “whodunit” and capitalizes on showing off its then-modern space center (a real military base combined with the impressive Hal Roach Studios sets) and its various robotics and computer equipment, but some viewers will be disappointed that the implied space flight, which it all seems to be building up to, never takes place. But seeing most of the space exploration films of the 1950s, shying away from in-flight drama and the type of special effects needed to properly pull it off was likely a good idea and make the film less dated today than others of this sort. A scene where two would-be astronauts fall victim to an out of control rotation wheel ride (similar to what Roger Moore’s 007 was victimized on in MOONRAKER) is pretty laughable considering the obvious stagnant dummies put in the actors’ places. The two identical robots of Magog and Gog (which for no significant reason ultimately won out on the film’s title) look like a cross between Mystery Science Theater 3000’s Tom Servo and the ever-threatening Daleks from the BBC “Dr. Who” series, which no doubt was inspired by this film. Both robots were operated by a popular “little person” actor; Billy Curtis (THE WIZARD OF OZ, THE TERROR OF TINY TOWN).

Producer Ivan Tors had dabbled in other science fiction features with THE MAGNETIC MONSTER (also coming soon to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber) and RIDERS TO THE STARS, making up for a notable cinematic “Office of Scientific Investigation” or “OSI” trilogy, but he’s best known for his various television series which include “Science Fiction Theater”, “Sea Hunt” and of course “Flipper”. Director Herbert L. Strock reportedly got flack from the Director’s Guild for having his opening director and editor credits combined on screen, something you don’t see very often. Strock, who does an adequate if workmanlike job here, is best known for helming AIP youth-oriented drive-in horrors such as I WAS A TEENAGE FRANKENSTEIN, HOW TO MAKE A MONSTER and BLOOD OF DRACULA. GOG’s cast also features a number of familiar faces including heavy-accented John Wengraf (THE RETURN OF DRACULA), Philip Van Zandt (a Shemp-era Three Stooges foil who also appeared in Universal’s HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN) and Michael Fox (THE BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS) all as scientists, as well as a very young William Schallert (THE MAN FROM PLANET X) as a lab assistant.

Shot in 3-D but issued theatrically in 2-D (with the exception of some limited engagements), the United Artists release of GOG was first officially released on home video when MGM issued it as manufactured-on-demand DVD in 2011. Kino presents GOG here on Blu-ray in 2D (flat) and 3D (with a new restoration by the 3-D Film Archive) for those who have both 3D televisions and Blu-ray players. We are not able to screen the 3D version since we only have a standard setup at present, but here’s the rundown on the 2D version: it’s presented in 1080p HD in its intended 1.66:1 aspect ratio (the previous MGM DVD was full frame). With compositions now looking correct, colors are terrifically rich, grain structure is pleasing, skin tones look natural, and there are only fleeting instances of film debris. Clarity and depth are sharp throughout and contrasts are also strong. The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono audio is satisfying and never problematic, with dialogue, sound effects and music all sounding nicely in the mix. No subtitle options are on the disc.