SLITHIS 1985 VHS RIP

About

VHS transfer of Slithis (often circulated under the alternate title Spawn of the Slithis), preserved from an analog home video source. This recording retains the visual and audio characteristics typical of VHS playback, including soft focus, color bleed, tape grain, tracking lines, and minor signal distortion consistent with aging magnetic media.

Originally released in 1978 and later distributed widely on VHS throughout the early-to-mid 1980s, Slithis is a low-budget independent monster film rooted in the tradition of classic nuclear-age creature features. The story is set in Venice, California, where a radioactive leak leads to the creation of a mutated amphibious humanoid creature. As the organism evolves, it emerges from canals and waterways to terrorize the local population, attacking residents and leaving behind strange biological traces that draw the attention of a curious journalist and his scientist associate. Their investigation gradually uncovers the origins of the creature and the environmental disaster responsible for its existence.

Combining elements of environmental horror, science fiction, and creature-feature filmmaking, Slithis reflects the influence of earlier atomic monster films while presenting a distinctly late-1970s independent production style. The film gained a cult following largely through its VHS releases, particularly those issued by smaller distributors during the early home video boom, where its unusual tone and creature design helped it stand out among similar genre titles.

This upload is presented for preservation purposes, documenting the analog format through which Slithis reached much of its audience. VHS recordings preserve unique aspects of physical media presentation, including generational loss, color instability, and compression artifacts inherent to tape duplication. These characteristics are an important part of the historical context of home video distribution and contribute to the authenticity of the viewing experience.

Human-made No record of this work says a model made it. What this means.

Archive

Internet Archive, in The VHS Vault

Licence or status

The Internet Archive states none for this item.

Credit

Stephen Traxler

Language

English

Who can watch

The archive gives no rating. Invisible Network shows it to Teens profiles and older, judged from its collection and subjects. How films are placed