I Spit On Your Grave Blu-Ray Release Review: The Classic Horror Film Gets A Fresh Cut

Release date: November 11, 2020 (Remastered Blu-Ray)
Running time: 101 minutes
Stars: Camille Keaton, Eron Tabor, Richard Pace 
Writer and Director: Meir Zarchi

Synopsis:
An aspiring New York writer is repeatedly gang-raped, humiliated, and left for dead by four men whom she systematically hunts down to seek revenge.  

I Spit On Your Grave was originally released in 1978 to instant controversy and has achieved cult classic status since then.  The film starts with some very brutal acts that seem to go above and beyond what would be necessary, which explains why the film was so controversial.  However, the film also has a satisfying revenge arc to it, which is where the film gets its namesake.  The movie is a classic indie horror and that definitely shows.  The acting is hit or miss, though it has a really good performance by Camille Keaton in some very difficult situations.  The camera work has a voyeuristic quality to it, which I found a little disorienting at the start with the non-stabilized camera.  I wonder if some of this is more noticeable due to the higher resolution of the remastered film.  However, I got used to it and didn't notice it after the first few minutes.

But what sets this new release apart is the fact that the film uses a new 4K master from the original 35mm film.  So while the Blu-Ray is still 1080p, the source material is a brand new Ultra HD capture from the source film.  And that makes this old film look really amazing at times.  Some scenes look downright gorgeous, with bright colors that pop and smooth motion.  You can tell the film is an older one, but it definitely looks amazing.  And these colors pop the most with some of the defining aspects of this film.  Foliage jumps off the screen and the red colors (including all the blood) are bright and stand out.  The movie is set in a lush landscape with many red accents and the new transfer does all of that justice.  You can still tell some of the limitations with the original film, particularly some noise that exists in dark scenes.  But overall, the new transfer does the original film justice and helps to highlight how brutal this movie was at the time.  

The film also has a new soundtrack, offering a DTS-HD Mono and 5.1 soundtrack.  I surprisingly used the mono soundtrack as I felt it made the sound feel more authentic and the dialog easier to hear.  I started the movie with the 5.1 audio, but switched to mono because some of the dialog was hard to hear and some of the sounds felt muffled.  I felt everything was much cleaner and clearer on the mono soundtrack. 

I Spit On Your Grave's remastered version does the original film justice, with a gorgeous new transfer that makes the colors pop and enhances the brutality and revenge in this cult classic.  However, the film is a controversial one, and the subject matter can be difficult to watch and also suffers from some age.  Some of the lines and actions felt of the time, although I generally feel that this film was way ahead of its original 1978 release in terms of discussions about violence, especially towards women.  If you are a fan of this classic or want to see what this is about, then definitely check this out. 

Rent it.

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I Spit On Your Grave Remastered is included in the new I Spit On Your Grave 3-Disc Blu-Ray Collectors Set.  For more information and to purchase this film, head over to Ronin Flix.  And to see what you get in that set, check out the unboxing video!