Joe D'Amato's Absurd Gets Its North American 4K Debut This Month
By Lio Renwick
Severin Films is releasing Joe D'Amato's Absurd (1980) on 4K UHD + Blu-ray in June. The set marks the North American UHD premiere of the notorious Italian splatter film, presenting it in 4K for the first time ever in the region.
Both the English and Italian versions appear here, each newly scanned in 4K from the original camera negative. The English Version runs 94 minutes and the Italian Version runs 89 minutes, framed at 1.85:1 with Italian Mono and English Mono audio. English subtitles and closed captions are included.
D'Amato's follow-up to Anthropophagous borrows heavily from Halloween, unleashing a gut-spewing boogeyman into suburban America. Screenwriter Luigi Montefiori, credited as George Eastman, plays the killer across a saga of doomed nurses, butchered babysitters, and bio-chemical clergy that ranks among the most insane splatter in Italian exploitation history. The disc joins a run of Italian genre restorations from the label, including Lucio Fulci's The Black Cat and Mario Bava's A Bay of Blood. Edmund Purdom (Julius Caesar, Pieces) and Annie Belle (House on the Edge of the Park) star. The film has circulated under several alternate titles over the years, among them Anthropophagous 2, Zombie 6, Horrible, and Monster Hunter.
The UHD disc holds the feature plus a trailer, while the Blu-ray gathers the bulk of the supplements. Leading them is The Return Of The Grim Reaper, an interview with actor, writer, and co-producer Luigi Montefiori, alongside As Red As Blood, an interview with D'Amato himself. A second D'Amato piece, D'Amato On Video, also appears on the disc.
The remaining interviews cover the production from several angles. Michele Soavi discusses his uncredited role in A Biker, drawing on his work as actor and assistant director, and composer Carlo Maria Cordio reflects on his work in My Absurd Film Music. Editor Vanio Amici talks through the cutting room in Building With Images. A trailer closes out the Blu-ray.
Absurd is region free and releases June 26, 2026. The title goes on sale during the Severin Summer Sale 2026, which begins the same day.
Physical media enthusiast covering Blu-ray & 4K UHD releases.