Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		3.5

Retribution Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 25, 2022

The idea of a deceased crazed killer's spirit possessing a hapless schlub is not exactly an innovative idea, and so those coming to Retribution looking for something "new" and/or "improved" may feel a bit of a letdown, though kind of amazingly this outing manages to have a bit of style decorating a pretty rote plot. The film begins with just the first of several weirdly skewed palette offerings, with an urban landscape drenched in almost psychedelic levels of green. Quick cuts to some gruesome faces are ultimately revealed to be a bunch of Halloween revelers who have gathered at the street level of a dilapidated hotel, where several stories above a, well, hapless schlub named George Miller (Dennis Lipscomb) is on a ledge, about to commit suicide. He does in fact jump, but is saved, although the film offers another weirdly skewed palette that seems to suggest some kind of supernatural phenomenon may be at work. Miller is nursed back to health, and in fact the film kind of skips over some material that might have been better developed and/or elucidated, with Miller, who is shown to be suffering from some kind of post traumatic stress disorder, suddenly upright and conversing in a relatively engaged manner with a psychiatrist named Jennifer Curtis (Leslie Wing). Curtis believes Miller's nightmares and recurrent visions are simply delusions, more symptoms of whatever pushed him over the edge, figuratively and literally. The "truth" turns out to be a case of possession, as Miller unfortunately chose the timing of his jump to coincide with the murder of a guy in debt to the mob, a guy who evidently has the ability to have his spirit enter a, yep, hapless schlub.

The dead guy is of course on a hunt for vengeance against those who did him in, and George finds himself the unwitting, or maybe half witting, pawn in a game not of his own choosing. His visions increase, and the film documents the possession with some more peculiar color effects, including having George's eyes glow green. In a slight riff on what might be termed "slasher" territory, George, now under the control of the dead guy, commits a number of rather horrifying murders which allow the film get into slash and dash imagery. There are some decent gore effects for those who like such things, including one spectacular sequence set in a slaughterhouse where it's not the animals getting sliced and diced.

The film has a harder time trying to keep things even relatively believable, an some performances may seem a trifle too earnest for such patently ridiculous proceedings. It's kind of interesting to analyze how something as simple as a hairstyle can help define a character, but George's weird semi-Dutch Boy haircut definitely sums up his persona in a certain manner. The film doesn't have any true marquee stars, though Hoyt Axton shows up in a glorified cameo as a cop investigating the series of brutal deaths. That said, Lipscomb actually acquits himself very well in a rare leading role. The rest of the supporting cast has some decent turns as well, even when the writing doesn't always fully support them.

Retribution Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Retribution is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. The back cover of this release states the presentation is "now scanned in 2K from recently discovered pre-print elements". This is another surprisingly strong looking transfer of a veritable cult item from Severin. The palette is often very healthy looking, and some of the primaries in particular pop extremely well (aside from the expected deep reds of some of the splatter scenes, take a gander at George's bright blue sweater in screenshot 3 for another good example). Aside from some of the old school composited effects, which understandably don't offer the same levels of fine detail in particular, overall detail levels are commendable throughout both versions. There are definitely some rough moments on display, especially when the yellowish grain can lend a somewhat jaundiced look to the entire frame.

Note: Screenshots 1 through 10 are from the Theatrical Version and screenshots 11 through 18 are from the Uncut Version.

Retribution Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Retribution features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track that nicely supports Alan Howarth's engaging synth laden score. Both music and sound effects (especially in some of the kill scenes) has a really nicely full sounding midrange, and if the low end isn't mind blowingly powerful, there's still some good energy there. Dialogue is presented cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Retribution Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Disc 2

• Theatrical Version (HD; 1:48:56)


• Writing Wrongs (HD; 12:18) is an interview with Lee Wasserman, Associate Producer.


• Shock Therapy (HD; 8:06) is an interview with actress Leslie Wing.


• Angel's Heart (HD; 6:47) is an interview with actress Suzanne Snyder.


• Santa Maria, Mother of God, Help Me! (HD; 9:09) is an interview with actor Mike Muscat.


• Settling the Score (HD; 8:15) is an interview with soundtrack composer Alan Howarth.


• Visions of Vengeance (HD; 7:18) is an interview with special effects artist John Eggett.


• The Art of Getting Even (HD; 6:35) is an interview with artist Barry Fahr.


• Living in Oblivion (HD; 9:38) is an interview with Robb Wilson King, Production Designer.


• Bingo (HD; 1:59) is a student short by Guy Magar. This has an optional commentary track.


• Trailers (HD; 1:46 and 6:58)


• Stills and Poster Gallery (HD; 2:14)

Disc 2

• Uncut Version (HD; 1:49:05)


• Audio Commentary with Co-Writer / Director Guy Magar

Additionally, a Bonus Soundtrack CD is included, and in what is kind of an unusual element for a release from Severin Films (at least in my personal experience), there's a rather nice insert booklet included featuring a rather long essay by Guy Magar, as well as an appreciation of Alan Howarth's score by Randall Larsen, initially done for a 2015 release of the soundtrack. Finally, packaging features a slipcover.

Retribution Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It might have been more interesting if Retribution had introduced an element of doubt as to whether George is actually possessed or just suffering from some kind of mental illness which also led to his suicide attempt. His kind of semi-miraculous "recovery" (such as it is) early in the film tends to make the overheated theatrics which ensue kind of spring out of nowhere, but once the film decides to go for the gonzo gusto, it's actually quite a bit of fun. Severin continues to mine the world for some unexpected cult treasures, and while Retribution is probably no undiscovered masterpiece, this is a release where some of the supplements may help to make this as appealing a prospective purchase as the main feature itself. Technical merits are generally solid for those who are considering making a purchase.