Slave of the Cannibal God 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

Slave of the Cannibal God 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 21, 2025

Sergio Martino's "Slave of the Cannibal God" (1978) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Severin Films. The supplemental features on the release include new program with director Sergio Martino; new program with production designer Antonello Geleng; new program with camera operator Claudio Morabito; archival program with Stacy Keach; remastered vintage trailer; and more. In English or Italian, with optional English and English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Death is ahead of us.

Neither Ursula Andress nor Stacy Keach thinks highly of Slave of the Cannibal God a.k.a. The Mountain of the Cannibal God, which should not be surprising because both have appeared in vastly superior genre and mainstream films. However, in the large family of cannibal films that Italian directors shot during the 1970s and 1980s, Slave of the Cannibal God is one of the better and most entertaining ones. Interestingly, it borrows several of the tested and effective tricks that the other very popular genre films Italian directors shot at the same time, the gialli, loved to utilize.

Shortly after landing in New Guinea, Susan Stevenson (Andress) and her brother, Arthur Weisser (Antonio Marsina), organize an expedition to a remote area, where her missing husband, a prominent scientist, was last seen. Professor Edward Foster (Keach), who has lived in the country for some time, agrees to lead the expedition and suggests that Stevenson’s husband might have been on his way to the notoriously dangerous mountain Ra Ra Me. Accompanied by several local tribesmen, hired to carry their belongings, the group is then transported by a helicopter to a spot somewhere in the vast jungle.

But long before they reach the other side of the jungle, from where they must cross the ocean on their way to Ra Ra Me, the group’s resilience is frequently tested by Mother Nature and mysterious local warriors wearing giant clay masks. After a few of the tribesmen are eaten by predators and slaughtered by the local warriors, the rest run away, and Stevenson, Foster, and Weisser are forced to continue their journey to Ra Ra Me alone. However, it is not long before Lady Luck summons the jungle hunter Manolo (Claudio Cassinelli) to save Stevenson’s life, and after Foster seriously injures his leg, the stranger takes his spot in the group.

The final act is genuinely wild, in a way only the mind of an Italian director could have envisioned it during the ‘70s and ‘80s. After reaching Ra Ra Me, the travelers are captured by primitive cannibals, and Stevenson is prepared for her permanent transformation into a mummified God. While various ugly rituals are underway, several confessions and revelations place the journey to Ra Ra Me and the mayhem associated with it in an entirely new context.

Despite producing several sequences with very graphic visuals -- some showing real animals attacking and killing other animals, some featuring flesh eating and other primitive behavior -- a few of which have been censored in the past, Slave of the Cannibal God is not as repulsive as cannibal ‘classics’ like Eaten Alive! and Cannibal Holocaust. There are two reasons for this. First, the adventure element in its narrative convincingly dominates the cannibal antics, so the graphic visuals very much feel like filler material. Second, the curveballs and twists create a campy atmosphere, very similar to the one that flourishes in many over-the-top Italian gialli where a maniac goes on a gruesome killing spree. As a result, Slave of the Cannibal God does not tick all the boxes a proper cannibal film should, which is precisely why it has a mixed reputation.

Director Sergio Martino and cinematographer Giancarlo Ferrando shot large parts of Slave of the Cannibal God in the Kendi botanical gardens in Sri Lanka and the rest in Rome. In Italy, Slave of the Cannibal God was screened with an original Italian track, while internationally it was screened with an original English track. Both tracks feature overdubbing.

Severin Films’ 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray releases present an exclusive new 4K restoration of the original, fully uncut version of the film.

Slave of the Cannibal God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Kino Lorber's release of Slave of the Cannibal God is a 4K Blu-ray/Blu-ray combo pack. The 4K Blu-ray is Region-Free. However, the Blu-ray is Region-A "locked".

Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

Screencaptures #1-27 are taken from the Blu-ray.
Screencaptures #31-39 are taken from the 4K Blu-ray.

The release introduces an exclusive new 4K restoration of Slave of the Cannibal God on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. In native 4K, the 4K restoration can be viewed with an HDR grade.

The entire film has a stable, very attractive, organic appearance. It is a healthy appearance, too. However, in some areas -- like the one that shows the outsiders approaching the ocean -- some small nicks and scratches can be spotted. I do not mind them at all. I only mention them so that it is clear that, in a few places, the visuals are not immaculate. (For what it's worth, they are healthier than those previous Blu-ray releases of the film, like Code Red's Blu-ray release, have produced). Delineation, clarity, and depth range from very good to excellent. There are plenty of density fluctuations. The biggest ones are during the animal footage, which looks a bit rough as well. Obviously, they are inherited because this is how the footage was shot. There are no traces of any problematic digital corrections. I would describe color reproduction and balance as good and convincing. However, there are a few areas where a light yellow(ish), slightly odd, hue sneaks in. Still, I did not see any anomalies, and the overall temperature of the visuals looked very good, often even great. Image stability is very good.

The 1080p presentation of the 4K restoration on the Blu-ray is equally satisfying. I tested several areas to see how the HDR grade handles the daylight footage from the jungle, and then the darker and nighttime footage, and I must say that there isn't a substantial difference between the native 4K and 1080p presentations. The HDR grade is very, very light, and while in native 4K the visuals do have a better dynamic range, all 1080p visuals match their strengths quite well. In native 4K, in multiple areas, some of the grain is simply a lot more pronounced.

Slave of the Cannibal God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two stand audio tracks on this release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 and Italian DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. Optional English SDH (for the English track) and English (for the Italian track) subtitles are provided. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The English track is preferable because the leading actors deliver their lines in English. However, both tracks feature overdubbing, and both share the unevenness and some dynamic weaknesses that these types of tracks were always created with. The important detail here is that the English track is healthy. Even if you turn up your volume quite a bit more than usual, you will not hear any distortions, distracting hiss, pops, etc.

Slave of the Cannibal God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - this audio commentary was recorded by critic Claire Donner of the Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies.

• Trailer - presented here is a fully remastered vintage international trailer for Slave of the Cannibal God. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

BLU-RAY DISC

• Commentary - this audio commentary was recorded by critic Claire Donner of the Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies.

• In the Jungle - in new archival program, director Sergio Martino discusses the exact period in which Slave of the Cannibal God was conceived and shot, the various material that was shot in the Kendi botanical gardens in Sri Lanka, the explicit footage with the monkey and the python, and the many other risks he and cast and crew members took during the shooting process. Martino also concedes that the film was possible to make at a time when social norms and culture were completely different. At the end of the program, there are also some interesting observations about the censoring of the film. The program was produced by Federico Caddeo in 2024. In Italian, with English subtitles. (26 min).

• Unabated - in this new program, camera operator Claudio Morabito reveals that Slave of the Cannibal God was an exceptionally difficult film to shoot that featured several genuinely dangerous scenes, such as the one where Claudio Cassinelli grans the water cobra. Morabito also discusses the shooting of the graphic footage from the massive cave, as well as the film's reputation. The program was produced by Federico Caddeo in 2024. In Italian, with English subtitles. (13 min).

• Adventure of a Lifetime - in this new program, production designer Antonello Geleng discusses the early stages of his career, which was started with his work on Federico Fellini's Roma, and involvement with Slave of the Cannibal God. Geleng shares a lot of very detailed information about the various sets that were built for some of the most impressive sequences in the film. At the end of the program, Geleng also clarifies that he and the rest of the team that worked on the film wanted to capture the imagination of a large international audience, not just local Italian filmgoers. The program was produced by Federico Caddeo in 2024. In Italian, with English subtitles. (54 min).

• Brothers in Arms - in this new program, production designer Antonello Geleng and special effects artist Paolo Ricci, both good friends, recall their interactions during the production of Slave of the Cannibal God, which frequently produced hilarious situations. The two also describe an amusing joke involving a large iguana that ruined a special date. The program was produced by Federico Caddeo in 2024. In Italian, with English subtitles. (13 min).

• Dangerous Liaison - in this archival program, Stacy Keach comments on his contribution to Slave of the Cannibal God and how much he enjoyed traveling to Sri Lanka, where Sergio Martino shot the film. Keach also has some fascinating comments about his work on Street People and Road Games. The program was produced by Bill Olsen from Code Red. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a fully remastered vintage international trailer for Slave of the Cannibal God. In English, not subtitled. (4 min).

Slave of the Cannibal God 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Despite being grouped with the many ridiculous cannibal films Italian directors shot during the '70s and '80s, and deservedly so, Slave of the Cannibal God is an old-fashioned adventure film, working with tricks that the much more popular Italian gialli loved to utilize. It is why it has two big international stars -- it was meant to impress a large international audience, not the usual small crowd that found the cannibal films attractive. While it does have a few rough spots, it is very well done. Severin Films' combo pack brings an impressive exclusive 4K restoration of the original, uncensored version of Slave of the Cannibal God, which looks good on 4K Blu-ray and Blu-ray. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.