Day of the Woman: I Spit on Your Grave + I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu (4K UHD Review)

Reviewed by: Tim Salmons
Review Date: Apr 22, 2026
Format: 4K Ultra HD

Director

Meir Zarchi

Release Date(s)

1978/2019 (March 4, 2026)

Studio(s)

Cinemagic Pictures/Deja Vu LLC (Umbrella Entertainment)

Film/Program Grade: See Below
Video Grade: See Below
Audio Grade: See Below
Extras Grade: A
Overall Grade: A-

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Review

[Editor’s Note: This is a Region-Free Australian 4K Ultra HD release.]

Shocking the world as one of the rawest and most intense rape and revenge films ever made, I Spit on Your Grave was an infamous and legendary film throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Initially released in 1978 under the title Day of the Woman and later re-released in 1980 under its more famous moniker, it disturbed and sickened critics with its almost documentary-like approach, allowing scenes of sexual violence (twenty-five minutes of it) to play out mostly in medium and wide shots with no score and no cutting away from the brutality.

It also inadvertently made a horror icon out of Camille Keaton. She gives an amazing performance as the unfortunate Jennifer Hills, who drives to the isolated countryside for a vacation, only to be repeatedly gang raped by four local men, later taking her revenge on them one by one. The film would eventually be championed by the likes of Joe Bob Briggs, who saw beyond its content and recognized a skillful filmmaker, Meir Zarchi, at work.

Forty years later, Meir Zarchi and Camille Keaton came together once again to make I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu, a direct follow-up that would examine the notion of a familial cycle of violence. In the film, Jennifer is now a best-selling author and parent to her successful fashion model daughter Christy (Jamie Bernadette). Unbeknownst to them, the relatives of Jennifer’s victims are coming for her for their own revenge.

That same year saw the release of Growing Up with I Spit on Your Grave, a documentary that chronicles Meir Zarchi and the making of the original film by his son Terry. Featuring interviews with many of the people involved with the film’s production, including various cast and crew members, as well as film critics from all over the country, it fully explores the making of the film, the vitriolic reaction to it, and its ensuing legacy.

I Spit on Your Grave was also remade in the early 2010s, along with several straight-to-video sequels right behind it, but the original is still an aggressive and unflinching piece of cinema that has never been equaled.

Cinematographer Yuri Haviv shot I Spit on Your Grave on 35mm film using Arriflex cameras and spherical lenses, the results of which were finished photochemically, and presented theatrically in the aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Umbrella Entertainment brings the film to Ultra HD with the previous restoration of the film included on the Ronin Flix UHD release. It’s the same 4K scan of the original uncut camera negative, which has been graded for High Dynamic Range in HDR10 only, and encoded to a dual-layered BD-66 disc. There’s almost no visible difference from the previous release. The Umbrella release may have an ever-so-slightly higher bitrate, in the 40 to 80Mbps range, but it’s entirely negligible. Detail is high and the grain structure is very lean, though there’s minor speckling, telecine wobble, and a couple density fluctuations that last for no more than a couple of seconds. The HDR squeezes as much out of the palette as possible, with some beautiful greens and bold reds, especially Jennifer’s red dress at the beginning of the film. Blacks are deep with excellent contrast as well. It’s a strong image.

Cinematographer Pedja Radenkovic captured I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu digitally in the Redcode RAW codec using Arri Amira cameras and anamorphic lenses, the results of which were finished as a Digital Intermediate (likely in 2K), and presented in the aspect ratio of 2.35:1. The Blu-ray features the same high definition master as the Ronin Flix release. It’s technically proficient, but much less interesting to look at in comparison to the original film, appearing relatively flat with little to offer in terms of depth. The color palette has some nice variety, supplying many hues within the city and country bound environments. Blacks are deep with great shadow detail, though contrast is dialed a tad too high. The film also uses flashbacks to the original film, which have been digitally altered to appear like the past, and not in a good way.

Growing Up with I Spit on Your Grave is a mix of various sources of footage, many of them HD (though it’s presented here entirely in SD as an extra, so it doesn’t matter much). For the most part, it’s solid, though frame rates are a tad off when utilizing older footage. The interviews themselves are well lit and all of the subjects are in good focus. It’s just a shame that it wasn’t carried over in HD.

Audio for I Spit on Your Grave is included in English 5.1 and 2.0 mono DTS-HD Master Audio with optional subtitles in English SDH, losing the stereo option from the Ronin Flix release. The mono track is pretty straightforward. Dialogue, overdubbed or otherwise, is mostly clear. Sound effects, such as the sounds of water dripping, drawers opening, and ambient city and country activity, all have decent life to them. The surround track improves upon these things, even allowing for panning activity when motorboats zoom by. Since there’s no score, sound is very important, and both tracks do it justice. There are also no other issues besides light hiss.

Audio for I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu is also included in English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio with optional subtitles in English SDH. Both are fine tracks, though the 5.1 opens the rear speakers up to allow for a much fuller experience. Ambient and low frequency activity gives the film a bit more teeth. Dialogue exchanges are clear and precise as well.

Growing Up with I Spit on Your Grave is included in English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio, losing the 5.1 and subtitles options from previous releases. For the audio, that’s fine as it seems unnecessary to offer two options since multiple channels of audio does little to boost the documentary’s sound capabilities. All of the interviews are satisfyingly discernible.

I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): B-/A/A-
I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE: DEJA VU (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): D-/B/B
GROWING UP WITH I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (FILM/VIDEO/AUDIO): C/B-/B

The 3-Disc Collector’s Edition 4K Ultra HD release of Day of the Woman: I Spit on Your Grave + I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu from Umbrella Entertainment sits in a black Amaray case with one UHD and two Blu-rays, a double-sided poster featuring the theatrical Day of the Woman artwork on one side and the theatrical I Spit on Your Grave artwork on the other, a double-sided inner sleeve featuring a collage of posters for both the original and the sequel with and without the mandatory Australian Classification Board ratings label on each side, and a slipcover with new artwork by Sister Hyde Design. Alongside it are 8 artcards and the 48-page booklet Day of the Woman: I Spit on Your Grave + I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu – Behind the Scenes, Essays and Art, which contains a content warning, the essays Suck It, Bitch! Speaking the Unspeakable in I Spit on Your Grave (1978) by Kat Ellinger, I Spit on Your Hypocrisy: The Catholic Church Versus Rape Revenge by Matt Rogerson, Myth and the Modern Diana in Rape-Revenge Cinema by Suzanne Boleyn, The Familiar Nihilism: Notes on Rewatching I Spit on Your Grave by Jack Sargeant, the aforementioned artwork, and a page of special thanks. Everything is housed in a rigid slipcase, also with new artwork by Sister Hyde Design. This is a numbered release available exclusively through Umbrella’s webstore, though they’re also offering a standard option minus the poster, artcards, booklet, and rigid slipcase. The following extras are included:

DISC ONE: I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (UHD)

Audio Commentary with Meir Zarchi
Audio Commentary with BJ Colangelo
Audio Commentary with Joe Bob Briggs
I Spit on Your Grave Theatrical Trailer (HD and Upscaled SD – 2:50)

DISC TWO: I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (BD)

Audio Commentary with Meir Zarchi
Audio Commentary with BJ Colangelo
Audio Commentary with Joe Bob Briggs
Legacy of the Woman: Camille Keaton on I Spit on Your Grave (HD – 7:50)
Vengeance Is Hers: Filmmaker and Actor Terry Zarchi on I Spit on Your Grave (HD – 13:35)
The Values of Vengeance: Meir Zarchi Remembers I Spit on Your Grave (SD – 29:01)
Jennifer’s Journey: The Locations of I Spit on Your Grave (HD – 11:10)
Force of Evil: Historicising I Spit on Your Grave (HD – 10:30)
I Spit on Your Grave Theatrical Trailer (HD and Upscaled SD – 2:50)
Day of the Woman Theatrical Trailer (HD and Upscaled SD – 3:27)
Day of the Woman Alternate Opening Title (HD – :14)
I Spit on Your Grave and Day of the Woman TV Spots (HD and Upscaled SD – 3 in all – 1:44)
Day of the Woman Radio Spots (HD – 3 in all – 1:13)
Still Gallery (SD – 33 in all – 2:21)

The audio commentary with Meir Zarchi is very educational as the director flies solo, providing plenty of information about the film as he watches it. New to this release is an audio commentary with media theorist, entertainment journalist, and film critic BJ Colangelo, which is one of the more fascinating recent commentaries I’ve listened to lately. Not only is it refreshing to hear from someone from within the industry, a woman, and an outsider, but someone who has herself suffered sexual assault. As she says at the outset, her goal is to give you a different perspective on the film about the portrayal of the acts themselves, but also aspects of the characters that might sometimes be overlooked. She also goes into some detail about her own horrifying experience. It’s a sobering track, but then again, it’s a sobering film. The audio commentary with Joe Bob Briggs, which dates all the way back to Elite Entertainment’s Millennium Edition DVD release from 2004, is a classic. He defends the film tooth and nail, but also gets plenty of laughs as well.

Legacy of the Woman is a new interview with Camille Keaton about her earliest yearnings for stardom, being in a near-tragic car accident, becoming a flight attendant, being cast in Day of the Woman, working in Kent, the difficulties in filming the assault scenes, being proud of the film, marrying Meir Zarchi, showing the film at Cannes, and meeting female fans that have had experiences with assault. In Vengeance Is Hers, filmmaker Terry Zarchi talks about his father’s motivations for making I Spit on Your Grave, Meir Zarchi falling in love with the location and being inspired to film there, how important production manager and special effect technician William Tasgal was to the project, growing up around filmmaking and learning from his father, visiting the set and appearing in the film at a young age, Jerry Gross taking the film over and confirming that Demi Moore was on the poster, reactions to the film, living a normal existence outside of the movies, the home video market saving the film, its staying power, and his warm memories of Camille Keaton. In The Values of Vengeance, Meir Zarchi discusses his inspiration for the film, meeting and working with Camille Keaton (and eventually marrying her), his process for shooting and editing the film, deciding not to use a score, trying to find distribution, editing the film, and fighting with home video distributors.

Jennifer’s Journey features Michael Gingold taking us on a tour of the filming locations sometime during the COVID-19 pandemic (as evidenced by his mask). Force of Evil is a new video essay by film critic Alexandra Heller-Nicholas about the breadth of the rape and revenge subgenre. Last are trailers for the film with both titles (HD re-creations); three TV spots, two for I Spit on Your Grave and one for Day of the Woman; three radio spots for Day of the Woman; and a Still Gallery containing 33 photos from the set.

DISC THREE: I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE: DEJA VU & GROWING UP WITH I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (BD)

Audio Commentary with Joe Bob Briggs
The Making of I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu (SD – 43:49)
Cast Interviews (SD – 11:04)
Behind-the-Scenes (SD – 2:44)
Vengeance Reborn: Camille Keaton and Producer Jan O’Connell on I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu (HD – 10:14)
From the Beginning: Producer and Editor Terry Zarchi on I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu (SD – 10:50)
Violence and Trauma in I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu (HD – 16:01)
I Spit on Your Wealth: Class Rage & Revenge (HD – 14:10)
Theatrical Trailers (HD – 3 in all – 3:00)
Growing Up with I Spit on Your Grave (SD – 102:45)
Growing Up with I Spit on Your Grave Deleted Scenes (SD – 7 in all – 9:26)
Home Movies: Terry Zarchi’s 8mm Film (SD – 2:50)
Home Movies: Camille and Meir’s Wedding (SD – 1:53)

Predictably, Joe Bob Briggs’ audio commentary for the film is better than the film itself. Like the commentary for the original film, it’s both hilarious and informative in a way that only he knows how to provide (fans of The Last Drive-In will know what to expect). The Making of I Spit on Your Grave: Deja Vu is a mostly fly-on-the-wall look at the production, though the cast and crew occasionally speak to the camera, as well. The Cast Interviews feature Camille Keaton, Jamie Bernadette, Jeremy Ferdman, Jim Tavare, Maria Olsen, and Jonathan Peacy speaking from the set. The Behind-the-Scenes footage is more of the same.

Vengeance Reborn interviews Camille Keaton and producer Jan O’Connell (both appearing via audio only) about the formation of the sequel, waiting for the remakes to end before they could make it, their appreciation of each other, working with the cast and crew, making smaller films, killing off Jennifer Hills, being proud of appearing in these films, preserving the camera negative, and being grateful for the opportunity to work on these films. From the Beginning speaks to Terry Zarchi once again about the genesis of his documentary, the pros and cons of the original film, stopping work on the documentary to work on Deja Vu, Meir Zarchi altering his original script before filming, Meir Zarchi working with the actors, working independently, Terry being an editor for his father, finishing his documentary after the film was released, and the possibility of more projects in the franchise. Two new video essays follow. Violence and Trauma features writer and lecturer Miranda Corcoran who examines Deja Vu and its repetition of violence following the original film. I Spit on Your Wealth features film writer Annie Rose Malamet who explores the affects of feminism and classism on all of the I Spit on Your Grave films.

Next is Terry Zarchi’s aforementioned Growing Up with I Spit on Your Grave documentary, along with Deleted Scenes that feature seven brief outtakes, including Terry Zarchi addressing the subject of Meir Zarchi and Camille Keaton’s love affair more fully. And since they’re silent, the 8mm Footage and Home Movies both feature commentary by Terry Zarchi.

It’s a pretty hefty extras package for all of the films, although the extensive still galleries from the Ronin Flix releases haven’t carried over, which included more photos from the set, stills from the film, script pages, posters, and personal photos. The 2011 Anchor Bay Blu-ray also includes a Spanish trailer for the film, while the Region B Blu-ray by ESC Editions in France includes an introduction to the film and an interview with journalist and archivist Clara Sebastiao, and the Region B Blu-ray by 101 Films in the UK contains a pair of exclusive interviews.

I Spit on Your Grave and its sequel are not easy films to recommend, but there’s much more to them than their exploitative reputations would lead one to believe. Umbrella Entertainment’s 4K package contains the most extras of any home video release, as well as the same great restoration of the original film, making it a solid release with terrific packaging.

- Tim Salmons

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