August Underground's Mordum: Limited Edition – Unearthed Films (Blu-ray/DVD Combo)

Theatrical Release Date: USA, 2003
Directors: Jerami Cruise, Killjoy, Michael Todd Schneider, Fred Vogel, Cristie Whiles
Writers: Jerami Cruise, Killjoy, Michael Todd Schneider, Fred Vogel, Cristie Whiles, Allen Peters
Cast: Cristie Whiles, Fred Vogel, Michael Todd Schneider, Jerami Cruise, Killjoy

Release Date: October 10th, 2023
Approximate running time: 81 Minutes 49 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Aspect Ratio / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: Dolby Digital Stereo English
Subtitles: N/A
Region Coding: Region A/Region 1 NTSC
Retail Price: $39.95

"The sequel to the cult classic August Underground is a character study in the sick, an amoral putrid fantasy. The found footage contained in August Underground's MORDUM documents extreme deviant sexuality, torture and murder, while unfolding a classic tale of a man and woman in love. However, the woman cannot give up her other lover, who also happens to be her younger brother. August Underground's MORDUM will vomit all over you and leave you for dead!" - synopsis provided by the distributor

Video:

August Underground's Mordum comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 44.7 GB

Feature: 18.3 GB

The source for August Underground's Mordum is never going to look pretty; it was shot on video with the intention of looking like amateurish found footage. That said, I see no need to score or further describe this transfer since the screenshots below give a clear indication of what to expect.

Audio:

This release comes with one audio option, a Dolby Digital stereo mix in English. The audio, just like the video presentation, is intentionally rough around the edges, and an English subtitle track would have been greatly appreciated.

Extras:

Extras on the Blu-ray disc include a trailer (1 minutes 13 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), a photo gallery with music playing in the background, original animation (27 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), U.S. Premiere 2003 (19 minutes 38 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), three extended scenes: Gut Fucking, Hang Out and Home Invasion (12 minutes 53 seconds total running time, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), deleted scenes: Big Guy Intro, Poop Shot, Mustard Money Shot, Snow Piss, Bathroom Slaughter, Yang His Fuckin Tongue Out, and Lick My Pubes (12 minutes 53 seconds total running time, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), behind the scenes special effects image gallery with music playing in the background, Rue Morgue Disciple' Necrophagia music video (3 minutes 23 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Stephen Biro interviews Jerami Cruise (12 minutes 1 second, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), A Family Affair Of Love And Hate: an interview with Michael Maggot (33 minutes 43 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Remembering Killjoy (5 minutes 50 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), The Most Disturbing Scene (5 minutes 12 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Mordum Lives (4 minutes 40 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Art Ettinger And Allana Sleeth interview (11 minutes 24 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Zoë Rose Smith interviews Fred Vogel (42 minutes 46 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Dave Parker interviews Fred Vogel (42 minutes 36 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Snuff Purgatory: Severed Cinema interviews Fred Vogel (56 minutes 39 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Sickcess: A Necrophagia Mockumentary (38 minutes 3 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Sickcess trailer (1 minute 49 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Mordum screening from Flashback Weekend 2004 (36 minutes 41 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Slit Throat Demo from Flashback Weekend 2004 (56 minutes 11 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), Zombie Demo from Flashback Weekend 2004 (105 minutes 21 seconds, Dolby Digital stereo English, no subtitles), and an audio commentary with Jerami Cruise and Ultra Violent Magazine's Art Ettinger, an audio commentary with Toetag.

Other extras include reversible cover art, a slipcover (limited to the first pressing), and trailers for August Underground and August Underground's Penance.

Included is a DVD that has everything the Blu-ray does except these extras: Art Ettinger And Allana Sleeth interview, Zoë Rose Smith interviews Fred Vogel, Dave Parker interviews Fred Vogel, Snuff Purgatory: Severed Cinema interviews Fred Vogel, Sickcess: A Necrophagia Mockumentary, Sickcess trailer, Mordum screening from Flashback Weekend 2004, Slit Throat Demo from Flashback Weekend 2004, and Zombie Demo from Flashback Weekend 2004.

Summary:

August Underground's Mordum is a collaborative film between Fred Vogel, who directed August Underground, and four other filmmakers. Though the idea behind August Underground's Mordum was to showcase special effects for toe tag pictures, this is an interesting concept. The result is a film that feels like a random series of moments of grotesque carnage and nothing more.

From a production standpoint, August Underground's Mordum tries to replicate everything that made its predecessor August Underground. Once again, going with the found footage concept, August Underground's Mordum tries to enhance the realism by using shaky camerawork and degrading the video. Also, there is no narrative structure; the special effects are clearly the main attraction. And when it comes to the special effects, though most of them are pulled off effectively, there are some instances where they look bad. Ultimately, August Underground's Mordum is extreme, in-your-face cinema whose only purpose is to shock or revolt you.

August Underground's Mordum gets a definitive release from Unearthed Films.

Written by Michael Den Boer