ADDITION: (November 2025) 88 Films - Region 'B' - Blu-ray: 88 Films have also transferred "Absolution" to Blu-ray. It also presents both the theatrical cut (95:30) and the 2018 director's cut (85:35) in a high-definition 1080P in the original 1.85:1 aspect ratio, sourced from the same 2K restoration used by Indicator and Kino Lorber, delivering a solid upgrade over prior soft and faded VHS/DVD releases with enhanced textures in faces, hair, vestments, and school interiors like stone, woodwork, and stucco walls, though bright exteriors under opening titles appear somewhat soft. There is occasional depth. Colors are natural with agreeable skin tones and greenery in outdoor scenes, grain is fine and filmic, contrast is wide with good delineation in darker sequences, and issues are minimal with rare flare and damage confined to end credits. The visual style of Absolution (1978), lensed by cinematographer John Coquillon (1978's The Thirty-Nine Steps, The Changeling, Straw Dogs, Cross of Iron, The Wilby Conspiracy) emphasizes a deceptive realism that aligns with the era's British cinema, employing muted, autumnal tones to depict England as a colorless, depressive landscape far removed from the vibrant psychedelia of the 1960s. Coquillon's approach creates environments that feel inwardly constricted, heightening the psychological tension as characters navigate shadowy interiors and dimly lit corridors that evoke repression and moral decay. The overall look is elegantly shot, often described as one of the best-crafted films of the 1970s, with a deliberate, slow-building rhythm that mirrors the characters' internal unraveling, transitioning from an initial black comedy vibe - marked by impish expressions and playful misdirection - to a darker, more ominous thriller atmosphere. The cinematography's effectiveness lies in its subtlety, using the rural English setting to foster a sense of stagnation and dread, where the vast outdoors ironically intensifies the characters' entrapment.

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88 Films provides a linear PCM 2.0 dual-mono track(24-bit) for the theatrical cut, offering depth in elements like banjo strumming and subtle scoring - prolific Stanley Myers (Take a Girl Like You, The Wilby Conspiracy,  Eureka, Cimino's The Deer Hunter, Roeg's Insignificance, Harold Becker's The Boost, Pete Walker House of Mortal Sin and Frightmare, etc.) - with clear dialogue and optional English subtitles though the director's cut downgrades to lossy Dolby without subtitles, marking a step back from Indicator's lossless DTS-HD Master for both versions with SDH support, where dialogue is crystal clear, hiss/pops are minimal, and the creepy score sounds strong even in mono. Myers, renowned for works like "Cavatina" from The Deer Hunter, crafts a main theme infused with Irish/Scottish banjo twiddling that playfully references the on-screen music performed by Billy Connolly's drifter character Blakey, whose nimble banjo plucking introduces a bohemian, rebellious contrast to the school's rigid silence. Sound design complements this by emphasizing ambient isolation - rustling woods, echoing confessions, and the stark quiet of the chapel - creating a haunting, foreboding atmosphere that aligns with the visual claustrophobia. There are optional English subtitles on the theatrical cut and the Blu-ray is  Region 'B'-locked.

The 88 Films disc includes both film versions, a new audio commentary by film historians Kim Newman (The Definitive Guide to Horror Movies) and Sean Hogan (England's Screaming) discussing screenplay origins, Shaffer's works, and thematic parallels like the lack of likable characters, a ported commentary found on the Indicator (as all the rest of the supplements)  by Kevin Lyons (The Encyclopedia of Fantastic Film and Television) covering production history, casting, and storytelling devices, interviews "The Devil to Pay" - a dozen minutes - with director Anthony Page on script rewrites and working with Burton, "Them and Us" with actor Dominic Guard on his experiences and co-stars, an image gallery, and the original trailer, but omits Indicator's additional costume designer Anne Gainsford 9 minute interview and 40-page booklet.

Absolution stars Richard Burton (The Taming of the Shrew, Raid on Rommel, Bluebeard, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Anne of the Thousand Days, Equus, The Medusa Touch, Where Eagles Dare, The Night of the Iguana, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, The Wild Geese, My Cousin Rachel, The Robe, Boom) in a commanding lead role as Father Goddard, a devout Catholic priest at an all-boys boarding school, alongside young actors Dominic Guard (Gandhi, The Watcher in the Woods, Picnic at Hanging Rock, The Go-Between) as the manipulative student Benjamin "Benjie" Stanfield, Dai Bradley (billed as David Bradley - Zulu Dawn, Kes) as the awkward Arthur Dyson, and Billy Connolly (The Boondock Saints, Columbo: The Return, X-Files I Want to Believe) in his screen debut as the free-spirited drifter Blakey. Set against the backdrop of a repressive religious institution, the narrative unfolds as a slow-burning exploration of deception, faith, and moral unraveling, blending elements of mystery, horror, and dark comedy. Produced by Elliott Kastner (North Sea Hijack, Saturn 3, 1978's The Big Sleep, 1975's Farewell, My Lovely, 11 Harrowhouse, The Long Goodbye, Fear Is the Key, X, Y & Zee) and Danny O'Donovan under Bulldog Productions, with cinematography by John Coquillon and a tense score by Stanley Myers, the film was shot on location at Ellesmere College in Shropshire and at Pinewood Studios. Though it premiered in the UK in 1978, legal issues delayed its U.S. release until 1988, four years after Burton's death, contributing to its status as an underseen gem of 1970s cinema. At its core, Absolution interrogates the sanctity and perils of the Catholic confessional seal, echoing Hitchcock's I Confess, where unbreakable vows trap priests in moral quandaries, blurring truth and deception. Themes of faith versus doubt permeate the narrative, portraying religious education as indoctrination fostering repression that breeds rebellion. Anthony Page's (I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, The Lady Vanishes) direction masterfully builds slow-burn tension, employing Hitchcockian misdirection and foreshadowing for surprises that delight on rewatches, though some find the pacing deliberate to a fault. 88 Films Blu-ray of "Absolution" is a commendable release leveraging the shared 2K master for reliable video quality with minor softness in exteriors but strong detail and grain, solid lossless audio for the theatrical cut (though lossy for the director's), and a balanced extras slate highlighted by dual commentaries and key interviews. It's highly recommended for Burton fans seeking an accessible edition of this unique, religious-based, thriller.

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