What does one look for in a low budget, straight to DVD horror movie? Granted it is easy to set expectations quite low from the start as films like Wreckage are not designed to be remembered for epic visuals or a deep, immersive plot. They are released to give you what you pay for a cheap scare, an hour or so of gore and terror on a night in with the lights off for a reasonable price. Unfortunately, Wreckage fails even to do that.
It is not necessarily the plot that makes this movie awful. Wreckage follows the tale of best friends Jared (Mike Erwin), Kate (Cameron Richardson), Rick (Aaron Paul) and Jessica (Kelly Kruger) who, on breaking down several miles from home, attempt to get a new fan belt from the local scrap yard, only to find themselves stalked by a mysterious killer intent on slaying them all. As horror plots go, the anonymous killer in the shadows has been done to death but if delivered in the right way, a desire to find out the killers identity will drag viewers over the finishing line. Wreckage, however, fills up too much of its running time with meaningless dialogue between horribly clichéd characters- such as the hick scrap yard worker and the grizzly but means well local sheriff- and fairly uninspired death scenes that will just leave the viewer frustrated and ultimately uncaring as to the final outcome. The complete lack of atmosphere or unpredictability are only small gripes by comparison.
This film feels like it has been churned out with little to no effort and even horror fans of the lowest expectations will be sorely disappointed. Wreckage is a clumsy, poorly written, badly acted mess of a film that will hold your attention about as long as you can hold your breath.
Overall Verdict: The clue is in the title
Special Features:
None
Name of Reviewer: Harry Ormrod