Down Under The Rubble: Derelict (2017)

Derelict (Australia, 2017)

Rating: **1/2

Starring: Tristan Balz, James Broadhurst, Justin Burford 

A directorial debut from brothers Cristian and James Broadhurst, Derelict (2017) is as easy as it gets for a low-budget slasher movie from the Land Down Under. 

It follows a trio of friends who are into urban exploration, getting lost inside a labyrinth-esque abandoned building which they soon find out is rigged with small traps and is prowled upon by a figure in a gas mask. There isn't much else to go with here as you can simply tell where this movie is going, even with the little surprises made at the near end.

It's a done-to-death idea of teens basically journeying and making their mark in a place they shouldn't be at before spotting a masked figure wielding a crowbar, proceeding mostly as a survivalist thriller drama between the three men as they get themselves misplaced within the intertwining of tunnels and rooms. As this situation tests the men's limits as they start to quarrel with one another about one misfortune to the next, or about risky decisions like tagging along another lost man who some of them find rather suspicious, it isn't until the climax where we get some proper slasher action going as the gas masked prowler shows up again and start bludgeoning the boys one by one while chasing them throughout. 

At that point, Derelict (2017) can get bloody, though nothing too spectacular or heavy in the kill count. What the movie thrives in is its claustrophobic and murky set-up instead, put into good use as our characters spot similar dead ends in the shadows or low lights, tripping over wires that land them into a room filled with asbestos and garbage like used needles or pitting them against a maniac out for blood. The rest of the production, from acting to editing are okay too for a debut film, nothing that grandeur but passable for a small horror movie release.

This is a quick jug of a slasher so not much to pick apart from, save for really cheap thrills. You can give this a spot of your time but, all in all, you're not missing much.

Bodycount:

1 male missing, presumably killed

1 female dragged away, killed

1 male killed offcamera

1 male bludgeoned with a crowbar

1 male strangled to death

1 male bludgeoned with a crowbar

Total: 6