Wreckage (I) (2010) User Reviews

YOU'RE PREGNANT, YOU'RE NOT CRIPPLED

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 5 December 2018]

This is your far too typical slasher film that offers nothing new. We see a young boy kill his mom's drug dealing boyfriend because he won't hand him the remote...and yes I have killed for the remote too, but never for cartoons. When 4 young adults show up at a junk yard, one of them is shot by horseplay. The police get involved and now a killer is loose.

The dialogue is as good as most slashers with a few quips. The characters are at times fun, and other times just boring, as the film runs hot and cold and seems to drag even during some action scenes. If you want to watch a new slasher, try "Deadtime."

F-bomb, no sex, no nudity.

An overused plot, sub-par acting and a predictable twist. All that said I have seen worse and this is watchable.I say C+

[cosmo_tiger · 5/10 · 8 March 2012]

"Listen sheriff, why would I come get you if I did this? That doesn't make sense" After a race ends with Jared's (Erwin) car throwing a belt and blowing a gasket the friends' weekend plans are in jeopardy. After his friend Rick (Paul) recommends to go to the nearby junkyard for the parts. While they are there Rick begins to fool around with a gun and accidentally shoots Jared's new fiancé. When Jared comes back with help one of the friends is dead and the other two are missing. This is not a bad movie at all, it's also not really a good movie. The idea is overused and the acting isn't the best. The twist is predictable, but all that said the movie is watchable. This is the type of movie that keeps you watching and interested, but when it's over you aren't sure why you kept watching. I have seen much worse and you could do worse then this movie. Overall, a very OK movie that is nothing special or new. I give it a C+.

It's not good.

[Patient444 · 3/10 · 14 February 2014]

I say 4.2 is more than this one deserves. Why? Decent budget, nice couple of actors, OK idea, horrible execution. Pretty much everybody going "It's OK", "Not bad", "Works for what it is", but I really got to ask, how many horrors have you seen? This is downright boring and bad.

I had some high hopes considering all the hype around it, so the disappointment was even bigger, therefore, I'll try to spare a soul or two. Go look elsewhere, plenty of slashers out there, easy to find one regarding any tastes.

I graded it 3, cause I really think it's the grade it deserves. Had the recipe for an OK movie, and managed to "bake" something too hard to swallow.

An OK B-Movie Slasher Horror That Does What It Says On The Tin...

[fionaharnett · 24 August 2011]

Wreckage is one of these wannabe-slasher films that is ridden with the clichés of its more successful predecessors, and whilst its not ashamed to try and emulate films such as Friday the 13th, Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street etc., this is a worthy B-Movie effort that deserves more recognition. Frankly, it was utterly ridiculous but, at a mere 83 minutes, it was entertaining while it lasted.

Without giving away any spoilers, the film follows a group of young people who compete in a local drag race. When their car breaks down, they make the decision to go to an old and decrepit scrapyard to get the parts they need to fix their car. However, all is not as it seems as a serial killer is on the loose, with intent to kill them one by one- will they survive?

This movie was clearly made on a tiny budget, and it shows. The sound quality on the film is awful and the script could have been improved. One example of the poor script is when the group decide to make the one-mile trip to the scrapyard by foot; they set off in the afternoon sunlight but, when they arrive after the relatively short walk it is pitch black. This is a major blooper and the film continues in similar stead, with a contrived plot which gets more and more wild as the film continues. There's little in the way of character development and any slasher-movie-aficionado will find it hard to see past the corny clichés featured in the movie.

However, if your able to leave your intelligence at home and enjoy the film for what it is, there are many positives. For instance Scoot Mcnairy (notable for his performance in the groundbreaking Monsters) who plays the hillbilly part-owner of the scrapyard shines and provides welcome comic relief. In addition to this, I was genuinely surprised by the finales twist and this wraps things up nicely.All the characters are likable and the film never stalls, with something always going on to keep the interest going.

This film isn't perfect and is far below other slasher movies. But it does its job as an enjoyable B-Movie: its fun, entertaining and the twist will leave you shocked. Oh yes, and look out for Scoot McNairy; i'm sure he has a big career ahead of him.This film is definitely not the car crash its title suggests...

Another low budget, direct-to-video slasher.

[krachtm · 5/10 · 2 March 2013]

The plot: A psychopath stalks several young adults in a junkyard.

Wreckage is the kind of movie that you end up watching when there's nothing else to do. It's a good way to pass the time. I wasn't really expecting it to be amazing, unique, or innovative. It's actually fairly clichéd and derivative, really. However, despite that, it's still pretty watchable.

As far as "crazy psychopath on the loose" movies go, this was nowhere near the worst that I've seen. The characters were somewhat interesting, and the story didn't have them doing anything egregiously stupid -- beyond what the genre calls for, at least. If you're a fan of this kind of movie, there won't be any surprises. It's pretty much a by-the-numbers slasher. However, it's competent and reasonably well-done, without any obvious flaws that would annoy a forgiving, easy-to-please horror fan.

If you're a demanding fan, I think you'll be disappointed. It's a low budget, direct-to-video slasher. Set your expectations appropriately, and you'll probably enjoy it for what it is. I figure it's good for a 5 or 6, but I'm not feeling generous enough to award it a 6.

Not worth watching

[lovecraft231 · 2/10 · 25 September 2012]

I'm always amazed when an actor who seems to be doing bigger things shows up in a movie that went straight to video. Usually this is because the movie is horrible, or because the studio thinks nobody would be interested. That or they dump it in five theaters and give it a DVD release two weeks later. Anyways, today's example is 2010's "Wreckage" features Aaron Paul from the excellent AMC series "Breaking Bad." Here, he proves to be the best thing about this otherwise forgettable exercise.

The plot deals with four friends-Jake (Mike Erwin), Rick (Paul), Jake's wife to be Kate (Cameron Richardson) and Rick's pregnant girlfriend Jessica (Kelly Kruger) end up in an abandoned junkyard. When Rick's stupidity get's Kate injured, Jake goes out for help-only to find Kate and Rick missing, and Jessica a dead, bloody pulp. When new arrivals-including the nephew of the man who owns the Junkyard (Scoot McNairy) join in, they all find themselves being stalked by a masked killer.

As I said, the best thing about "Wreckage" is Paul. Here, he plays Rick as a man whose not exactly all that right in the head, making for an interesting character. Unfortunately, he's the only interesting character. Everyone else is either really dumb or ultimately expendable for the killer to get his thing done. Also, if you are hoping for gory kills, then you are in for a disappointment. Many of them take place off screen, which in this case is a big no-no. Movies like this usually rely on at least some gore, and this is a slasher that's virtually bloodless. The direction by John Mallory Asher* is also a dud, mostly feeling more like a generic modern day television movie than something that you should be excited fore. Add a lame twist ending and a body count that's way too low, and you have a waste of time.

I can't even imagine the most indiscriminate of horror fans buying most of this, as it's a movie that manages to be both a paint-by-numbers stalk-n-slash flick and uneventful, nearly gore free waste of time. Watch something better, or read a book instead.

*Asher is mostly known for being in the USA TV series "Weird Science", which yes, was based around the John Hughes movie, and for being in the Clint Eastwood movie "Space Cowboys." His only other genre credit is the TV movie "The Haunted", and he also directed the 2005 Jenny McCarthy bomb "Dirty Love.

Generic slasher yarn with a scrapyard setting

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 2 May 2015]

WRECKAGE is an extremely low budget slasher film notable for its unusual setting: almost the entire movie takes place in a scrapyard, where a group of stranded teenagers are being bumped off one by one by a mysterious killer wearing a welding mask. It's as derivative as it sounds, with the only originality coming from the various methods of death employed by the villain.

Sadly the low budget nature of the production is more than apparent in the general lack of scope and the predictability that hangs over everything. It feels like nobody's heart was in it, ranging from the actors to the director. The best thing about the film is Scoot McNairy (MONSTERS) playing a genuinely funny comedy relief redneck role, but the rest of the cast are entirely ho-hum. The gore effects are acceptable rather than memorable and the twist ending is one you'll see coming a mile off.

Friends

[mstut-05463 · 5/10 · 19 November 2021]

Where do the friends come from? They weren't in the car during the race. They just appear on the side of the road. Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul)still a good actor.

There are better things you could be doing with your time.

[poisoncupcake74 · 5/10 · 27 November 2011]

I had mixed feelings the whole way through this movie and let me tell you I tried so hard to like this. I really tried. Mike Erwin is gorgeous and also a terrific actor, and watching him is always fun. All I could wonder is why someone like him is in something like this because this is a mess of a movie! First of all, the opening scene is poorly acted, and this is just one of many poorly acted scene's throughout the movie. You cant expect much, if you see the trailer, you can tell this movie is probably bad, there was probably a next to nothing budget, but at least it should be entertaining. There are parts that give it a thrill, but for every good scene there is a terrible scene following. Scoot McNairy is actually really funny in his character and this is truly a redeeming quality since the scene right before this shows a dead girl hanging and her arms actually move...and not in an undead sort of way, more like a "I guess there was no editing in this movie" kind of way. Did they not see this during editing or could they not afford editing? Again, in the end there is a great twist and it is exciting but the actions of the main character make even this neat twist very ridiculous. If you thought someone was acting strange or even suspected them of foul play, why would you then discredit your loved one who says they feel the same way and leave them alone in the room with your loved one? Cheese. 5 stars. It almost makes you mad.

Really flawed slasher with some decent parts at times

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 7/10 · 20 September 2012]

Getting trapped in a car junkyard after breaking in to find spare parts to fix their stranded car, a group of friends find themselves attacked by a masked madman who begins killing them one-by-one, forcing them into a deadly struggle to get out alive.

A somewhat flawed slasher effort here, which really could've been quite entertaining had it not focused on the stupidity for the sake of delivering a clever twist. While the twist here is indeed clever in concept, it really makes no sense as to why it was included here because an explanation isn't offered due to it being discovered so late into the film leaving the entire twist to be relegated to an afterthought, as well as the fact that it makes specific events in the film quite contradictory due to what happens due to the revelation offered. It's the worst kind of twist and is featured here, which also harms the film due to a lame body count offered up as well. This could've been quite good because there's some nice action scenes as they stalk the killer through the abandoned junkyard, the setting for such a film is quite original and every effort is made to make it a creepy setting which is a nice touch. Had this been a better story, this could've been something.

Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and brief drug use.

Missing parts

[movieman_kev · 3/10 · 13 July 2012]

Two couples, one engaged and the other expecting, break into a scrapyard to fix their car after it breaks down. When one gets shot, the moronic cops get involved not knowing a mysterious killer is on the loose.

In most b-grade horror films you can count on there being at least one moronic character. Not so here, they change it up by making all of them mouth-breathing idiots. That gets old VERY fast by the way. Some comedy make this otherwise atrocious film somewhat more palatable, but it's nothing I could watch multiple times, I barely made it all the way through the first time. Ridiculously stupid, even offensively so.

Nifty slasher outing

[Woodyanders · 8/10 · 9 October 2013]

Four young folks are forced to go to a nearby automobile junkyard to salvage car parts after their car breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Unfortunately, the group falls prey to a crazed serial killer who has just escaped from prison. Director John Asher relates the entertaining story at a snappy pace, delivers a handy helping of graphic gore, makes excellent use of the sprawling junkyard location, and builds a good deal of tension. David Frigerio's clever and compact script spruces things up with amusing touches of inspired dark humor and boasts a couple of dandy (and genuinely surprising!) plot twists. The competent acting by the attractive and appealing cast rates as another major asset: Aaron Paul as callous smartaleck jerk Rick, Mike Erwin as tough and resourceful war veteran hero Jared, Cameron Richardson as the sweet and radiant Kate, and Kelly Kruger as the bitter and snippy Jessica. Scoot McNairy contributes a hilarious comic turn as twitchy redneck loony Frank Jeffries. William Eubank's sharp cinematography gives the movie a snazzy misty'n'atmospheric look. Carl Johnson's spirited shivery score hits the spine-tingling spot. Recommended viewing for slice'n'dice fans.

cheap movie but OK!!!!

[kvagelis · 6/10 · 24 September 2011]

The movie is cheap!!!I wasn't bored but i wasn't satisfied either!!!The actors are not going to win an Oscar thats for sure but they tried.It has some good moments but nothing we haven't seen before!!A, for the end i saw the twist was coming!!The movie started well and i was feeling that something good is going to happen and it did!But, the cheap effects,the bad music and the poor performances the wont let you enjoy this little film!!I liked the set, i think that a ward with wrecked cars is everything you want to film a decent thriller but on the other hand you want more money,most convincing special effects,more action and a better script!!Conclusion:nice idea not so good execution,not so much action,not so much blood and not so much gore!!A good thriller needs all of these!!!

Don't waste your time

[daveuk07 · 1/10 · 1 July 2015]

The film takes a long time to get going, and even then we're 'treated' to a very boring series of events.

Terrible wooden acting from most of the cast surrounds a story that provides no excitement or intrigue at all. Usually at least in films like this the deaths are more inventive, or there's a quirky killer, but this film fails at this horribly.

Predictable & typical. Maybe it would have been considered 'passable' some years ago, but for a 2010 film it should be ashamed. It also lacks some of the charm that you can occasionally get from a low budget film.

The only reason I watched this was because of Aaron Paul, he's hardly in it, and when he is plays a terribly one dimensional character (par for the course in this film).

No shock. No horror. No interest. No story. No film.

what a CAR wreck!!!!!!!!!!!

[mbgdowska · 3/10 · 6 July 2015]

before you watch this, don't! A waste of time n money. I am a huge huge horror buff and this movie could have been better for a lack of direction and character empathy. Sadly none of the above was in this movie. How dare they rip off Halloween storyline . The ending was SOOO PREDICTABLE. THERE IS NO CONCISE REASON WHY KILLER KILLED WHICH IS THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL POINT OF THE MOVIE (DERRRRRR TO THE DIRECTOR). A DISGRUNTLED HORROR BOFF ! And not enough gore factor here. Maybe I should re-watch the movie to be absolutely sure it sucked. And I may eat my words if there is a follow up sequel/prequel makes sense and fills in the plot holes. I am a fair commentator :)

Breaking Awful!

[ikeybabe · 5/10 · 29 March 2014]

I watched this film because Aaron Paul was in the cast and while I had low expectations, I was pleasantly pleased overall. Now there were plenty of pitfalls and I certainly knew who dunnit before the climax, but it was also comical. The acting was pretty horrible and even Paul was playing an extreme version of his "Breaking Bad" character Jesse. The script had it's shortcomings too, but thrown in every once in a while were some cool lines and the cops were so utterly ridiculous that it was hilarious. And the junkyard hillbilly was too funny. So, if you're looking for a little bit of a mystery intermixed with a little bit of gore and some funny keystone cops and hillbilly buddy, this is your flick for sure!

Not as bad as I had feared & not quite what I expected.

[poolandrews · 5/10 · 27 December 2012]

Wreckage starts as an ex Ranger named Jared (Mike Erwin) is in the middle of a drag race with an annoying rich kid, unfortunately his classic muscle car blow's a gasket & he loses the race & has no way of getting home. His girlfriend Kate (Cameron Richardson), his friend Rick (Aaron Paul) & his girlfriend Jessica (Kelly Kruger) were along for the ride & are also stranded in the middle of nowhere. The nearest town is a four mile walk whereas they drove past an old junkyard about a mile back, they decide to walk to the junkyard & find the spares needed to repair Jared's car. Once they get to the junkyard it's after dark & it's closed, they decide to climb the fence & take what they need but while showing off with his gun Rick accidentally shoots Kate. Jared says he will run to the nearest town & bring back help while Rick & Jessica stay with Kate, Jared reaches the town finds help. Going back to the junkyard with Sheriff Macabee (Roger Perry) they find that Rick, Jessica & Kate have mysteriously disappeared, then they find Jessicas dead body & realise that killer is on the loose...

Produced & directed by John Mallory Asher who also appears in the film as Deputy Berry (the one that gets left behind at the station when the Sheriff goes with Jared to the junkyard to investigate his claims) I wasn't expecting much from Wreckage, to be honest I was expecting some dull generic low budget teen slasher film & while you could say Wreckage isn't a million miles from being exactly that there's a little bit more to it. I must admit that Wreckage isn't that bad for what it is, the script plays half like a teen slasher & half like a mystery thriller with disappearing friends angle, the identity of the killer not being known, the one or two red herrings & a reasonable twist ending that does actually work on a basic level although if you think about it too much the holes start to appear. At only 80 minutes it moves along at a good pace, as I said the mystery thriller elements keep things slightly more interesting than your average teen slasher & overall I quite liked it. Of course it's nothing amazing, there are still holes in the plot like after the killer is revealed & their motives explained who actually killed the guy at the start who was trying to rape that woman? In the context & time-line of the film the killer couldn't have killed the guy since they hadn't arrived yet & they had never been to the junkyard before so who was it?

The location used is quite good, the old junkyard is a decent place to set a horror film, the gore is a bit disappointing with only a few gunshot wounds, a bit of blood splatter & a stabbing on offer. Wreckage is available in both 'R' rated & 'Unrated' editions in the US which usually means the Unrated cut has more footage (althogh not always necessarily gory or sexual) it seems that the two versions are identical with absolutely no difference between them at all apart from the DVD artwork. Whether this is a genuine mistake or a marketing ploy who knows? I did actually find myself agreeing with most of the decisions made here by the character's, most of them seem to behave like proper people & they don't split up needlessly & the Sheriff tries to keep good control & actually suggests useful ideas with the irritating moment at the end where Jared would rather chase & fight the killer than drive his girlfriend Kate, who has been shot remember & is badly injured, to hospital.

With a supposed budget of about $500,000 this was shot on a pretty low budget, apparently filmed in Los Angeles & Wilmington. The production values are decent enough, there's not much style here but at least you can see what's happening & the lack of any sign of a shaky hand-held camcorder & any annoying machine gun editing helps. The acting is alright, the guy who plays Jimmy the hillbilly owner of the junkyard skates the thin line between being annoying & funny & just about manages to be funny.

Wreckage really wasn't the complete wreck I was expecting, it's a fairly good mixture of teen slasher & mystery thriller that I thought passed the time. Sure there are one or two plot holes & maybe the twist ending is a little hard to believe but it's a film, it's a work of fiction so I just went with it in this case.

Spillage

[BakuryuuTyranno · 5/10 · 13 October 2012]

"Wreckage" is a film that puts quite some effort into the characters, from the Sheriff who becomes suspicious of people quickly, to the hillbilly junk yard owner. The exceptions are, naturally, the lead characters, who were quite bland.

Thankfully the characters were treated as being less expendable than most slasher films, so the good characters aren't mere fodder. Although some actions made little sense and become unbelievable like for example the Sheriff trying to apprehend the killer AFTER he killed a cop - seriously, when you even attempt killing a cop, other cops won't show mercy - the term "suicide by cop" has a reason for existing.

The kills, one of the biggest selling points for a slasher, are pretty weak though, with a sole imaginative kill, perhaps two if you count one failed attempt.

The film conceals something important, and that something requires the killer's early attacks to happen offscreen, which might be annoying to at least some watching.

Much better done in the 80s

[olcayozfirat · 3/10 · 8 March 2023]

It's a 2010 slasher-style mediocre horror movie. It's like taking place in a different universe. There are 10 people in the movie. 9 of them are really stupid. The lead girl is a little smarter. There are cops who ask meaningless questions and have an attitude that is mind-blowing.

As for the movie, the car of 4 friends breaks down in a deserted place. And they go to a nearby junkyard to find a fan belt for the car. For some reason, they can't find a belt in the car. One of them has a gun with him. He also has fun shooting left and right. Meanwhile, he shoots the other young man's fiancee. The young man runs into town and brings the police and ambulance. This time, the 3 people staying there disappear. They are looking for these.

There is no sex or nudity in the movie.

Auto junk yards contain more than wrecks....and old Chevys

[djderka · 7/10 · 1 January 2013]

Don't understand the negative reviews here at all. John Ashner shows a lot of promise and if Wreckage is what he can do with $500,000, I'd give him 10 million to do something else.

There is a lot of thought and concept on the screen in Wreckage. Basically some teen couples get stranded in a wrecking yard and are being eliminated one by one. Will they catch the killer(s).

I thought the casting was excellent: the sheriff, the babes, the junkyard goofball...are nicely done. The lead guy, an ex Ranger, was good as the guy who takes charge. AND, the two very hot babes leads: Kelly Kruger, Ruthanne Gibson, provocatively clad, (a necessity in thriller/horror films), and special treat..did anyone NOT notice Aaron Paul as guest star..yeah, Aaron as in Jesse, and as in Breaking Bad fame, are nicely cast.

The beginning didn't make sense until the end, which is good. In fact, the total construct of this film was very imaginative. There were twists and turns and most of the killings OFF screen, a nice directorial touch. I also expected inbred hillbillies, like Wrong Turn, to do some damage and was nicely surprised as the 'right turn' away from inbred killers.

Lighting was excellent and you could plainly see the picture at night and during the day, not like Contraband, a murky mess of lighting. This movie probably cost the catering fees on Contraband and Ashner made a cool movie for the price.

The plot moves along with cops and ambulance to he rescue, but only to be found ambling around the yard for the killer and escaped convict.

The welder mask was a great touch.

Wreckage reminded me of The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, with Tony Musante, and a plot with twists and turns.

This movie is way above average for this genre and shows, clever writing, suspense, shock, surprise, interesting characters and much, much better than the Mega croc stuff on SY FY.

Check his bio, he has the chops and it shows. I enjoyed this flick, as a rental and will buy it when I see it on the shelf. I did think it would have been a nice touch to have some 'special extras', like interviews, some comments by director, some stills, etc. And head shots of every actor did not appear on IMDb.

Better Than Its Rating Implies

[Theo Robertson · 6/10 · 6 March 2014]

After their car breaks down four youths go in to a junkyard ( They never learn ) to look for spare parts . After an accident one of the youths Jared rushes off to the local sheriff's office and returns to the junkyard . As the police and paramedics turn up they find the other three youths have disappeared . What could have happened to them ? As it becomes clear the youths might have disappeared but the danger hasn't

How can you put a new spin on the teenagers in peril genre ? I mean this is a genre that has been going on for more than 35 years . Wes Craven who helped kick start the genre with LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT effectively killed it off with the post modernist SCREAM franchise and just about every teen horror since then has been straight to DVD fare , many of which are so bad to be almost unwatchable . Knowing this I sat down to watch WRECKAGE expecting grade Z rubbish but was surprised at what I got

I don't want to overstate the case . I don't want to insinuate this is some hidden gem but an average user rating of 4.2 seems a bit stingy , especially to someone like myself who has seen far too many poor horror movies . Perhaps my enjoyment of WRECKAGE is down to thinking I knew how the story was going to turn out . As soon as the gang of four entered the junkyard I thought it'd be a simple of story of the youths splitting up and getting stalked by a mad murderer . To its credit the story moves in an entirely different direction where the back up in the shape of armed deputies and paramedics turn up but this might not be enough and everyone may be dead by the morning . There's a couple of twists at the end that might makes things divisive for audience opinion but I found WRECKAGE better than expected

Fun Slasher throwback

[loomis78-815-989034 · 7/10 · 23 February 2014]

Four friends have their car brake down in a rural area at night. Knowing there is an old wrecking yard nearby they go there. Unfortunately for them they picked the wrong night, as a killer recently escaped from prison is also there picking off the teens and police who have come to help. This standard slasher movie is pretty by the book as far as this sub genre goes. The characters aren't as annoying as they could be and the killer delivers some nasty kills and respectable gore. Some fun comic relief comes by the way of local redneck Frank Jeffries (McNairy) who is quite funny in his bewildered way. Slasher fans should enjoy this.