Revenge Wounds That Refuse to Heal

Read Time:5 Minute, 24 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
Derelict
–

Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Year Released: 2024, 2025
Runtime: 2h 2m
Director(s): Jonathan Zaurin
Writer(s): Kat Ellinger, Michael Mackenzie, Todd Rodgers
Cast: Suzanne Fulton, Michael Coombes, Pete Bird, Ayvianna Snow, Nick Cornwall, Dean Kilbey
Where to Watch: available now on UK digital from Miracle Media and on Blu-ray September 22 from 101 Films

RAVING REVIEW: DERELICT is the kind of film that thrives on discomfort. Jonathan Zaurin’s sophomore feature plunges into a world of grief, fractured memory, and retribution. Still, it does so with a level of artistry that makes it feel both punishing and magnetic. It opens with a crime that already happened, a life snuffed out, and the ripples of that moment spread outward across two families, each unraveling in different but equally devastating ways. This isn’t just another revenge drama—it’s a slow dissection of what violence leaves behind and how the pursuit of closure often leads to more destruction than healing.

At the center of the film is Abigail, played with remarkable control by Suzanne Fulton. A decade after her father’s vicious murder, she has wrapped herself in isolation, her world reduced to a single point of obsession: punishing those responsible. Fulton’s performance is not showy but deeply lived-in; her Abigail simmers with rage and despair that manifests in small gestures, silences, and the haunted way she inhabits her surroundings. She makes it believable that a woman consumed by grief could become so defined by vengeance that nothing else registers. She is the film’s beating heart, even as that heart is poisoned by loss.

In parallel, the story unfolds of two brothers, Matt and Ewan. Michael Coombes plays Matt with sensitivity, a man already worn down by life, whose fragility makes him sympathetic yet vulnerable. Pete Bird’s Ewan, freshly out of prison, is his opposite: intimidating, manipulative, and steeped in the world of petty crime. The tension between the brothers is palpable, their relationship strained by years apart and by the gravitational pull of violence that Ewan drags back into Matt’s life. The collision between Abigail and these men feels inevitable, but Zaurin avoids cheap twists. Instead, he lets the two stories circle each other, slowly drawing tighter until the shared tragedy at their core forces a reckoning.

What makes DERELICT stand out from other revenge thrillers is its fractured presentation. Zaurin employs a nonlinear structure, weaving past and present, memory and reality. The film alternates between black and white and color, a visual strategy that lends it an otherworldly texture while remaining rooted in realism. These stylistic choices are not arbitrary—they reflect the characters’ lives, the way trauma distorts perception, and the difficulty of ever piecing together a coherent story from the aftermath of violence.

Ayvianna Snow, Nick Cornwall, and Dean Kilbey all bring complexity to roles that might have felt secondary in less careful hands. Zaurin is clearly interested in giving each figure a sense of lived experience, making the world of DERELICT feel populated by people who exist outside the frame. Thematically, DERELICT asks questions that have no easy answers. What does justice look like when the system has failed? Can vengeance provide healing, or does it only compound the original wound? Abigail’s quest is compelling, but the film never allows us to escape the cost. Her drive corrodes her humanity, and while the narrative edges toward the possibility of redemption, it never provides a simple resolution. This refusal to tie things neatly together may frustrate some viewers, but it’s integral to the film’s honesty. Closure, Zaurin seems to argue, is an illusion—one that keeps people trapped as much as it frees them.

What lingers after the credits is not just the violence or even the vengeance, but the deep sadness that runs through every frame. DERELICT is about people trying and failing to escape the shadows of their past. It is about families fractured by crime, about the way trauma infects generations, and about how obsession can consume a life. For a micro-budget feature, it carries the weight of something much larger, its emotional resonance outstripping films made with exponentially more resources.

DERELICT won’t be to everyone’s taste—it is slow, heavy, and unrelenting. But it is also a testament to the power of independent filmmaking, where vision and commitment can achieve what money alone cannot. Fulton, Coombes, and Bird all deliver performances that anchor the story in human pain, while Zaurin. At the same time, I consider myself to be a director to watch, one capable of balancing genre thrills with psychological depth. The film is bleak, yes, but also strangely beautiful in its honesty.

By the end, the question posed in the press materials—“Is closure ever truly possible?”—hangs heavy. DERELICT doesn’t give us the comfort of an answer. Instead, it leaves us with fractured lives and the uneasy truth that some wounds never fully heal. That lack of resolution is exactly what makes it so haunting, and why it deserves to be remembered not just as an indie curiosity, but as one of the year’s most compelling low-budget dramas.

Please visit https://linktr.ee/overlyhonestr for more reviews.

You can follow me on Letterboxd, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. My social media accounts can also be found on most platforms by searching for 'Overly Honest Reviews'.

I’m always happy to hear from my readers; please don't hesitate to say hello or send me any questions about movies.

[photo courtesy of MIRACLE MEDIA, 101 FILMS]

DISCLAIMER:
At Overly Honest Movie Reviews, we value honesty and transparency. Occasionally, we receive complimentary items for review, including DVDs, Blu-rays, CDs, Vinyl Records, Books, and more. We assure you that these arrangements do not influence our reviews, as we are committed to providing unbiased and sincere evaluations. We aim to help you make informed entertainment choices regardless of our relationship with distributors or producers.

Amazon Affiliate Links:
Additionally, this site contains Amazon affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, we may receive a commission. This affiliate arrangement does not affect our commitment to honest reviews and helps support our site. We appreciate your trust and support in navigating these links.