This time last year we were eagerly waiting to see a highly-publicised ‘giant crocodile’ movie that the studio was convinced would be one of its major releases for 2007. Twelve months later it is here – only it hasn’t been bankrolled by Harvey Weinstein, nobody in the cast has banged Jennifer Garner and, er, it’s not called Rogue.

Every year there’s always two films about the same thing (be it Wyatt Earp, asteroids on their way to Earth, volcanoes about to erupt, or, as was the case last year, Truman Capote) that go head-to-head at the box office. By and large, these films are hardly ever Australian – but now that Black Water, the undeniable underdog of the croc films, has wiped the floor with the much pricier Rogue, you can bet there’ll be more.

Black Water is the film Greg McLean’s Rogue should have been – especially considering the latter cost 30 times as much, had a better known cast, and could afford the luxury of shooting in the Top End. What directors David Nerlich and Andrew Traucki have proved is that it’s not all about money and stars – it’s the story that has to take precedence, and when all’s said and done, no giant animatronic croc can entertain for an hour and a half (which is partly why this one uses ‘real’ crocodiles).

A sweat-inducing psychological thriller disguised as a monster flick, Black Water centres on a threesome (Maeve Dermody, Andy Rodoreda and Satisfaction star Diana Glenn) who head off on a boat trip down the pitch-black rivers of the Northern Territory. Their boat is struck by a giant crocodile, instantly killing their tour guide and leaving them either up a tree (literally) or stuck under the boat.

Made for under a million bucks and filmed in a Sydney mangrove swamp (posing as the NT), Black Water is filmmaking at its best and it’s most admirable. Despite their limited resources, Nerlih and Traucki worked themselves into the ground – they spent half the film knee deep in water with real crocs! – making sure their small film at least entertained and didn’t look like a cheap monster movie (and at that price it easily could have). But it doesn’t just stand on its own two feet, the film blows many other blockbuster releases out of the water. Yes, it’s that good. Whether it’s the performances (which are absolutely superb), the fresh script or the real crocodiles (much scarier than their plastic sisters), Black Water is the scariest film of its type since Jaws.