In the 1970s, Steven Spielberg made us all afraid to go into the water with his monster hit JAWS.  The movie was an amazing success and the American Film Institute ranks it as the #2 most thrilling movie in history, behind Psycho.  Its critical acclaim and box office success spawned several spin off movies and similar horror genres designed to both scare us and destroy the swimsuit industry.  Perhaps the most famous spinoff (aside from the JAWS sequels) was the Piranha series.  Directed by Joe Dante in 1978, Piranha centers around two idiots that accidentally release mutant killer fish into a stream near the Lost River Lake Resort.  Mayhem ensues and many people are eaten by the tiny little bastards.  Instead of the nail biting suspense found in JAWS, Piranha focused on providing the audience with a lot of laughs and some cheap gore.  And instead of a giant grey fin and scary music to alert the audience that bad stuff was going happen, Dante used an underwater camera to mimic what the fish were about to eat.  

There were some obvious thematic similarities between Piranha and JAWS, so many that Universal originally filed a law suit against New World for spoofing the film.  However, when Speilberg saw the comedy-horror flick he loved it so much that Universal decided to drop the suit.  Unknown Director James Cameron directed the Piranha sequel Piranha Part Two: The Spawning, which featured flying piranha.  The movie was dreadful, but it did give us one of the great directors of our time.  Later in the 90s Roger Corman would try to bring the nasty fish back in yet another movie, but by then the awful JAWS sequels had left moviegoers looking somewhere else for their scares.  Piranha was never a critical or box office hit, but it is considered by many to be a horror classic of that era.  

Fast forward to 2010, several decades since it was safe to swim again.  Director Alexander Aja (High Tension, and The Hills Have Eyes) brings his cast to Lake Victoria, Arizona where a pack of killer fish are waiting.  The story is simple enough: Lake Victoria is a hot spot for Spring Break and each yeah the population explodes as thousands head to the tiny little town to get drunk and show their boobies. Shortly before the festivities, a small earthquake opens up a crack beneath the lake unleashing swarms of nasty piranha.  Now these aren’t your normal garden-variety piranha, these are prehistoric killer fish who have laid dormant since the stone age. And man are they hungry. 

Sheriff Julie Foster (Elisabeth Shue) is off to patrol the Spring Break madness and tells her son Jake (Steven R McQueen…yeah, you read right: Steve McQueen) to watch his little brother and sister.  Jake has other plans, however, as he’s been asked to escort a Girls Gone Wild crew and their hot babes to the hot spots in the lake. (Oh yeah) The rest of the story you can guess right now: scientists show up to investigate, they discover the ancient piranha, and a lot of drunk spring breakers get eaten (or at least nibbled on a lot).

Okay, so Piranha 3D is not a movie for everyone and it certainly isn’t a movie for kids under the age of 13.  But if you are a horror fan like me, or a fan of the killer fish genre you will absolutely love this movie.  Let’s look at why.

First, I have always enjoyed Aja’s work as he knows how to create tension and he’s a master of the jump scare.  Each one of his films has a “Holy Crap!” moment that defines the movie and makes it memorable, even if it’s just for that one scene.  Aja has taken this campy JAWS spoof and amped it up for today’s modern audience.  Not only are there some legitimate scares in this film, but there is a sizable amount of gore. While the 1978 original showed us blood in the water and little chew marks on some on the swimmers, this version gives our fishies the Extra Value Meal.  When the piranhas attack the floating spring break party, there are literally hundreds of swimmers who get gnawed on.  Aja uses both conventional makeup and effective CGI to help create the carnage.  Bloody Disgusting reported that the movie is one of the “bloodiest movies ever,” and they may be right.  So if you’re squeamish about blood, stay the hell away.  If you enjoy creative use of gore, then you will be more than pleased with the attempts made here. 

Second, and I hate to even admit this, there is a ton of topless action in this film.  The movie harkens back to the slasher films of the 80s where we get to see a boob or two and then just piles it on for us.  For those of us who will venture out to see the film just for this wonderful feature, you won’t have to wait very long at all.  Within the first twenty minutes some hot babe takes her top off while boating.  There is even an extensive under water topless girl on girl scene for you to enjoy.  And what could make this even better?  It’s in 3D!  (Wait let me catch my breath…ok).

Finally, there are some great Easter Eggs and cameos in the film put there just for us fans of the genre.  Richard Dryfus makes an appearance early in the film in a scene that is laden with so many JAWS references that you can’t help but smile when you watch it.  Christopher Lloyd also has a small cameo as the local mad fish expert who provides exposition on the nasty little monsters.  Lloyd is phenomenal as he does his best Doc Brown impression in years.  I kept waiting for him to say, “Great Scott” but sadly he never does.   

The movie has some flaws; the 3D is average, the story certainly isn’t original, and the acting is pretty much passable for a film nowadays.  But I have to admit, I didn’t care.  Piranha 3D is just a ton of fun.  It never takes itself too seriously and is so over-the-top in areas that you have to appreciate it for what it is trying to be: a modern-day B-movie classic.  So if you like horror movies, and simply want laugh and jump a few times, grab your popcorn and go see Piranha 3D.  

Rating = 4 Buckets-o-Popcorn for us B movie horror fans,   3 for those who may be new to the genre.

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Tags: Chrisopher LLoyd, Elizabeth Shue\, jaws, Piranha 3D

This entry was posted on Friday, August 20th, 2010 at 7:30 am and is filed under Film/Television, Theatrical. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.