Piranha

'Piranha' is short on laughs for a "comedy horror", though I did still enjoy this film. The elements to do with the titular fish are pretty strong, they are portrayed in the right way so the humans do feel in suitable danger. The piranhas aren't shown much, which is smart. Obviously it is inspired by 1975's 'Jaws' and does fall fairly far adrift of that classic, though that is to be expected and I'd still log it as a respectable attempt at following the mould set by that Steven Spielberg movie. It's nicely paced too, the ending felt like it came quickly. Bradford Dillman and Heather Menzies make for a pairing that I liked following, the rest of the cast are all on the same level - noteworthy to see Keenan Wynn and Dick Miller involved. It's not really a film about the cast though, let's be honest. Come for the piranha, stay for the piranha.

"People eat fish, fish don't eat people"! Well, that might be the theory but when a meddlesome couple accidentally release a swimming pool's worth of genetically modified fish into a river, we discover that that mantra isn't strictly true! It's only because "Dr. Hoak" (Kevin McCarthy) is at the facility that our interfering pair - "Maggie" (Heather Menzies-Ulrich) and "Paul" (Bradford Dillman) learn of the potential disaster scenario looming - especially when they realise that there is a water park down the river populated with loads of noisy, bitesized, tourists just perfect for their peckish predators. Can they get down the river in time to stop carnage ensuing? On that front - well, there's not a hint of jeopardy but along the way Joe Dante does manage to create a slight sense of menace. The photography and slightly "Psycho"-esque score at times do make this occasionally a little uncomfortable to watch. That said - the acting is pretty woeful, as is the rather pedestrian dialogue and the special effects are not going to keep Ray Harryhausen awake at night. It might work quite well in a cinema, though, at Halloween after a couple of bottles of Wild Turkey. It's a fun, throw-away, adventure that swipes a little at the military meddling in the affairs of science and is actually quite entertaining. Aim low and you won't be disappointed.

**Piranha is bad 70s creature feature gold! It's so bad it's great and a fun ride as long as you expect a total cheesefest.** Piranha is cheesy 70s/80s creature films at their very best! It has everything - evil military generals, obligatory lake celebrations, scientific experimentation gone wrong, horrible dialogue, low-budget effects, and more. It's clear as you watch the film that Piranha was heavily influenced by Jaws, with the city ignoring the warnings of the dangerous underwater creature, the very similar movie poster, and much more. Steven Spielberg has even named it his favorite Jaws rip-off movie. This low-budget gem was a zeitgeist of creature horror cinema of the decade that didn't allow bad effects, poor acting, or no money to stop them from making their movies. The remakes in the 2000's just used this movie as an excuse to show a lot of nudity, and while there is a little nudity in Piranha (1978), it is much briefer than its predecessors. Pirahna (1978) focuses on letting the army of hungry fish gnaw on its helpless victims. This goofy little creature flick launched the career of director Joe Dante, who later collaborated with Steven Spielberg himself to make Gremlins - a real creature masterpiece! Piranha is no Gremlins, but it sure is a fun start to Dante's creepy creature-filled career.