Killer fish movies haven't really been popular since Jaws first arrived over 30 years ago. Unless you count the crappy movies that have been released on the sci-fi channel over the past couple of years including Mega Piranha which was made in response to Alexandre Aja's remake of Piranha.
Alex Aja's Piranha is a remake of the killer fish movie directed by Joe Dante from 1978. But that's really in name only. In the original film the fish were mutations. In Aja's film, they're an ancient breed of piranha. Basically, the storyline is this: It's Spring Break in Lake Victoria, Arizona, and students from all over the country are coming to this particular spot to party. That means booze and boobs. Elizabeth Shue plays the town's sheriff, and Ving Rhames plays her second in command. Steven R. McQueen plays sheriff's son, Jake, who wants to have fun but is stuck babysitting his siblings. He eventually sneaks off to do what he wants. Apparently a small tremor has broken open an underwater cave releasing thousands of ravenous piranha into the nearby lake and all hell is about to break loose.
Okay, nobody goes to a movie like this for the movie. No, they come for the breasts and the carnage, and there is plenty of both. There are plenty of awesome death scenes in this film, but the main centerpiece of the film, is the piranha attack on the party-goers. It literally turns into a bloodbath as people are eviscerated left and right. There's some cgi involved, but in a film like this, it kinda works, but for the most part the effect are mostly practical thanks to KNB Effects. I haven't seen a film this bloody in a long time. And that's almost in one scene.
Yes, this movie is silly, and it realizes that. You've got cameos from Christopher Lloyd as the mad scientist type fishing store owner, Eli Roth as the party host, and Matt Hooper from Jaws: Richard Dreyfuss himself. This movie does not take itself seriously at all, and I think that works in its favor. The acting isn't too bad. You've got Jerry O'Connell who plays a convincing sleazeball pornographer. Elizabeth Shue is fantastic, as is Ving Rhames.
The effects: For practical effects, this film is wild. The piranha's themselves are completely CG, but most of the gore effects are practical, with some effects that are CG. But that's because this movie was shot in 3D. And there some scenes where that's obviously supposed to be in 3D. But this film works without it just as well. This is the most light-hearted horror movie from Alex Aja and it leaves it open for a sequel. There's plenty of laughs and lots and lots of blood. For gorehounds, this is a real treat. It's 88 minutes long so it runs at a decent pace. I give this one a respectable 8.5/10.
