Piranha – DVD Review

The Flick:

With remake fever spreading faster than crabs at an one hour hotel, I thought it would be fitting to put Joe Dante’s classic cult flick Piranha up against the shiny new remake. Piranha was released in 1978, hot on the heels of the Spielberg’s Jaws. Roger Corman wanted to capitalize on the killer fish craze so he quickly hired Joe Dante to get the flick into the can. Dante did his job and Piranha was released in time to enjoy Jaws’ backwash. However, despite Dante’s efforts Piranha is a slightly funny, not so scary, flick that doesn’t hold up well under the harsh reality of time.

The story is a familiar one. Maggie McKeown (Heather Manzies) is searching for a couple of missing teens in a small town that is gearing up to open a summer resort. Maggie teams up with Paul Grogan (Bradford Dillman), and while searching for the teens they unknowingly release a tank full of killer piranha. once the two of them realize what they’ve done, they race against time to warn people and get them out of the water.

When I was young I remember being in love with this flick, but after watching it now that I’m older it didn’t connect with me. The special effects aren’t very good, the story is just average, and the acting is hokey at times. I wanted to love this flick. I wanted to enjoy a classic late night movie and bask in its genius, but Piranha never quite delivered the way I thought it would. If your a fan of Corman classics this flick could be your thing, but I’d recommend renting it before dropping the coin for the DVD or Blu-ray, because unfortunately Piranha is not a killer film.

The DVD:

Audio/Video

The flick is presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) and it looks fantastic. The colors are crisp for an older flick and the audio came in loud and clear.

Special Features

Audio Commentary: Director Joe Dante and Producer Jon Davison give up the skinny and their wisdom is pretty insightful. Worth checking out at least once.

Making of Piranha: A fun featurette packed full of cast and crew interviews. This feature is worth the price if your a fan of the flick.

Bloopers: A reel of bloopers and outtakes that is pretty funny and worth checking out.

There are trailers (with director commentary), a stills gallery, scenes from the television version, and radio and tv spots as well.

The Flick: Rating:
The DVD: Rating: