Piranha (1978)

User Rating:

5.6/10   

Director:

Joe Dante

Writers:

Richard Robinson (story) and
John Sayles (story) ...

Release Date:

3 August 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

Lost River Lake was a thriving resort - until they discovered...

Plot:

When flesh-eating piranhas are accidently released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.

Plot Keywords:

Piranha | Fish | River | U.S. Army | Experiment

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Bradford Dillman	...	Paul Grogan
Heather Menzies	...	Maggie McKeown
Kevin McCarthy	...	Dr. Robert Hoak
Keenan Wynn	...	Jack
Dick Miller	...	Buck Gardner
Barbara Steele	...	Dr. Mengers
Belinda Balaski	...	Betsy
Melody Thomas Scott	...	Laura Dickinson (as Melody Thomas)
Bruce Gordon	...	Colonel Waxman
Barry Brown	...	Trooper
Paul Bartel	...	Mr. Dumont
Shannon Collins	...	Suzie Grogan
Shawn Nelson	...	Whitney
Richard Deacon	...	Earl Lyon
Janie Squire	...	Barbara Randolph

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:(Banned) (1978) (uncut) | Finland:K-16 (1984) (cut) | Italy:VM14 (original rating) | Iceland:L | Argentina:16 (re-rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | UK:18 (video rating) (1987) | Australia:M | France:-12 | New Zealand:R13 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video re-rating) (2002) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

San Marcos, Texas, USA

Company:

New World Pictures

Trivia:

This film was reported to have been shot in 30 days for $660,000.

Goofs:

Continuity: As Dr. Hoak is attacked by a piranha, he gets onto a raft and his sweater alternates between torn and intact.

Quotes:

Maggie McKeown: I'm looking for two teenagers that disappeared a few weeks ago. So, I was wondering if there are any places around here they might be or if they may have gone for a swim.
Paul Grogan: Well, if they drowned, they'd be swept down to the dam. So, you're starting off at the wrong end.
Maggie McKeown: Boy, you're the wrong end around here!

Movie Connections:

Edited into Not of This Earth (1988)

"People eat fish, fish don't eat people"

Yes, in most cases; fish don't eat people, people eat fish; but the auteur of that quote clearly forgot about man eating fish, such as piranha; and that reflects even worse on his brain power when you consider that, at the time of speaking, he was actually in a film called "Piranha", which also happens to be about man eating fish! Lots of 'em! It's little delights like the one just mentioned that make Piranha what is - the script doesn't take itself seriously, and that blends with the shameless ripping off of many a creature feature, and both of those in turn provide the audience with a very camp movie experience indeed. Creature features have a long history of being camp, and Joe Dante's film will no doubt be a highlight for fans of the classic movies in this field. Joe Dante has made a lot of cheap, but good films, and while The Howling remains the best of his oeuvre and the 'best director' awards certainly won't be winging his way soon, he's an underrated talent in the horror film industry and Piranha is certainly one of his better films.

Joe Dante has put a good cast together for this movie, which equally weighs out the camp and action sequences in the movie in the same proportions that the movie itself gives out. Bradford Dillman takes the lead role, and while he clearly knows that he's appearing in a camp and very much 'B' standard horror; he still gives it his all and makes for a fine protagonist. The highlights among the ensemble are Barbara Steele, a regular in horror films, with performances in the likes of 'The Pit and the Pendulum' and 'Black Sunday', and Dick Miller; a cult star that Dante would go on to use regularly, but found his cult stardom in the Corman classic 'A Bucket of Blood'. The pace of the film is good, and while the script shows some holes, the plot usually lasts out. It gets a bit hectic towards the end and Dante would have been better served with less carnage and more tension to give the movie a better finale. The effects are pretty much non-existent, as the movie just uses cuts of fish swimming and a bit of fake blood for most of it's shocks. Still, this is a very fun movie and one that people who enjoy a good time will enjoy.