Directed by:
Joe DanteScreenplay:
John SaylesCinematography:
Jamie AndersonComposer:
Pino DonaggioCast:
Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies-Urich, Kevin McCarthy, Keenan Wynn, Dick Miller, Barbara Steele, Belinda Balaski, Bruce Gordon, Barry Brown, Paul Bartel (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
While searching for missing teenagers, novice skip tracer Maggie McKeown (Heather Menzies) and local town boozer Paul Grogan (Bradford Dillman) stumble upon a top-secret Army laboratory conducting genetic research on piranha fish for the purpose of developing biological warfare. When the deadly eating machines are accidently released from the compound, they are soon headed downstream and consuming everything, and anything, in their path. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Videos (1)
Reviews (1)
Piranha, or how else to follow up the big-budget Jaws than with lots of little low-budget Jaws. Joe Dante's first independent film has plenty of directorial flourishes and ideas, plenty of action scenes for such a low-budget film, and some well-shot crowd hysteria. The script could use some polishing, especially when it comes to the main characters not being seen as the architects of the plot (something that could have been avoided), but I still find the film quite functional in the context of the time. And Dick Miller is a total dick here.
()
