{"id":71112,"date":"2021-04-05T10:21:03","date_gmt":"2021-04-05T17:21:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=71112"},"modified":"2021-04-05T20:01:16","modified_gmt":"2021-04-06T03:01:16","slug":"piranha-1978","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=71112","title":{"rendered":"Piranha (1978)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;The water is filled with carnivorous fish: piranha.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster-208x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"208\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-71113\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster-208x300.png 208w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster-711x1024.png 711w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster-89x128.png 89w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster-768x1107.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster-187x270.png 187w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Poster.png 771w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 208px) 100vw, 208px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen an insurance investigator (Heather Menzies) teams up with an alcoholic recluse (Bradford Dillman) to determine what happened to a pair of teenagers who mysteriously disappeared, they learn about a doctor (Kevin McCarthy) overseeing a government-sponsored project to breed lethal piranhas, which wreak havoc when they&#8217;re released into the nearby river and beyond &#8212; including a summer camp and a water resort.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Barbara Steele Films<\/li>\n<li>Detectives and Private Eyes<\/li>\n<li>Dick Miller Films<\/li>\n<li>Horror Films<\/li>\n<li>Joe Dante Films<\/li>\n<li>John Sayles Films<\/li>\n<li>Keenan Wynn Films<\/li>\n<li>Kevin McCarthy Films<\/li>\n<li>Killer Animals<\/li>\n<li>Scientists<\/li>\n<li>Summer Camp<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary\u2019s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nPeary rather uncharitably argues that &#8220;Roger Corman&#8217;s low-budget <em>Jaws<\/em> variation, directed by Joe Dante and scripted by John Sayles,&#8221; &#8220;should be condensed to 15 minutes.&#8221; He writes that &#8220;it becomes annoying how Dante and Sayles put the usual roadblocks in the path of Dillman and Menzies to kill screen time,&#8221; given that &#8220;there can be only <em>one<\/em> attack at the camp and <em>one<\/em> at the resort because after that nobody would go back into the water&#8221; &#8212; and &#8220;as it is, those two attacks, which should take about 10 seconds each since the swimmers are about 10 feet from land, go on forever.&#8221; He further argues that while &#8220;Paul Bartel, as the taskmaster camp head:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Bartel.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Bartel.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-71117\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Bartel.png 720w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Bartel-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Bartel-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Bartel-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; and Dick Miller, as the money-hungry resort owner:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Miller.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Miller.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-71118\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Miller.png 720w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Miller-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Miller-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Miller-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; are funny,&#8221; their &#8220;broad humor doesn&#8217;t mesh with the tongue-in-cheek satirical upstream story [?] with Dillman and Menzies,&#8221; and it &#8220;should all have been played straight.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>I think Peary is being overly harsh on this flick, which effectively builds off of <em>Jaws<\/em> while offering plenty of genuine chills and thrills. The idea of genetically modified fish with teeth swarming in the water is enough to terrify me &#8212; and it&#8217;s pretty ridiculous to complain that swimmers would get to shore within 10 seconds if they&#8217;re being attacked and bitten to death by ravenous hordes of critters. Meanwhile, plenty of authentic suspense is built into Sayles&#8217;s screenplay &#8212; i.e., when the raft Menzies and Dillman are using to flee starts unraveling due to the piranhas eating away at its bindings:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Raft.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Raft.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-71116\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Raft.png 720w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Raft-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Raft-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Raft-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/a>  <\/p>\n<p>&#8230; and when Dillman is racing against time to prevent a dam operator from releasing the water: <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Dam.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Dam.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-71119\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Dam.png 720w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Dam-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Dam-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Dam-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; and all the sequences in which innocent swimmers (including plenty of kids) are about be swarmed. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Plenty of suspenseful moments<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-71115\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense.png 720w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-71114\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense2.png 720w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense2-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense2-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Piranha-Suspense2-360x270.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>An effective horror film score\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo, but it&#8217;s worth a look. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0078087\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/film.avclub.com\/piranha-special-edition-1798165569\">Onion A.V. Club Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.stomptokyo.com\/movies\/p\/piranha.html\">Stomp Tokyo Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.moriareviews.com\/horror\/piranha-1978.htm\">Moria Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The water is filled with carnivorous fish: piranha.&#8221; Synopsis: When an insurance investigator (Heather Menzies) teams up with an alcoholic recluse (Bradford Dillman) to determine what happened to a pair of teenagers who mysteriously disappeared, they learn about a doctor (Kevin McCarthy) overseeing a government-sponsored project to breed lethal piranhas, which wreak havoc when they&#8217;re released into the nearby river and beyond &#8212; including a summer camp and a water resort. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Barbara Steele Films Detectives&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=71112\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=71112"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71112\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71148,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71112\/revisions\/71148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=71112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=71112"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=71112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}