When I first caught wind that there was a remake of Joe Dante’s 1978 cult classic Piranha I wasn’t quite as wary as if the film announced were for something like Jaws. Skepticism was never an issue as most people have never even heard of the original. I have been a fan since I was probably eight years old. An uncle had been in a motorcycle accident and with it being summer vacation, I was asked if I would take care of him. What better way for a young boy to begin his cinematic horror education?
While I had already seen the likes of Jaws and Poltergeist over and over, this is when I was introduced to Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead 2. As if that wasn’t enough, I had longingly yearned to watch a movie called Piranha whose VHS cover art I had fallen in love with at the local video store. Now in my 30s, with this original classic just released on Blu-ray and Piranha 3D finally upon us, it's with great pleasure that I wholeheartedly agree with the current 82% consensus on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s also been officially announced that a sequel has already been greenlit in spite of opening box office receipts thanks to strong reviews and word of mouth. Rejoice!
Alexandre Aja (High Tension, The Hills Have Eyes, Mirrors) finally proves what all the bloody fuss is about. Here’s a director with such an unabashed imagination that it only seems fitting that he join forces with a couple of members of the current “splat pack” — Eli Roth (in front of the camera) and Quentin Tarantino (behind). Speaking of which, it’s been said that the spring breaker whose bum is nibbled on before getting dragged through her inner tube in a literal geyser of blood and gore was suggested to Aja by Tarantino. But thankfully the two credited writers, Pete Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg (both credited to last years underrated Sorority Row), bring a likable cast of characters who clearly know what kind of movie they’re in.
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