PIRANHA
20th Anniversary Special Edition (1978) Director: Joe Dante.
New Horizon
PIRANHA
20th Anniversary Special Edition (1978) This is one of the best-packaged DVDs ever, bar none. Joe Dante's tale of nature gone mad is truly a delight to see with its all-new digitally remastered sound and picture. Prepare to sit down for a couple of hours to enjoy all the different features that this disc offers.
The film starts out as two young backpacking teenagers come across an abandoned military research center. After sneaking inside, they find a pool and decide to go skinny-dipping. Unfortunately for the teenagers, they do not know that the pool contains a school of genetically altered piranha and that they are the main course for dinner. Following this horrific encounter with the film's nasty villains, the viewers are introduced to Maggie McKeown (Heather Menzies), an investigator hired to find the lost teenagers. She follows the trail that the teenagers had left and along the way teams up with the testy outdoorsman Paul Grogan (Bradford Dillman who is no stranger to nature gone mad films; he also starred in BUG and THE SWARM). Some reviewers feel that Dillman's character was not heroic enough but I think his portrayal was effective considering his character's wife had died and he just wanted to be left alone.
Maggie and Paul discover the abandoned military research center and decide to drain the pool after finding some of the teenagers' personal belongings on the property. This is when we are introduced to Dr. Robert Hoak (Kevin McCarthy--most famous for his starring role in INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS), who tries to stop the two in vain. After knocking out the doctor, Maggie and Paul drain the pool unknowingly unleashing the school of killer piranha into the river.
After Paul threatens the doctor, he confesses that he was a scientist working for the US army in 1965 to create a new kind of secret weapon to use in Vietnam. His experiments with piranha lead to a genetically altered species that can live in both fresh and salt water environments at any temperature. Even though the government abandons the project after the war, Dr. Hoak continued his experiments in secret with the killer fish that he refers to as "razor teeth." The film then pits Maggie and Paul vs. the piranha in a race against time as the piranha make their way up the river to a resort's lake where tourists (and Paul's daughter) are enjoying their summer.
I was terrified of the water after seeing JAWS when I was a boy. The thought of being eaten alive by a giant shark was one of the worst ways to die in my opinion. After seeing PIRANHA, the thought of being eaten alive by small fish with razor-sharp teeth didn't ease my mind too much more. This film, while having the feel of a 50s B-grade movie, is really enjoyable and its terrific cast adds to this fact. On hand in the film are; Roger Corman favorite Dick Miller as Buck Gardner, the owner of the Lost River resort, Italian horror queen Barbara Steele as Dr. Mengers, and movie veteran Keenan Wynn as Jack (who is the victim of the infamous legs chewed off scene).
The DVD's extras are impressive in number and quality. First up is a special on the making of the film. Most of it is from producer Jon Davison's home movies. Seeing the piranha up close makes you realize that they are much better off seen in quick clips. After that follows the film's bloopers and outtakes (Dick Miller - "I blew my line!") Next up is the film's theatrical trailer. "Keep your hand out of the water!" The cast biographies include Roger Corman, Joe Dante, John Sayles, Heather Menzies, Bradford Dillman, Paul Bartel, Jon Davison, and Barbara Steele. The biographies are lengthy and detailed including filmographies but are hard to read due to the small word size and white color that disappears into the background. Also included is the alternate audio track featuring commentary by director Joe Dante and producer Jon Davison. Dante and Davison have great behind the scene stories and provide tons of information on the making of the film. New Horizon also has coming attractions for some of its other features including HUMANOIDS FROM THE DEEP. Literature inside the DVD case includes a reproduction of the original press book (a great idea) and an 8-page booklet on the history of Roger Corman.
The DVD is presented in the full screen format but the picture is crystal clear and the sound is equally impressive. New Horizons obviously put a lot of time and care into this disc and it shows. I hope that other companies in the DVD field pay attention to this and follow their example. PIRANHA 20th Anniversary Special Edition is a must have for your collection. (Chris Gullo)