Piranha

There seems to be about 30 minutes of movie here and 60 minutes of shaky, hand-held shots of birds, monkeys, guys on an endless motorcycle race. Seriously, the race comes from out of nowhere and takes forever! One guy jumps over a log with a gator beside it. Spine-chilling thrills, there! Hey, let's get some cash together and spend some time in Venezuela! Yay!

Oh yeah, it's about 55 minutes in before anyone even says the word "piranha" and about an hour and ten minutes before you see one "in action".

I, too, got this one for about 5 bucks. I was thinking it was the OTHER Piranha movie. (This one is even so deceptive to be labeled only "Piranha")

Lame. Not even lame enough to be much fun, I'm sad to say.

I was duped as well. Here I was expecting all sorts of man eating Pirahnas and what the hell do you get.

An hour and a half of nothing, but awkward silences with some weird guy, who isn't weird enough to be scary.

I thought there was no way $5 could be too much for a movie.

Damn I was sooooo wrong. It was very hard to watch the whole thing.

Don't fool yourself. Its not so good that its bad. Its not even that kind of movie.

Its nothing. an hour and a half of absolutely nothing.

PIECE OF CRAP!!!!!!!!

Released in 1972, "Piranha" chronicles events when a brother & sister photography team (Tom Simcox & Ahna Capri) enlist a guide (Peter Brown) for a tour in the jungle wilderness where they meet a friendly-but-mysterious hunter named Caribe (William Smith), who lives in the jungle. Caribe shows his true colors when he acts upon his Native namesake.

People badmouth this movie because they fell prey to a bait-and-switch by DVD-makers or whomever. This is NOT the Roger Corman nature-runs-amok flick of the same name from 1978. Neither is it a creature feature at all. It's a realistic Venezuelan jungle adventure/thriller with hints of horror highlighted by genuine early 70's atmosphere. Despite being an adventure/thriller, the title "Piranha" does not misrepresent the movie, which is explained in the second half and ties into the plot (I'm not going to give it away). Another thing to keep in mind is that the movie was released in '72, three years before "Jaws" made nature-runs-amok flicks popular. So the filmmakers didn't title it "Piranha" with the intention of misleading fans of creatures-on-the-loose flicks.

In any case, the cast is great, although they coulda done better with someone other than Capri in the female role, even though she plays the part well despite my slight misgivings. Simcox is a likable masculine protagonist and it's too bad he didn't become a star, although he had constant TV work. Brown is good too, but it's Smith who towers here, literally at 6'2", but in overweening taciturn charisma as well. Caribe seems like a cool guy to party with in the jungle and the quartet have some good times together, including a long (8.5 minute) motorcycle race, but the story takes a dark turn in the final act. I've seen a handful of Smith films & TV episodes over the years and this is by far his best role.

Some complain about the "stock footage" of numerous animals, but it adds to the jungle atmospherics. Others complain about the thinness of the plot and the seeming padding with the animal, Native and diamond-panning footage, etc. This has caused some to criticize the movie as a "Venezuelan travelogue," but I enjoyed this aspect. Viewing the film IS like vacationing in Venezuela and I found it interesting and informative, but it's just a stage for the interesting low-key drama of the quartet. And, say what you will about the thin story, it gels together into a meaningful whole with interesting things to glean.

If you're in the mood for a 60s-70's psychological adventure/thriller I recommend "Piranha." However, if you need an explosion every second and unrealistic action sequences to maintain your attention look elsewhere.

The film runs 90 minutes and was shot entirely in Venezuela.

GRADE: B+

Having watched 'Piranha, Piranha' just last night, when I look at film sites online about it, and see all of these so-called cinephiles so upset because they felt the title was a ripoff (don't worry, I'm not going to give any spoilers), and that the film is an unenjoyable mess, 'to each his own', I say, for I really enjoyed it. Don't get me wrong, it's no 'Piranha', 'Jaws' or 'Moby Dick', but for what it does have, and what it does try to do, I give full marks for.

Like Jack Palance and Henry Silva, William Smith is one of those presences that no matter how much you hate, you have to respect, and deep down inside, no matter how good you are, or think you are, you wish you were. Nothing phases them, and they're in complete control of their destinies. If someone bothers them, they are eliminated, and if they want someone, they reach out and grab them. This is one of those films that fully endorses that mythology, in Smith's character, Caribe.

The film is an intriguing blend of 'Deliverance' and 'The Most Dangerous Game'. It's no masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but it's nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be. And it's no ripoff to Dante's thriller, because it came out six years beforehand (and three years before 'Jaws' made this type of movie so popular). What is very difficult for me to grasp is that around this same time, in an even more desolate area of South America and with even more temperamental actors, Werner Herzog was making a masterpiece in 'Aguirre, the Wrath of God'...

Like the above poster, I got burned on the title thinking I was getting the other Piranha... This movie is everything the above poster said and worse...

Poor camera, lousy acting and just plain horrid storyline...

There was very little here that was even worth watching... How this movie even got released is beyond me.

Make sure the movie you buy is the one you want... and not this one.

The movie I bought was labeled "Piranha" and not "Piranha, Piranha!" which is what it actually is... This is the only way they sold this movie at all.

Peace Out.