Piranha - La morte viene dall'acqua

I am not an advocate of Remakes, but I do recognize a good one! This is not a good one.

Why would anyone bother to remake a movie if they do not intend to improve on the original? Or at least alter it slightly as to merit an "Update"?

This version of Piranha is cheaper and nastier than the original.... The Original knew it was Cheap and Nasty and played upon it.... but this movie takes itself seriously. The little 'fishy' effects are worse then the original and the plot itself is identical. This is basically a frame by frame remake... why?

It was made for TV and one has to question why they bothered to invest money into this when they could have easily screened a re-run of Joe Dante's original classic! I am sure more people would have stayed tuned for that one. It was obviously a clever little parody of Jaws... this is a tired and lonesome stinker!

I give it 1 out of 10 For having the guts to be made at all.

I don't know why this is compared to the original. That film was no classic, and at least this one doesn't pull any punches. Indeed, the DVD version is R-rated and definitely not TV fare. Mila Kunis is so young in this that one wonders if it was made earlier than 1995. Anyhow, the story is ridiculous and pretty hackneyed, but William Katt and Monte Markham add credibility. It's always a pleasant surprise when James Karen shows up too. As a cheapie horror flick it delivers exactly what it promises and holds one's interest throughout. Making films like this made Roger Corman a legend, and his contribution to this particular film is probably what makes it work.

Well, it IS near identical. A lot of changes from the original had been made (the doctor minding the piranha testing center being just one of those). Still, I prefer this one. One: it provided more character detail into Paul. Two: this remake's Maggie isn't as "bumbling" as the one in the original (although she's still far from being a decent gumshoe). Three: the circumstance behind the piranhas' poisoning (just in the pool) is more believable than the original (an entire water system in Vietnam). Four: the usage of stock from the original aside, the fact that they left bones after piranha attacks makes it more believable than the original. Five: because they made this look more serious than the original, it actually made it funnier.

It's still a bad movie, but, at least the way they changed it made it a tiny bit better.

Detective Maggie McNamara investigates a case of a missing young couple as she runs into Paul Grogan, who lives as far away as possible from the city because he doesnÕt want to meet anybody. Together, they unwillingly unleash a plague of killer piranhas created by the military. The Piranhas attack an opening ceremony for some holiday resorts, where lots of guests are in the water - including GroganÕs little daughter...

A Roger Corman-produced TV Remake to a Roger Corman-produced (and Joe Dante-directed) original. Sounds bad enough to be a warning? ItÕs almost the same movie as the original, and nothing has improved since, in fact, this has to be one of the most unnecessary remakes in the long history of unnecessary remakes. As for the special effects, almost every single shot is lifted from the original which makes this hard to defend for even the most jaded fan. Not only the special effects in this 1995 movie are from the seventies, thereÕs also still no one around to provide a cell phone when you need one. If only the very likeable William Katt were in the original...

The private investigator Maggie McNamara (Alexandra Paul) from Lyon Investigation is hired by the wealthy J.R. Randolph (Monte Markham) to find his niece that has disappeared with her boyfriend. Maggie seeks out the lonely environmentalist Paul Grogan (William Katt) to help her to look for the teenager. They head to an abandoned army facility and Maggie decides to drain the pools to see whether the body of the girl is there. They are assaulted by a woman with a crowbar but they subdue her. However she escapes and soon they learn that the woman is Dr. Leticia Baines (Darleen Carr), who is researching a hybrid species of piranha that is capable to survive in fresh and sea waters for military purpose. Further, Maggie has release the piranhas on the river and they are heading to the Lost River Lake Resort. Maggie and Paul inform the corrupt local Sheriff but Randolph tells him to lock them up since he does not want to jeopardize the party he has promoted to his resort.

"Piranha" is a B-movie with the same storyline of "Jaws". There are ridiculous scenes, like for example, Maggie tasting the water of an abandoned experimental pool. Or the heroine Maggie opens the drain valves without measuring the consequences and causing the death of several people. Or when Dr. Baines dies and Maggie and Paul say that they need to find someone with knowledge in piranhas. Or the instructors of the children camping that do not use the boats to rescue the children, walking on the water under attack of piranhas. It is funny to see Maggie driving the high-speed motor boat at full speed pulling Paul tied to a rope. My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "Piranha"