Piranha 3D: A second look

Take a look at this trailer.

Chances are you have already seen it. You might have already watched the movie, it's been out of theaters and on DVD and Blu-Ray for months. Or maybe you were like me, and all the negative reviews kept you from watching it.

After first seeing this trailer I was excited, it looked like B-movie bliss, then the reviews started rolling out. From early on the film received really bad ratings and reviews. Most of the early reviews were coming from the mainstream media outlets who don't exactly have a reputation for celebrating horror movies, especially ones with exploitative elements.


I was a little put off by these reviews but decided to wait and hear from some people in the horror community. I was more then a little shocked to see a lot of the same views and opinions coming from those channels. A lot of these reviews sited the same reasons why they thought Piranha 3D was such a poor film. Everything from excessive use of CG effects, to the film being not as good as Alexandre Aja previous work.

I think it's important to see this movie for what it is, a remake of a Jaws knock off that has already been redone 15 years prior. Don't get me wrong I love the original it's a classic, but it is a B-movie. I think Aja stayed faithful to the source material in the way he made his film a B-movie as well.


Watching this film with an open mind really let me enjoy it as it's own creation, not comparing it to Joe Dante's original or Aja's amazing earlier work. Piranha 3D is Busting at the seems with boobs and blood Aja takes these elements and exploits them with tongue firmly implanted in cheek and does a great job at crafting a new school B-movie.

I watched the 2D Blu-Ray edition of this film. The transfer was flawless, sharp lines, vibrant colors, great surround sound. The extras were typical deleted scenes, story boards, and a nice making of feature. All in all a good movie, not something that sticks with you but still a rather nice waist of time. Rating | ***