Piranha 3D

Review by Sean Lynch

If you see only one movie in which a cock is gobbled up, spit out, then gobbled up again this year : see Piranha 3D.

If you see two movies in which a cock is gobbled up, spit out, then gobbled up again this year... you are likely the kind of dude who wears a trench coat and flashes people on the train.

But that's neither here nor there - because the important thing to remember is that director Alexandre Aja has delivered one of the most stupidly fun horror thriller's since The Toxic Avenger with his 2010 remake of 1970s cult classic Piranha.

The action kicks off in the sleepy town of Lake Victoria where, once every year, the population explodes from 5,000 locals to 50,000 horny teens for the annual spring break (USA's "Schoolies Week").

However there is a greater danger than simply hangovers and unwanted pregnancies this summer - because an underwater tremor has set free scores of the prehistoric man-eating piranhas into the lake.

And make no mistake - these flesh devouring fish are hungrier than John Candy in an Afterlife McDonalds line!

So, as usual, an unlikely group of strangers must band together ("hot for her age" town sheriff Elisabeth Shue and scientist Adam Scott among them) to stop themselves and the town becoming fish food.

Much like the 70s original, Piranha 3D takes all it's cues from Spielberg's sea-classic Jaws (don't worry, Aja is well aware, as presented in the opening scene).

However, in doing so, Piranha 3D actually delivers a surprising amount of genuine tension amidst all the carnage, silliness and wobbly 3D boobs.

The cast are clearly having a lot of fun here too.

Jerry O'Connell hams it up something chronic, while the bulk of remaining roles comprise of clever cameos (Christopher Lloyd delivers his best "crazy scientist" since Back To The Future), calculated kills (Eli Roth gets a taste of his own Hostel style medicine) or titillating tattie shots (Kelly Brook and Gianna Michaels prove once again that you don't need acting chops to make it in Hollywood).

It's this sense of tongue-in-cheek fun which really pushes Piranha 3D into another realm - not that of a "classic", but that of a truly unexpected and genuine "fun night out".

Don't go looking for deeper meaning in the script (hell, Paul Sheer's "Camera Guy" character literally disappears without explanation) - just grab some mates, a few beers prior, some popcorn and those 3D goggles and prepare to laugh... a lot... and see a woman's face-skin ripped off!

3.5 out of 5

Piranha 3D
Australian release: 26th August, 2010
Official Site: Piranha 3D
Cast: Jessica Szohr, Steven R. McQueen, Elisabeth Shue, Adam Scott, Dina Meyer, Eli Roth, Christopher Lloyd, Richard Dreyfuss
Director: Alexandre Aja