Movie Review: Piranha 3DD

Two years ago, director Alexadre Aja brought us a gloriously over the top and bloody as all get out remake of Roger Corman's original production, Piranha. Aja took the film to all manner of bloody excess, making sure to include plenty of gratuitous nudity. In the end, he crafted an extremely entertaining horror movie, in post converted 3D, no less. Now, two years later we have a sequel, shot in 3D this time, directed by John Gulager (Feast). This movie ups the ante in many ways while simultaneously reducing its overall filmic quality.



I will say that Aja's film is definitely a better movie, but there is definitely something to be said about the utter brain dead ridiculousness of this one, cleverly titled Piranha 3DD. This movie is filled with WTF moments. Seriously, this is the sort of movie that welcomes audience participation. As I was sitting in the theater waiting to see his movie, a good sized group came in and they were loud, the kind of people I would normally complain about, however when the movie started and we all started to realize what kind of movie his was, the rowdiness and screen appropriate reactions actually enhanced the experience. This is no Rocky Horror Picture Show, but I think you know what I mean.

The story is a simple one, David Koechner plays Chet, a scumbag water park owner whose idea to make the place profitable is to replace lifeguards with strippers and include a fully nude wave pool. Of course, his stepdaughter, Maddy (Danielle Panabaker), is none to happy with the changes being made and tries to stop him. Toss into the mix a boy who has been pining after her since grade school, a tough guy ex-boyfriend who is now a crooked deputy, and a few other friends to fallout the supporting cast and the player are all in place.

Throughout the water park drama, there is the tragedy of the massacre from the first movie hanging over their heads. Well,needless to say, the fish return and find their way into the park's water system and the massacre begins.

I don't even know how to describe the goofiness that goes on in this movie. Characters simplistically stating the obvious, gratuitous nudity, the crazy place one of the nasty fishes ends up and how it gets itself out, the presence of David Hasselhoff (playing an exaggerated version of himself), or just the fact that piranha have invaders a water park!

This is not a good movie in the traditional sense, but if you are a fan of trashy movies, this will likely be right up your alley. The acting ranges from comically exaggerated to poor, the effects tend towards the cheesy side, the story is patently ridiculous, and I loved it all. I can easily recommend this movie to people with tastes like me. A lot of people will right this one of, perhaps rightly so, but I loved every crazy minute.

Hasselhoff is crazy, full of himself, and is a lot of fun. Katrina Bowden has some hilarious scenes. No one plays a scumbag like David Koechner. Danielle Panabaker is fine as the heroine, playing everything straight. Cameos by Gary Busey and Clu Gulager are fun. Also, don't forget about Christopher Lloyd in full on crazy Doc Brown mode is classic.

I cant lie and rip this movie up. I get the feeling that John Gulager and writers Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan (of the Saw and Feast franchises), and Joel Soisson, knew exactly what they were doing. They were targeting a certain sort of low grade insanity and they hit their mark.

Be sure to stay for the credits.

Recommended.