Just when you thought it was safe to go to your local water park, Anchor Bay Home Entertainment releases “Piranha 3DD” on not-so-innocent viewers. The follow-up to 2010’s critically acclaimed box-office success “Piranha” did little business in theaters. Hopefully it will gain a little more attention from home audiences.
A school of mutated piranhas enter a water park through its piping systems. The step-daughter of its crooked co-owner must find a way to close off the man-eating creatures’ access to the amusement facility. The employees of the park attempt to rescue the thrill-seeking swimmers before they’re devoured by the aquatic monsters.
Roger Corman’s name may not be found in the credits of this sequel, but his spirit is felt throughout it. It’s the usual over-the-top creature feature we’ve all become accustomed to seeing from the B-movie king. Imagine “Jaws” if it took place in a water park the kids in “Porky’s” worked at during the summer. That’s the level of entertainment you get from watching “Piranha 3DD.”
The CGI and practical effects are a grade above what one would expect from a movie of this nature. There are parts where the piranhas look less than spectacular, but it doesn’t distract from the overall fun atmosphere of the film. Most of the special make-up effects are very well-done. The different severed body parts all look impressively realistic.
“Piranha 3DD’s” high definition audio and video transfer will satisfy viewers. All the carnage and mayhem is visually clean and crisp. The 5.1 surround sound mix guarantees you’ll hear every scream of terror, hiss of a piranha, and crash of the dramatic music score perfectly.
There’s lots of bonus material in the 3D Blu-ray + Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy edition of the movie. Audio Commentary with director John Gulager, producer Joel Soisson, and co-writer Marcus Dunstan is included.
The featurettes are short but cover more ground than you’d imagine. The seven – minute “The Story Behind the DD” covers the making of the movie with cast and crew interviews. “The Hofftastic World of David Hasselhoff” is exactly what it sounds like: the actor discussing the movie and his life. There are also short featurettes with fan-favorite actors Gary Busey and David Koechner entitled “Busey’s Bloopers” and “Wet and Wild with David Koechner.”
Three deleted scenes give us more R-rated antics with Big Dave. The comedy short film “A Lesson with John McEnroe” is unrelated to the movie but still funny.
The 3D Blu-ray + Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy edition of “Piranha 3DD” delivers B-movie schlock in its finest form. I don’t know how it could get any better (or worse?) than this. It’s crude, gory, funny, and successfully self-aware. A great high-definition transfer and a few interesting special features make this a recommended buy for fans of Roger Corman creature features and the likes.
For more articles by Eric Shirey, check out:
Blu-ray Review: “Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers”
Blu-ray Review: “Jaws”
Blu-ray Review: “Mother’s Day”
