Piranha (film)

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For the 1995 remake, see Piranha (1995 film). For the Chuck Russell film, see Piranha (2006 film).

Piranha
French poster.
Directed by	Joe Dante
Produced by	Roger Corman (executive) Jon Davidson Chako van Leeuwen Jeff Schechtman (executive)
Written by	Richard Robinson (story) John Sayles (story) John Sayles (screenplay)
Starring	Bradford Dillman Heather Menzies Kevin McCarthy Keenan Wynn Dick Miller
Music by	Pino Donaggio
Cinematography	Jamie Anderson
Editing by	Joe Dante, Mark Goldblatt
Distributed by	New World Pictures
Release date(s)	August 3, 1978
Running time	94 min.
Language	English
Budget	$660,000 (estimated)
Followed by	Piranha II: The Spawning
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Piranha was a Jaws spoof directed by Joe Dante and produced by Roger Corman in 1978. Universal Studios tried to stop the film from being released (because of its satirizing of Universal's Jaws films), but Steven Spielberg saw the film in advance and liked it. There was a sequel - Piranha II: The Spawning which was the directorial debut of one James Cameron.

Tagline: Lost River Lake was a thriving resort - until they discovered...

[edit] Plot summary

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

In what was to become a staple scenario of horror films in the 80s (the romantic opportunity gone awry), two teenagers exploring at night come upon an apparently abandoned military installation. They decide to take advantage of what appears to be an inviting swimming pool to skinnydip. Little do they know that a terrible secret lurks within that ends up devouring them. As their death cries are literally drowned in the frothing red water, a light goes on that indicates the building is far from empty.

Insurance investigator Maggie McKeown is dispatched to find the two missing teenage hikers near Lost River Lake. She hires surly backwoods drunkard Paul Grogan to serve as her guide. Searching the area, they find an abandoned military facility. The only resident is Dr. Robert Hoak, former head of a top-secret project to breed piranha for use in the Vietnam War. The project was closed down years ago, but Hoak has continued raising a deadly strain of the flesh-eating fish.

When Hoak is knocked unconscious, Maggie and Paul accidentally release the piranha into a local river, which leads to the lake where a children's summer camp and a newly opened tourist resort will provide plenty of fish food for the hungry predators. Maggie and Paul race to warn the locals, but their pleas fall on skeptical ears, such as those of resort owner Buck Gardner — until the piranha reach the swimmers.