With a title like "Piranha," one might expect a film about killer fish tearing people apart with their sharp-ass teeth; but that is not the case with this putrid exercise in padding. Fast-forward through the dull parts and you might get a watchable five minutes.
What passes for the plot: wildlife photographer Terri Greene (Ahna Capri) and her brother Art (Tom Simcox) fly to Venezuela to photograph the Amazon jungle but find themselves the targets of a brutal, sadistic hunter named Caribe (William Smith). Along the way, we're treated to a Venezuelan booty call, a desiccated folk song, lots of anti-gun talk from Terri (guess where that leads?), Caribe's half-assed philosophy on life and death, a pointless motorcycle race, a crash course in diamond-mining, Terri getting raped, the fiery destruction of a native village, and a stabbed-to-death Art being devoured by piranhas— hardly enough to justify the title.
It would have been nice had PIRANHA offered less padding and more backstory and character development. It also could have played up the implied attraction between Terri and her guide (Peter Brown). That way, the viewer might feel some empathy for these characters, particularly when Caribe makes them his prey. But no; that would take effort, and we certainly can't have that.
If anything here is worth seeing, it's the footage of the Amazon jungle and its teeming wildlife. Come to think of it: if you cut all the scenes with the people, you might have an interesting nature documentary. Just hire a good narrator.
By the way, "caribe" means "piranha."
What passes for the plot: wildlife photographer Terri Greene (Ahna Capri) and her brother Art (Tom Simcox) fly to Venezuela to photograph the Amazon jungle but find themselves the targets of a brutal, sadistic hunter named Caribe (William Smith). Along the way, we're treated to a Venezuelan booty call, a desiccated folk song, lots of anti-gun talk from Terri (guess where that leads?), Caribe's half-assed philosophy on life and death, a pointless motorcycle race, a crash course in diamond-mining, Terri getting raped, the fiery destruction of a native village, and a stabbed-to-death Art being devoured by piranhas— hardly enough to justify the title.
It would have been nice had PIRANHA offered less padding and more backstory and character development. It also could have played up the implied attraction between Terri and her guide (Peter Brown). That way, the viewer might feel some empathy for these characters, particularly when Caribe makes them his prey. But no; that would take effort, and we certainly can't have that.
If anything here is worth seeing, it's the footage of the Amazon jungle and its teeming wildlife. Come to think of it: if you cut all the scenes with the people, you might have an interesting nature documentary. Just hire a good narrator.
By the way, "caribe" means "piranha."