Piranha

Movie

1978

1h 34m

English

Horror, Science Fiction

User Score:

5.7

Critic Score:

Watch on Hoopla

When flesh-eating piranhas are accidently released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.

Play Trailer

Piranha

Movie

1978

1h 34m

English

Horror, Science Fiction

Play Trailer

Watch on Hoopla

When flesh-eating piranhas are accidently released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.

WATCHMODE

5.7

IMDB

CRITIC SCORE

Where to watch

FREE

FREE

FREE

Rent

$3.99SD

$2.99SD

Buy

$8.99SD

$9.99HD

$7.99SD

$9.99SD

$7.99SD

Available in 4 other countries.

Filter sources:

See something wrong? Let us know

My Friends' Ratings

In order to see what your friends rated Piranha, you need a Watchmode account. It's free and takes just a minute. Create an account

Cast

Paul Grogan

Maggie McKeown

Dr. Robert Hoak

Jack

Buck Gardner

Dr. Mengers

Betsy

Laura Dickinson

Colonel Waxman

Trooper

Mr. Dumont

Suzie Grogan

Whitney

Earl Lyon

Barbara Randolph

David

Jailer

TV Pitchman

Boy in Canoe

Father in Canoe

Soldier

Girl

Water-skier

Man in Boat

Screaming Woman

Directed By: Joe Dante

Written By: John Sayles (Screenplay), Richard Robinson (Story)

Featured Comments/Tips

jarvis-8243417 says...

3 months ago

From director Joe Dante comes the cult exploitation film _Piranha_. When a group of genetically engineered piranha are accidentally released from a secret government lab in a river, they begin attacking summer camps and resorts. Featuring Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies, Kevin McCarthy, and Dick Miller, the cast is pretty good. However, the script is awful and blatantly rips off _Jaws_ beat for beat; with the protagonist repeatedly trying to warn people about the piranha and being rebuffed. And the nudity and gore is especially gratuitous. Still, the piranha attack scenes are kind of intense and frightening (though they’re clearly puppets). _Piranha_ is a schlocky B-horror film, but it does deliversa few scares.

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

sage020 says...

one year ago

One of the classics. While it may not be amazing, it is a rather fun watch.

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

AlfieSGD says...

5 months ago

There wasn't really a single scene in “Piranha” that really clicked for me. It's neither a particularly entertaining parody of "Jaws," nor are the effects really remarkable. The characters are superficial, but some of the actors nevertheless get something out of their roles. I particularly liked the performance of Heather Menzies. And at least some moments are somewhat humorous. Overall, “Piranha” is just barely acceptable trash of the Roger Corman brand. However, I think the later remake by Alexandre Aja is much more recommendable.

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

NotoriousX says...

3 years ago

It's been quite a while since the last time I took this particular film off the shelf, but since I watched the fun remake and its rather underwhelming sequel today, I thought I'd take on the original Piranha as well. …and it's just as fun as I remember!! The story is simple, but well told. The acting is good, and we got some rather inventive practical effects, and even though I've seen this a dozen times before, it still manages to thrill. I really like this little gem of a “nature gone berserk” movie, and it's well worth the time spent watching it. Every time!

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

Show all comments (11) Leave comment

Featured User Reviews

mooney240

2 years ago

**Piranha is bad 70s creature feature gold! It's so bad it's great and a fun ride as long as you expect a total cheesefest.**

Piranha is cheesy 70s/80s creature films at their very best! It has everything - evil military generals, obligatory lake celebrations, scientific experimentation gone wron More

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

Kamurai

5 years ago

Decent watch, probably won't watch again, but can recommend for fans of Jaws or any other version of this movie.

There is a 1995 remake of this movie that I would probably watch instead if I wanted to watch this gain.

Not-trigger warning: There is a surprising LACK of gore in this movie.

Th More

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

CinemaSerf

one year ago

"People eat fish, fish don't eat people"! Well, that might be the theory but when a meddlesome couple accidentally release a swimming pool's worth of genetically modified fish into a river, we discover that that mantra isn't strictly true! It's only because "Dr. Hoak" (Kevin McCarthy) is at the faci More

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

Gimly

6 years ago

Not a terrible film, but there was a remake in the 90s with the exact same story featuring better acting and better effects, so you can probably skip straight ahead to that one. Now I know that if I had been around when that remake came out, I'd probably be the first in line to complain "Why'd you e More

Like - Dislike - Comment - 00 0

Show all reviews (5) Write Review