On some occasions, writing a review of a film is somewhat difficult. How do you effectively communicate the intricacies of the plot or characters and how to you genuinely summarize the effect the film has on you so potential viewers reading your review can fully understand and know what they are getting into if they do attend? Fortunately, in the case of Piranha 3D, I had none of those problems.

After all, it is a film about an underwater quake which sets free hundreds of prehistoric man-eating fish who then proceed to attack and eat pretty much anything and everything they can sink their teeth into. Once the fish are loose and on their way to spoil Spring Break for the thousands of kids frolicking at Lake Victoria, AZ it’s up to an unlikely group led by the town’s Sheriff (Elisabeth Shue) and a visiting marine paleontologist (Adam Scott) to stop the deadly horde before it’s too late.

Having recently seen Joe Dante’s original Piranha and another classic Roger Corman gory campfest Humanoids from the Deep, I can say that Piranha 3D borrows heavily from both of those previous films and does deliver a campy, over the top and in your face good time. It’s not art, whatever you may consider that to be, but it does have one big thing going for it: It’s fun.

Piranha 3D doesn’t try to be anything more than what it is: a movie where a pack of fish attack a whole bunch of people and eat them which also features ample sexual situations and nudity. It definitely earns the R rating.

It starts out letting you know these fish are not to be messed with by presenting Richard Dreyfuss doing what can only be described as a parody of his character from Jaws (complete with his rendition of Irving King’s Show Me the Way to Go Home) innocently fishing on the lake.

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Sometimes, a video demands explanation or context in order to be understood. Other times, it’s best to just shut up and let it play. This is one of those times. That second one I mean.

Presented without (much) comment is a video from Funny or Die wherein the cast of the upcoming Piranha 3D make their pitches for Oscar consideration. Yes, that’s right, Oscar consideration.

Crap, I said I wasn’t going to comment. Okay, here’s the video after the jump. Enjoy. Look for these Oscar-worthy performances in theaters this Friday.

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Those who have picked up the two most recent DVD or Blu-Ray releases from DC Entertainment have been treated to a special short at the beginning of each film. On the release of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, fans were treated to an original short featuring The Spectre written by 30 Days of Night scribe Steve Niles. Also, on the recent release of Batman: Under the Red Hood, fans were once again treated to a short, this time focusing on Jonah Hex, with Thomas Jane lending his voice.

Now, Warner Premiere has announced that they will be releasing a full DVD of these collected shorts, including the yet to be seen Green Arrow short that will take place before the feature on the Superman/Batman Apocalypse release. Also included in this compilation is the never-before-seen short starring Superman and Captain Marvel. More from the press release:

In Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam, Clark Kent’s latest interview subject is street kid Billy Batson. What Clark doesn’t know is that Billy is more than a feisty kid with a lot of heart – he has been chosen by an ancient wizard to represent the good of man as the World’s Mightiest Mortal just by invoking the name of the wizard, “Shazam!”  Billy’s powers come none-too-soon, as he also discovers he’s being pursued by a centuries’ old, murderous villain, Black Adam – a foe so powerful, even Superman can’t stop him alone.

The all-star cast of Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam is led by Jerry O’Connell (Crossing Jordan) as Captain Marvel, George Newbern reprising his Justice League role as Superman, Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy) as Black Adam and two-time Emmy Award® winner James Garner (8 Simple Rules) as The Wizard.

The compilation is set to hit stores on DVD and Blu-Ray on November 9th. Check out the complete features of each format after the jump, and be sure to keep it here for more details on this exciting new set!

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Yes, that’s right folks. The Piranha 3D footage considered too hot, too graphic, too gross for Comic-Con has shown up online — as these things often do. In case you didn’t know, Director Alexandre Aja was forced to rent a theater away from the Con in San Diego in order to share the footage with fans. I got a chance to see this footage and I can say from experience that it is, indeed, pretty graphic.

Not sure about the exact reasons for it not being able to be shown within the halls of Comic-Con, but I guess it makes a certain sense, especially if their was a chance children could be in the room. You don’t want your children watching any of this, believe me.

Or, my cynical self says it could just be a marketing stunt by the filmmakers. If it is, it’s a pretty good one. After all, we are talking about the film right now, aren’t we?

Anyway, enough talk, take a look at the footage after the jump. The complete Piranha 3D experience hits theaters on August 20th.

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Every once and a while, a film comes along that looks like just plain, unadulterated fun. Kick-Ass had potential to be that, but had to give us a happy ending…and Nic Cage, which ruined it. It looks like fans of camp will get a second chance at happiness this summer with Piranha 3D.

Of course, the plot itself isn’t nearly as important as how the film is going to look, but for those who need closure, it’s about a race of evil prehistoric piranhas who surface and go to town on unsuspecting Spring Break teens vacationing at Lake Victoria. It’s a film like this that deserves it’s 3D conversion far more than something like Clash of the Titans.

The film reads like a who’s who of people who love to take light of their work, such as Party Down’s Adam Scott, Hamlet 2‘s Elisabeth Shue, Eli Roth, Christopher Lloyd, Starship Trooper’s Dina Meyer, Jerry O’Connell, Ving Rhames, Richard Dreyfuss, and Steve McQueen’s grandson. Alexander Aja is the man in the director’s seat, who is best known for getting Kiefer Sutherland to emote like a mofo in the supernatural thriller Mirrors.

Check out the first full trailer for the flick after the jump, and be sure to pay attention to when the frame “expands” to give it that extra 3D look. Catch Piranha 3D in theaters on August 27th.

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While most people will be rushing out to see Jim Cameron’s newest masterpiece, Avatar, for the spectacle, others may have a new reason to spend the extra money on seeing the film in 3-D. The Weinstein Company and Dimension Films have just announced that the very first trailer for next Spring’s Piranha 3D will debut exclusively before selected 3-D and 2-D showings of Avatar.

The film is the second trailer to the 1978 film Piranha, directed by Joe Dante (Gremlins 2: The New Batch), while the first two films were pretty cheap and a bit hokey, Dimension promises that the newest incarnation will be made to scare.

From acclaimed director Alexandre Aja (“The Hills Have Eyes”) comes the new action thriller PIRANHA 3D, in the latest eye-popping 3D technology. After a sudden underwater tremor sets free scores of the prehistoric man-eating fish, an unlikely group of strangers must band together to stop themselves from becoming fish food for the area’s new razor-toothed residents.

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