Pirahna

Fright Night hosts Emily Booth and Kim Taylor-Foster present Pirahna, with introduction from TV critic Kim Taylor-Foster.

This is the “Don’t-go-in-the-water” movie Steven Spielberg labels “the best of the Jaws rip offs” (he even stepped in to stop Jaws distributor Universal from blocking its release).

Piranha is Joe Dante’s 1978 proto-Gremlins. Part parody, part B-movie creature feature, the Roger Corman-produced mutant man-eating fish flick has less in common with Jaws than you’d imagine, but plenty to enjoy. Dante is an arguably underappreciated Hollywood legend, and in Piranha he delivers a wild plot revolving around genetically altered predators with humour, blood, guts – and boobs – laying the foundation for not only his 1984 hit Gremlins, but meta-horror to come.

With a screenplay by acclaimed writer-director John Sayles (The Howling, Lone Star), Piranha also counts Oscar-winning visual effects icon Phil Tippett among its big-name talent pool (Star Wars, Robocop, Jurassic Park, Mad God). The film even produced a sequel called Piranha Two: The Spawning, directed by a certain James Cameron, no less.

Don’t miss the chance to catch this overlooked classic on the big screen!

Introduction by Kim Taylor-Foster

Introducing the screening is Kim Taylor-Foster, a film and TV critic, journalist, broadcaster, and author. Her books include 'Why We Love The Matrix' and 'Why We Love Die Hard'.

About your Fright Night host, Emily Booth

Emily Booth is “one of the iconic women of horror”- an actress, presenter and all-round cult-movie buff who has presented shows on Channel 4, Channel 5, Bravo, and Dave, including her own cult film show Shock Movie Massacre.

Emily was the face and voice of the Horror Channel for 15 years, and has presented at many horror festivals. She has also interviewed Dario Argento, Tinto Brass and Lloyd Kauffman as part of her presenting roles. 

As an actress Emily has starred in several horror films including Cradle of Fear (2001), Evil Aliens (2005), Doghouse (2009 with Danny Dyer and Stephen Graham), Shed of The Dead (2019) and They’re Outside (2020). She also wrote, produced and starred in her own short film SELKIE which premiered at Frightfest in 2014.

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