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Razorteeth
Directed by Mark and John Polonia
Released: 2005
Starring: Ken Van Sant, Dave Fife, Brice Kennedy, and Kristen Wiltse
Running Time: 75 minutes
DVD Released by SRS Cinema 2005
A salvage crew is sent to a sunken Russian submarine where bags containing experimental military piranha are found. A plane transporting the deadly fish crashes in a lake in Pennsylvania, releasing them into the wild. Agent Fields (Brice Kennedy) of Secret Projects Division Section 29 of the U.S. Government is sent in to take care of the situation. He soon discovers that the fish have been feasting on those foolish enough to venture into the water. When Fields reports his findings, he is instructed to throw a poison bomb in the lake and kill the piranha. Will he destroy the killer fish before they eat everything and everyone in their path?
This micro-budget production was directed by Mark and John Polonia. Razorteeth is hurt by its excessive use of padding, probably an attempt to get the film up to near-feature film length. Unfortunately, there is very little character interaction to fill up the time (actors are rarely in the same scene together). Instead there are long scenes of characters walking around or driving bringing the action to a standstill many times during the film. With characters introduced quickly and lining up to die (a staple of “monster” films), there should be someone with whom the audience can identify and root for. Sadly, Agent Fields never rises to this challenge.
The acting is good considering the production is filled with newcomers and non-professionals. But the script and the direction calls for actors to speak their thoughts out loud instead of acting even when it’s painfully obvious what their characters are thinking. The actor who really stands out is Ken Van Sant as Ralph, the fisherman. Van Sant lends some much needed humor and charm to the mix.
To the film’s credit, there is some creativity that springs out of the miniscule budget. There is good use of stock footage, some competent film work, and even a little gore put to good use. The special effects do a fine job of emulating the piranha attacks that made Joe Dante’s
Piranha so chilling.
Razorteeth is a tough film to sit through despite its relatively short running time. The pace is very slow and there is very little originality in the storyline. There is no new ground covered despite the attempts at surprises and twists. Hopefully,
Mark and John Polonia will get a chance to direct another film soon and avoid
Razorteeth's faults. Also, don’t assume that since this is an independent production the filmmakers are pushing the envelope on violence (of which there is very little) or nudity (of which there is none).
Razorteeth is light on entertainment value and high on unintentional humor (listen for the song with the "C'mon! C'mon!" and "What?" samples).
It should find an audience somewhere, perhaps with stuffed piranha enthusiasts.
DVD Specs:
The film looks great in it's full frame format. None of the scenes are too
dark or suffer from obvious digital flaws. As usual, Sub Rosa spoils us. There are a whole bunch of extras on this
disc: a feature commentary by Mark and John Polonia, a photo gallery, "It Bites": Making Of
Razorteeth, spotlight on actor Ken Van Sant, and a trailer gallery.
For more
information, check out Sub
Rosa Studios.
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