Off-site: Piranha  /  The Howling

Please note: This screening takes place at the Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028. 

Piranha  (1978)

Screenwriter John Sayles cleverly riffs on Jaws in this early directorial effort from Joe Dante, in which a school of deadly mutant piranha heads for a sleepy summer community. Combining crisp action with razor-sharp satire, this fast, funny and scary creature feature is one of the best films to come out of producer Roger Corman's New World Pictures in the 1970s.

35mm, color, 92 min. Director: Joe Dante. Screenwriter: John Sayles. Cast: Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies, Kevin McCarthy, Keenan Wynn, Barbara Steele.

The Howling  (1981)

TV anchorwoman Karen (Dee Wallace), traumatized after acting as bait for a Hollywood serial killer’s bloody demise, takes a sojourn in an Esalen-type retreat—only to find the entire New Age community is made up of werewolves! Co-written by indie film godfather John Sayles and directed with tremendous energy and black humor by genre specialist Joe Dante, this tongue-in-cheek chiller features a Who’s Who of great genre character actors.

35mm, color, 90 min. Director: Joe Dante. Screenwriter: John Sayles, Terence H. Winkless. Cast: Dee Wallace, Patrick Macnee, Dennis Dugan, Christopher Stone, Belinda Balaski.