Piranhas
Music Box Films | Release Date: August 2, 2019 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 13 Critics
Positive:
6
Mixed:
6
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
78
Austin ChronicleMatthew MonagleSep 4, 2019
Given the rags-to-riches Mafia narrative Piranhas is built upon, it’s no surprise that Giovannesi’s film has received comparisons –  both favorable and unfavorable  – to "Goodfellas." Read full review
75
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanAug 6, 2019
Piranhas is no documentary, but it plays out with a deadpan style that is deeply unsettling. Read full review
75
IndieWireDavid EhrlichJun 13, 2019
A familiar but arrestingly visceral crime story with a coming-of-age twist, Claudio Giovannesi’s Piranhas has an unusual relationship with its own predictability. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKimber MyersAug 8, 2019
Piranhas drags in moments, but it jumps from scene to scene as quickly as the boys weave through Naples on their scooters. The film races at speeds so fast that viewers won’t find themselves bored, even if they’re jarred a bit by the transitions. Read full review
67
The Film StageLeonardo GoiFeb 21, 2019
There is something so perceptive in the way Giovannesi zeroes in on these embryonic mafia bosses–especially as Piranhas ventures into the kids’ relationship with the adult world around them–which makes for an enjoyable if patchy 105-minute ride. Read full review
63
Slant MagazinePat BrownJul 29, 2019
Claudio Giovannesi’s film is more an interesting tweak of Goodfellas than an eye-opening social statement. Read full review
60
The GuardianPeter BradshawFeb 15, 2019
Giovannesi’s movie is watchable enough, but often looks like a smoothed-out, planed-down version of Garrone’s Gomorrah: Gomorrah without the rough edges, like a classy television version. Read full review
50
RogerEbert.comVikram MurthiAug 2, 2019
Piranhas generally succeeds whenever it leans into its hangout vibe. The teenage gang isn’t particularly memorable (names and personalities are eschewed for rowdy homogeneity) but their collective energy can be fun to watch, especially because it allows Giovannesi to document youth as currently lived. Read full review
50
The New York TimesGlenn KennyAug 1, 2019
In its reliance on a conventional narrative through-line, it’s more reminiscent of “The Public Enemy” than “Goodfellas” in spite of its stylings of contemporary cinematic realism. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterDeborah YoungFeb 15, 2019
The screenplay struggles to rise above the level of a sociological study into the realm of exciting cinema. Read full review
50
Screen DailyLee MarshallFeb 15, 2019
Piranhas feels a bit like a teen movie that just happens to have a Cammora backdrop, rather than a serious, nuanced drama about the paranza system – essentially, the grooming of underage kids as drug runners and Mafia footsoldiers. Read full review
50
VarietyJessica KiangFeb 15, 2019
To watch young people fall into old patterns is still to watch those old patterns, and the film cannot escape the familiarity of its archetypal, rise-to-power, fall-from-grace narrative. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleZaki HasanAug 21, 2019
When you strip away the novelty of it all, we’re left with little more than a kids-meal version of “Scarface.” Read full review
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