Piranha II: The Spawning is a disappointing film. It’s surprising that James Cameron was involved, although everyone has to begin somewhere; he went on to direct The Terminator and *Aliens*, so things turned out well for him eventually. This initial feature-length effort, however, is simply not good. It seems the involvement of Cameron wasn't as significant as one might assume, because reports suggest producer Ovidio G. Assonitis had considerable control; Miller Drake was originally directing before he was apparently dismissed by Assonitis. That alone says a lot, really. Regardless, it’s poorly made and I can’t find anything to like about it. The editing feels disjointed, with abrupt cuts to characters for brief periods that serve no clear purpose—particularly noticeable with Chris & Allison and an unnamed couple. Some of the character exchanges, especially at the beginning, are also strange. A major problem is how the film uses the piranha themselves. In contrast to Joe Dante’s original movie, we see too much of the fish, which diminishes their impact; a subtler approach would have been better. And that's even before getting into the most ridiculous element: they made the piranha fly. The result is as bad as you might imagine. I don’t really have anything substantial to comment on regarding the actors, but truthfully, this film’s shortcomings aren't their fault. Tricia O'Neil stands out if I had to choose someone. Maybe only a group of top-tier performers could have rescued it, though that’s unlikely considering all the difficulties behind the scenes.

Source on TMDB