DevD the Film

The Switch is a loose adaptation of a Jeffrey Eugenides story called “Baster,” published in The New Yorker in 1996, but where the short story dealt with an unattractive and insecure man completely in love with his beautiful career-oriented BFF, the bulk of the film takes place after the short story ends — post-insemination — and that’s where the movie goes from interesting premise to confused mess. The story centers on best friends Wally (Jason Bateman), a slightly neurotic man-child, and Kassie (Jennifer Aniston), a smart career-minded woman who decides it’s time to have a baby — even if it means doing it by herself. Kassie’s friends throw her a fertility party to celebrate the event, and with a little help from sperm donor Roland “the Viking” (Patrick Wilson), she’s ready to get pregnant. But, things get wacky when Wally accidentally spills the sample and does the only thing a drunk and desperate 40-year-old man would do — replace the sample with his own. The last-minute switch is unbeknownst to her, and isn’t discovered until seven years later, when Wally finally gets acquainted with Kassie’s quirky son, Sebastian (Thomas Robinson).

Gore gags run rampant in Piranha 3D, a cartoonish bloodbath where everything is an afterthought compared to the hilarious carnage. Director Alexandre Aja is no dummy. He’s a competent horror filmmaker whose attraction to cinematic violence (Haute Tension, The Hills Have Eyes remake) makes up for his few arguable missteps (Mirrors, the final “twist” of Haute Tension). Here he tries his hand at horror comedy — with a cast sporting enough comedic chops to pull it off. Given that, he seems more interested in blood-soaked lunacy than standard character- or performance-driven laughs. Thankfully for him, the bravura moments of splatter work exceptionally well when appreciated with a vulgar eye. Boobs, castration, face-ripping, slow-mo nude water ballets — it’s all here. If the 3D craze needed an exploitive entry, this is it.