Search - Pinata: Survival Island [Morph Art Lenticular Box] on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Graphic Violence, Nudity, Profanity, Sexual Situations, Drug Content, Gore Movie Release: 2002 DVD Release: 02/04/2003 Format: DVD Audio Tracks: English Subtitles: Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 30 mins Studio: First Look Pictures Total Copies: 11 Genres: Horror, Supernatural Horror

Written and directed by Scott Hillenbrand and David Hillenbrand, the team behind the 1999 Anaconda sequel King Cobra, Piñata: Survival Island is a horror-thriller starring Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Nicholas Brendon. Brendon plays Kyle, one of several college students participating in a reality television show that sends them to an exotic island. Once there, one of the contestants finds an ancient clay piñata and accidentally cracks it, unleashing evil spirits that possess the piñata and begins killing off the unsuspecting teens. Co-starring Jaime Pressly, Piñata: Survival Island has also been released under the title Demon Island. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide

Nicholas Brendon - Kyle
Jaime Pressly

Piñata: Survival Island (which is listed in many databases as "Survival Island" and, thus, not always easy to find) has come to DVD with a full-screen transfer (1.33:1) and a dozen chapter markers, along with a nice load of special features. The highlight is the audio commentary track by directors David Hillenbrand and Scott Hillenbrand, who are delightful to listen to as they casually explain the evolution of the idea -- out of Jewish ritual on Yom Kippur, into a Cinco de Mayo monster story, and the jumping-off point to the pre-Columbian design of the opening sequence. They also go into how the distinctly different appearance of each part of the movie was devised, from the single shots of the ancient Central American sequence to the much more complicated sequences on the island. The CGI replacement for animatronic effects (involving the killer piñata) just weren't working. The commentary is supported and enhanced by a documentary depicting the different incarnations of the evil spirit, which is doubly fascinating as the makers show the abandoned animatronic version of the creature and the way in which they substituted a CGI creation in the relevant shots. In addition to the trailer for Piñata: Survival Island, the trailers for two other movies: the comedy Bark!, starring Lisa Kudrow and Vincent D'Onofrio and the occult thriller Revelation, starring Terence Stamp, Ron Moody, and Derek Jacobi. There are also optional Spanish subtitles and a trivia game, all accessible through a dual-layer menu that opens automatically on startup. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide