The Yuck of the Irish: The Leprechaun Saga

Every so often, a film comes along that challenges your perception of what true art should be, that takes you on a satisfying roller coaster ride of emotion, that ignites your passions, alters your world view, makes you question your very beliefs, and forever changes the way that movies are made.  And then, every so often, a film comes along that makes you think to yourself, "Why in the hell did they make five sequels to this crap?"  That movie. . . is "Leprechaun".


Leprechaun (1992)

"I want me gold!"

Thus spoke the Leprechaun (Warwick Davis) in the classic first film, the aptly titled "Leprechaun", which was released theatrically in early 1993.  Writer/director Mark Jones was very, very serious in his attempt to make the fantastical Irish folk legend into something that would scare the pants off of audiences, but clearly didn't have the chops to do so, creating a cheesy cult classic instead.  That would not stop Jones from ending his quest to be an iconic horror director, however, as he would attempt something similar in 1995 with the release of his next film "Rumpelstiltskin".  The attempt failed.

Warwick Davis has often said that the Leprechaun was his favorite role of all time.  Before that, he was known primarily as Wicket the Ewok in "Return of the Jedi", and as the title character in the Ron Howard/George Lucas fantasy romp "Willow".  Since then he's been seen in everything from "Harry Potter" to "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" to "Jack the Giant Slayer" to "Doctor Who" to the T.V. series "Life's Too Short", but getting to ham it up as the titular green-clad villain while being covered beneath layers of grotesque makeup appliances remains his fondest role.  One can't help but sense the fact that Davis is having a great time in these ridiculous movies, which, I suppose, adds to the fun factor.

The plot is simple (of course).  A man returns to America from a trip to Ireland.  During his trip he manages to capture a Leprechaun and steal his pot o' gold, then keels over from a heart attack.  Years later, a group of yahoos show up to renovate their brand spankin' new rundown old house in the country and inadvertently release the Leprechaun, who's ugly, pissed off and will let nothing get in-between him and his gold.  After reciting many awful rhymes, killing a dude with a pogo stick, riding around in a little toy car, indulging in his shoe-shining obsession and informing everyone within earshot that he's a leprechaun, he's taken down by a four-leaf clover.  Or is he. . .?

This movie is perhaps most famous for starring Jennifer Aniston, who, at the time, was a nobody (this was before "Friends").  She, along with the rest of the cast (which includes the guy who played the bully who wanted Pee Wee's bike in "Pee Wee's Big Adventure") all ham it up like they're on a prime time sitcom.  Can you blame them?  The special effects are cheesy, the music is awful, the direction is ineffective, and the overall idea behind the movie is just plain dumb.  Aniston's legs are the most riveting part of the movie, and maybe they were the reason the movie made enough money to warrant sequels because, otherwise, I can't quite explain it.  If you love movies that are so bad they're good, or if you just want to laugh at something ridiculous, than "Leprechaun" is your #1 choice.

Leprechaun 2 (1994)

Don't worry if you haven't seen the original movie - the sequels have nothing to do with each other.  Each entry was either a complete reboot or were stories about identical, but separate, Leprechauns who happen to look and act like Warwick Davis.  "Leprechaun 2", released theatrically in '94 (it was the final "Leprechaun" movie to be released in theaters), was directed by new guy Rodman Flender and once again starred Warwick Davis as the titular menace. 

This time, he's abandoned his quest for gold in exchange for a new, far more precious quarry - a wife of his very own.  If he can make the woman of his dreams sneeze three times without anyone "blessing" her sneezes, she will be his forever and they will go off and have litters of ugly little Leprechaun babies (I'm not making this up).  Unfortunately, Leppy chooses the girlfriend of a poor schmoe who gives celebrity "death tours" in Los Angeles, and the fight for her hand in marriage commences.  The Leprechaun loses when he gets killed by being stabbed with a wrought iron bar.

The movie is less fun than its predecessor.  It has a slightly more professional tone to it and, therefore, less of that "so bad it's good" quality.  Davis is still entertaining to watch, though.  My favorite scene is when he's engaged in a drinking contest at a local bar with one of the protagonists.  The way the lighting is designed to make the Leprechaun look menacing has the opposite effect on me - it makes me crack up!  The cast is still full of sitcom-level actors, although the female lead this time around is pretty awful, but least the Leprechaun gets to engage in bloodier kills this time.  Still, it's not as good (?) as the first movie.

Leprechaun 3 (1995)

Here's where the series began to find its footing.  Thanks to director Brian Trenchard-Smith (director of such trash classics as "BMX Bandits", "Dead End Drive-In" and "The Man From Hong Kong"), the next two entries in the series managed to strike that golden balance between grindhouse thrills and entertainingly bad campiness.  Davis even seemed to be having more fun than ever before.

This time the Leprechaun's scouring LasVegas for those who took his gold (fitting, yes?).  The special effects are more inventive, the kills are nastier, the limericks are more insanely stupid than ever before ("What a lovely lass - I had to blow up your ass!"), the humor is far more shameless, and the acting has graduated from sitcom-level to over-the-top, perfectly matching the material.  The leading man this time around comes off as unintentionally creepy, but his acting gets better later on in the story when he becomes a were-leprechaun (you heard me).  The real highlight among the cast is Caroline Williams, best known as the fetching Stretch from "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2" (and recently seen in "Hatchet 3").  I may just be saying this because she's kissed me (randomly, out of the blue) at two separate horror movie conventions within the past couple of years.  What can I say, I'm such a pushover.

While the first "Leprechaun" may have the edge for being the original, I kind of like "Leprechaun 3" better - as the entertaining trash it is, of course.

Leprechaun 4 In Space (1996)

He's back, and more ridiculous than ever before!  Brian Trenchard-Smith returned to the director's chair to create this crazy hybrid of psycho Irish fairy tales  and sci-fi adventure epics via the direct-to-video franchise meat grinder machine.  The result was probably the most loony entry in the series, a send up of many sci-fi/horror movie conventions, but mostly just a rip-off of "Alien" and "Aliens".

In the far future, a group of gung-ho space marines are sent to destroy an unknown life form which has taken over a lucrative gold mining planet.  It's the Leprechaun, of course, and his main goal this time is to marry an alien space princess in order to get his greedy hands on her family jewels.  First, though, he needs to deal with these pesky soldiers. . .

I don't know where to begin.  Dr. Mittenhand?  The "crotchburster" scene (like the chestburster from "Alien" only, you know. . .)?  The spider/human hybrid?  The cardboard sets?  The bad-ass cross-dressing marine?  The terrible CG effects?  The scene where the Leprechaun becomes giant-sized?  The green light saber?  The fact that there's a Leprechaun - in space?  The nuttiness of part 3 is amplified to inhuman extremes in part 4.  In fact, the movie becomes exponentially more ridiculous the longer you watch it.  It must be seen to be believed.

Leprechaun in the Hood (2000)

Yes, indeed.  In the hood. 

This time it's a three-way battle between the Leprechaun (Davis, of course), badass music mogul Ice-T, and a group of rap star-wannabes led by Postmaster P (played by Anthony Montgomery from "Star Trek: Enterprise"), all battling over the Leprechaun's magic flute, which has the power to hold sway over the minds of others. 

I know, I know.

The jaw-dropping "what the hell am I watching-ness" of part 4 was toned down somewhat, but was still very much present.  The notion of juxtaposing a classic (albeit murderous) Irish fairy tale with the hip-hop trappings of downtown L.A. was weird enough, I suppose, but while "In the Hood" slows down a bit in the middle section, it still managed to "bring the strange" in the end.  Director Rob Spera lacked the twisted, "anything goes" vision of Trenchard-Smith but still managed to deliver many groan-inducing, queasy laughs.  Need I mention the "Leppy Rap" which closes out the film?

The real element which brings life to this movie is Ice-T.  He's in a stupid movie and he knows it, hamming it up equally as much as Davis, creating a nice counterbalance.  Also, look for a cameo appearance by Coolio.  I don't know what else to say beyond that.  It's a treat for bad movie fans.

Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood (2003)

This movie was originally intended to be about the Leprechaun crashing Spring Break, but was changed at the last minute to capitalize on the success of "In the Hood".  Director Steven Ayromlooi took the reins this time, creating a movie experience more akin to "Leprechaun 2" than any of the other ones.  It's less fun than the last few movies, to put it another way.

After a nifty animated prologue, we get to the actual "story".  Some desperate kids in downtown L.A. steal the Leprechaun's gold, he gets murderous, yadda, yadda, yadda.  One interesting thing about this movie is how the filmmakers try to bring it back around to the original movie with the basic plot ("I want me gold!").  They even bring four-leaf clovers back as his main method of dispatchment.  Otherwise, except for a couple of standout moments (impalement by bong, the Leprechaun trying to drive a full-sized car), it's pretty lame, even by "Leprechaun" standards.  When the biggest name in the movie is Sticky Fingaz (T.V.'s "Blade"), you know you're in trouble.

Included with the DVD release of the movie are two separate audio commentaries by the filmmakers.  I recommend listening to them because they're far more entertaining than the actual movie and provide a neat look into the world of low budget franchise filmmaking.

Well, that about does it for the Leprechaun - for now.  About a year ago, WWE films bought the rights to the franchise and announced that they were working on a new movie, "Leprechaun: Origins", set to star diminutive wrestler Hornswoggle in the title role, but I haven't heard anything since then.  What happened to the Leprechaun?  Where did he go?  I think I may have the answer -

Happy St. Patty's Day, everyone!