Leprechaun in LA on St Patrick's Day

 

For a more comprehensive review: Old Review

The only reason I decided to revisit the first three Leprechaun films was because the previous viewings were from showings on SYFY, so they were edited. This is it, though. I don't think I could sit through these again. I totally get, though, why they are cult favorites. Warwick Davis is so invested in the jolly nature of his wicked Leprechaun character/heavy that I totally understand why there are fans of the franchise. Snatching a gold tooth directly out of the mouth of a hobo on the grounds of Houdini's estate (yeah, bizarre touch), casting a spell on a guy believing he's about to get lucky with the film's lead actress (Shevonne Durkin, though the boobs obviously belong to a standin) but instead goes face first into a running fan (yikes!), ripping off an attorney's finger for his gold ring, burning a mocking bartender's face into mangled ick, running over a cop, causing a stomach to protrude in ghastly fashion, among other nasty acts of violence (doing so without a care in the world, often just for the hell of it), Davis in great hideous makeup from master artist, Gabe Bartalos. I think Bartalos is probably who I thank for getting any value whatsoever from this nonsense. Well Sandy Baron as boozing Uncle Morty, the legal guardian for Charlie Heath's Cody, is a fun bit of casting, the two running a failing "death tours" ripoff where you sucker out-of-towners into taking a tour of Hollywood's famous, supposedly notorious celebrity homes. Getting the series away from the Dakotas and transplanting Lep to Hollyweird (well, the lesser glamorous side, that is) was probably wise. Nice "one of us" homage in a bar where all the costumed folks celebrating St Patrick's Day in their own Lep attire gather in unison to toast and guzzle. Warwick wasted in a bar is rather amusing. But when the film is inside a "tree cavern", as Durkin's Bridget has a locked neck brace holding her captive to Lep's will and seems unable to escape his clutches due to a 1000 year old curse thanks to her Ireland namesake betraying him (many generations before her, the young woman meant for Lep to marry was protected by her enslaved father), I think the budget really shows its limits. The camera work often feels like the operator is patrolling the different locations with a camcorder. There was a clever trap laid on Lep with a safe. Too bad Morty is a numbskull who thinks Lep will grant him three wishes. The sequel follows the first film with giving Lep another souped-up ride to speed about looking to run somebody over.

If there is a correct "moral" lesson or message coming out of these ridiculous movies is that greed isn't always rewarding.