The Leprechaun returns once again when a group of girls unwillingly awaken him when they tear down a cabin so that they can build a new sorority house.
After watching the original “Leprechaun” back in the day, played with magical glee by the legendary Warwick Davis, I was not impressed, even back then. Sort of like the “Child’s Play” movies, there’s nothing scary about a demonic doll, or a magically delicious dancing leprechaun. You would think with all the amazing writers and filmmakers in Hollywood that there would be no shortage of incredible films coming out of Tinseltown but then again, that town is all about money so why not go back to the well and resurrect an old favorite. After all, it’s not like the fans have been petitioning for Leprechaun’s return so why they felt the need to revisit this tired, jaded franchise is beyond me but here we are!
When Lila (Taylor Spreitler) decides to spend her summer at an old, creepy abandoned house, in the middle of nowhere, with no internet and no phone service, that some of her sorority sisters have pledged to turn into a solar-powered, off-the-grid habitation, things don’t go according to plan. In the front yard is an old well that we soon discover was used to end the Leprechaun’s murderous reign 25 years ago and has been buried in its bowels ever since but as we all know, it’s hard to keep a maniacal leprechaun down. He magically returns, searching for his lost pot of gold and decapitates, slashes, mutilates, and impales anyone that gets in his way. When Lila realizes that he is real and the stories about him are true, she tells the others that her mother told her about him many years ago but that everyone thought she was crazy. Now everybody is looking at her the same way but when they start dying off and eventually come face to face with him, with the help of Ozzie (Mark Holton), a local taxi driver who helped kill the leprechaun with Lila’s mother all those years ago, they all formulate a plan with the hopes of sending him dancing all the way back to hell.
The film adopts the “Army of Darkness” mantra of being more tongue-in-cheek than scary and I guess for the franchise it is built upon, it works. The kills are so exaggerated that you can’t help but laugh at them, and director Steven Kostanski knows this as he continues, with joyful delight, to present each death with more ridiculousness than the last, culminating with an ironic, knowing wink to the audience. If this had been done as a straight-up horror film, it would not have worked, after all, there’s nothing even remotely scary about a leprechaun, even if he is demonic so utilizing a satirical approach gives the movie a little breathing room, and lets the audience know not to take it so seriously. Sadly, Warwick Davis did not return in the titular role but I feel even if he had, it would have not made a difference as the film wound up going straight to home video and that should be an indication that it is time, once and for all, to bury this series, in the deepest, darkest hole, where nobody will ever find it.
Available on Blu-ray™ (plus Digital) and DVD June 11th from Lionsgate
