Leprechaun (film)
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| Leprechaun | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover of Leprechaun |
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| Directed by | Mark Jones |
| Produced by | Mark Amin, Jeffrey B. Mallian |
| Written by | Mark Jones |
| Starring | Warwick Davis, Jennifer Aniston, Ken Olandt, Mark Holton |
| Music by | Kevin Kiner, Robert J. Walsh |
| Cinematography | Levie Isaacks |
| Editing by | Christopher Roth |
| Distributed by | Trimark Pictures |
| Release date(s) | 1993 |
| Running time | 92 min |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Followed by | Leprechaun 2 |
| IMDb profile | |
Leprechaun is a 1993 horror film directed by Mark Jones.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The Leprechaun in this movie is a violent creature, who uses his magic powers to harm anyone that comes between him and his gold. The Leprechaun is sealed away early in the film by a man named Daniel O'Grady who stole a Leprechaun's gold from Ireland, but was followed by the Leprechaun he stole from. O'Grady manages to trap his pursuer in a basement, by luring him into a crate, and then placing a four leaf clover,which is said to kill Leprechauns, on top of the box. He attempts to incinerate the Leprechaun, however, he instead ends up having a stroke and collapses.
Ten years later, a man (John Sanderford), and his daughter Tory (Jennifer Aniston), attempt to move into the house the Leprechaun was trapped in, its history unknown to them. They stumble upon the box in the basement of their new home, where the four leaf clover remains on the box, imprisoning the Leprechaun. After accidentally releasing the Leprechaun by removing the clover from the lid, the Leprechaun escapes to where his pilfered gold was hidden.
There are also three other guys involved in the plot who were hired to paint the house for the family, but when the oldest, Ozzie, who is mentally challenged, discovers the Leprechaun's gold, he accidentally swallows a piece of gold while biting it to ascertain it's validity. The Leprechaun reaches the pot of gold soon after Ozzie leaves and begins to count each individual coin, becoming angry when he notices a piece is missing. The Leprechaun then sets out to punish the thief.
The movie is filled with cheesy one-liners and gory executions, as well as rhymes by the Leprechaun himself; often followed by the exclamation of, "I want me gold!"
A sample of the Leprechaun's sardonic cruelty is a scene in which he is bouncing up and down upon a the chest of a collectible coin shop owner while reciting, "This old lep, he played one, he played pogo on his lung!" In the original script, the Leprechaun also said, "With a squish-squash, paddy-wash, I just crushed his head! This old man is surely dead!"
Near the end, the group finds Daniel O'Grady, the man who owned the house ten years ago and asks him what he knows about the Leprechaun and how they can stop the angry midget. Daniel says the only way to break through a Leprechaun's invincibility is to touch him with a four-leafed clover.
By this time, the Leprechaun has caught up with the painter who took his gold piece. Ozzie confesses that he had swallowed it which infuriates the Leprechaun more. The climax of the movie takes place on the estate of the house Ozzie was assigned to paint, near a well on the property. The Leprechaun almost kills Ozzie with his shoe buckle, But Alex (the youngest of the painters), putting his newfound knowledge to good use, finds a clover and sticks it to a piece of gum on his slingshot, catapulting it into the Leprechaun's mouth just before he kills Ozzie.
After this the Leprechaun's flesh starts to dissolve and he falls in a well. However, just when they think it's over the rotting corpse of the Leprechaun begins to crawl out from the well demanding his gold. Tory's love interest produces a shotgun and hits the Leprechaun in the face with the stock of the gun, sending the angry little man plummeting back down the well, and then pours kerosene into the well and drops a lit match inside, causing the well to explode. The cops arrive only to find a bleeding Ozzie in the arms of Tory. A cop looks in the well to hear: "I'll not rest 'til I have me gold. Curse this well that me soul shall dwell, 'til I find me magic that breaks the spell." Being trapped in the well is obviously just a minor setback for the Leprechaun.
[edit] Criticism
Many find this movie the least impressive of the series, but enjoyable and funny nonetheless. Some were disappointed to find that none of the main characters were killed. Many felt that Alex or Tory should have died, but instead, the Leprechaun was kept in another part of town, killing off minor characters.
[edit] Films in the series
- Leprechaun (1993)
- Leprechaun 2 (1993)
- Set in Los Angeles, California
- Leprechaun 3 (1994)
- Set in Las Vegas, Nevada
- Leprechaun 4: In Space (1996)
- Leprechaun in the Hood (2000)
- Set in Compton, California, and guest-starring Ice-T and Coolio (as himself)
- Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood (2003)
[edit] Cast
Warwick Davis portrayed the Leprechaun in all 6 films.
- Leprechaun 1 - Jennifer Aniston
- Leprechaun 2 - Charlie Heath
- Leprechaun 3 - John Gatins
- Leprechaun 4 - Brent Jasmer
- Leprechaun 5 - Ice-T
- Leprechaun 6 - Tangi Miller
