It's been said that Leprechaun is one of the all-time great "bad" horror movies. All of it from the ridiculous narrative to the over-the-top acting to the cringe-worthy visual effects is a disaster. It's a mystery how it all works, but the end result is an enjoyable and engaging movie. Jennifer Aniston, in her cinematic debut, fares surprisingly well, and Warwick Davis is fantastic as the leprechaun. Leprechaun is a great film to see if you like cheesy horror flicks. Avoid going in with the expectation of being afraid, since this film is more likely to make you chuckle than scream.Warwick Davis's portrayal of a vengeful leprechaun has become the stuff of legend. In the film, the leprechaun is convinced that a family has stolen his pot of gold. He sets out to hunt them down, using all of his cunning and strength. Meanwhile, the family is desperately searching for the gold, in an attempt to placate the leprechaun and keep him from harming them. Davis's performance is chilling and unforgettable, making Leprechaun one of the best horror films of all time.
The film Leprechaun was planned to be more of a straightforward horror thriller, but Davis infused his role with humor.
Leprechaun movie plot:
Dan O'Grady is originally from North Dakota, but in 1983 he went back to his country of birth, Ireland, where he abducted a leprechaun and stole his pot of gold. Once O'Grady hid the wealth, he learned that the evil leprechaun had followed him home and murdered his wife. With the help of a four-leaf clover, O'Grady restrains the leprechaun's powers and locks him up in a box. Before he could burn him, he had a stroke.
Ten years later, J. D. Redding rents the O'Grady farmhouse for the summer with his teenage daughter Tory. The farmhouse is being repainted with the assistance of contract employees Nathan Murphy, his 10-year-old brother Alex, and their dimwitted pal Ozzie Jones. Ozzie hears the leprechaun's cries for assistance while searching the basement and misidentifies him as a little kid. He releases the leprechaun by removing the old four-leaf clover from the carton. The leprechaun reveals to Ozzie that he is an Irish shoemaker who traveled to America in search of his fortune. After failing to persuade the others that he had seen a leprechaun, Ozzie sees a rainbow and pursues it in the hope of coming across a pot of riches. Alex follows him out of concern that Ozzie would harm himself. Before Ozzie, a bag containing 100 gold coins emerges by magic. They hide the gold in an ancient well after Ozzie checks it and unintentionally eats a coin, expecting to heal Ozzie's brain by doing so.
J. D. falls into a trap when a leprechaun on a farm pretends to be a cat and bites his hand. After Tory and others take him to the hospital, he rides a tricycle. When Alex and Ozzie visit a pawn shop to inspect the gold's purity, the leprechaun kills the proprietor, Joe, for stealing his gold and polishes his shoes before departing. On his way home, the leprechaun constructs a go-kart and gets pulled up for speeding. The leprechaun murders the police officer in the woods. Leprechaun returns to the farm and seeks for his prize while polishing shoes. The group returns to the farm after dropping off J.D. When Nathan examines the plundered house, a leprechaun-set bear trap injures him. Outside, they beat the leprechaun with rocks and clubs.
Leprechaun is shot multiple times after a gun is found in the house. After it fails, they attempt to depart, but the leprechaun has wrecked the truck's engine. Leprechaun terrorizes the group until Ozzie reveals he and Alex found the pot of gold. The bag is rescued from the well by Tory, who gives it to the leprechaun. They head to the hospital sure the worst is over. Leprechaun assesses his fortune and finds he's missing the coin Ozzie ate. He confronts them, thinking they fooled him, until Ozzie tells them O'Grady had a stroke and was hospitalized. By throwing dirty shoes at the leprechaun, the gang diverts his attention, and he's obliged to shine them while Tory drives off in her jeep. To kill the leprechaun, Tory visits the residence.
At the nursing home, the leprechaun is acting under the guise of O'Grady. Tory is pursued by the leprechaun until they reach an elevator. The leprechaun then throws O'Grady's mutilated body down the elevator shaft as Tory flees. Before he passes away, O'Grady gives her the warning that the only way to kill the leprechaun is with a four-leaf clover, which just so happens to grow in a vast area outside the farm. O'Grady's death puts an end to the conversation. Tory returns to the farmhouse in an attempt to locate a clover, but the leprechaun ambushes her there, and Nathan and Ozzie are required to rescue her. During his pursuit of the last gold coin, the leprechaun suffers serious injuries while trying to retrieve it from Ozzie, who later admits that he swallowed it. Before the leprechaun can kill Ozzie, Alex takes a four-leaf clover that Tory found, fastens it to a wad of gum, and shoots it into the leprechaun's mouth. This causes the leprechaun to disintegrate and disappear. In spite of the fact that it had fallen into the well, the skeleton of the leprechaun managed to come out and proclaim, "I want my gold." After Nathan has successfully coaxed the leprechaun back into the well, he then lights both of the things on fire using gasoline. When the police arrive, Tory is able to get back together with her father, get married to Nathan, and have a kid with him. While the authorities look through the remains of the well, the leprechaun makes an oath that he won't give up until he recovers every last piece of his fortune.
How well did Leprechaun (1993) fare in theaters?
The film Leprechaun was released on January 8, 1993, in 620 theaters throughout the United States, and it had an opening week gross of $2,493,020. Its total domestic gross in the United States was $8,556,940. In April of 1993, Vidmark made it available on VHS, and since then, more than 100,000 copies have been sold.
Leprechaun debate explained:
In the months leading up to the film's release, Trimark partnered with the National Basketball Association, American Stock Exchange, and Domino's Pizza and Subway to promote the movie. The partnership with Domino's and Subway was particularly controversial, as many people felt that the franchisees were being exploited. However, the marketing campaign was successful, and Leprechaun remains a cult classic to this day.
I was wondering whether there were any follow-up films to Leprechaun.
The sequel, titled Leprechaun 2, was published the year after the first one, and in it, the Leprechaun travels to Los Angeles in the hopes of finding a fresh pot of gold. The third installment of the Leprechaun franchise, titled "Leprechaun 3," is set in Las Vegas and follows the Leprechaun as he attempts to get his hands on a mystical coin that would give him three wishes. The fourth movie in the series, titled Leprechaun 4: In Space, is a bit of a change from the other films in the series due to the fact that it takes place on a spacecraft and involves the Leprechaun fighting aliens. In the fifth and final installment of the series, titled "Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood," the Leprechaun makes his way back to the neighborhood where he was raised in the city of Los Angeles. In spite of the mostly unfavorable reviews from critics, the Leprechaun series has proved to be highly successful, and the first film is still considered a cult classic to this day.
Leprechaun movie trivia
After the producers insisted on making the movie scarier so it would appeal to older audiences, several scenes had to be reshot.
It is well knowledge that George (blog post) Lucas helped cast Warwick Davis in Willow. Less well-known is the reason behind this. Davis was apparently under contract with Lucas, and Lucas had to grant Davis permission to participate in the film. Due to his contributions, he received a "special thanks" credit at the conclusion of the film. This little-known truth makes the film much more intriguing for aficionados of horror films. This is another another instance of the cultural impact of George Lucas.
The leprechaun was intended to flee to Ireland at first. But there was one problem: Warwick Davis, the Irish actor who played the leprechaun, did not have a work visa. Davis needed to secure a visa in three days to shoot the last sequence, which would have been impossible under normal conditions. Fortunately, Vice President Dan Quayle's administration was able to expedite the procedure, allowing Davis to complete shooting on time. Quayle earned a "special thanks" credit at the conclusion of the film for his services.
Warwick Davis was starting to regret making the movie, but many people rented it after Anniston became popular on TV, which led to a long line of sequels. It is said to have been one of Warwick's favorite songs.
In Leprechaun, Jennifer Aniston makes her feature picture debut.
If you're a lover of horror flicks, Leprechaun is absolutely worth seeing. It's one of those rare horror films that's genuinely humorous as well as disturbing, and it boasts some terrific performances from Warwick Davis and Jennifer Aniston. The narrative may not be the most creative, but the movie is nonetheless pleasant to see. So if you're in the mood for a nice fright, check out Leprechaun. You won't be disappointed.