Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood

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Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood was somewhat of an improvement over the previous film in the series. On the downside, that isn't really saying much. This is because while Leprechaun in the Hood isn't the worst of the franchise, it's easily the most dull and uninteresting. The acting is better in this film overall than some of the previous Leprechaun movies. I mean, it isn't really anything terribly special. The character development is still thin to a point that I don't really care that much. The story is still pretty standard. I know that might seem like an unusual complaint for someone to have when reviewing a slasher movie. However, this isn't one where I felt like there was nearly enough of a sense of fun. A lot of slasher movies (good or bad) still have a sense of charm and fun to them, and that allows me to look past some of the more noticeable problems. Even a lot of the Leprechaun movies have had this sort of odd charm to them. Keep in mind, I am somebody who really enjoys slasher movies. There's a little bit of that here, just not as much as I would have personally liked. The kills in this film aren't the best in the franchise, but I do think there is a little more creativity in this film than there was in Leprechaun in the Hood. A couple of the kills are actually pretty fun in this film, something I felt was missing from the previous film. I want to heap as much praise as I possibly can on Warwick Davis as the leprechaun in this film, especially because this is the last time he played the leprechaun. He even managed to work through having the say the line "what's up ninjas?" and still try and have a level of dignity. To me, that might be the most impressive moment in this film. Overall, this film is neither the best nor the worst of the franchise. I certainly liked it more than Leprechaun in the Hood. But, I'm still going to find myself going back to the first four films in the series before I ever come back to this film. Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood is incredibly mediocre. It's nowhere near as fun as it could be. But, it also could have been a lot worse.

5 / 10    

Leprechaun in the Hood

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I think this is the movie in the Leprechaun franchise that confuses me the most. The leprechaun ends up in a dingy part of L.A. (mostly because the film didn't have the budget to use shots of the legitimate Los Angeles). I think this is the movie that just bored me the most in the series. Yes, Warwick Davis is giving his all like he always seems to do. Unfortunately, that's about the only piece of the film that worked for me. The characters in this film are some of the most stock people I have ever seen in a horror film. They aren't unlikable, per se. But, they don't have enough personality for me to care either. I feel like they are there, and nothing else. The kills in the film don't really leave much of an impression on me one way or the other. At least I remember how uninventive the kills in the first Leprechaun movie were. At least I remember how inventive the kills from parts 2, 3, and 4 could actually get. This is the first film where I really felt like the franchise was starting to run out of steam. I can only remember select moments of the film, and not in a particularly positive way. There's a scene where the leprechaun kills a transgender person, while the other characters think they are just having sex. Honestly, it just made me uncomfortable. And, I don't think it was done in the way the filmmakers really intended. I wasn't scared. I just didn't feel like this was a scene that was really needed for the movie. There's also a point where the leprechaun raps. I wish I was making that up. If that sounds like it was probably a bad idea from the start, that's because it was. The last thing I remember is just how awful Ice-T was in this movie. He's supposed to be the film's secondary antagonist, and I never once believed that he was actually a credible threat. The Leprechaun franchise is one that primarily works on a guilty pleasure level for me. This is the first time I had to watch a Leprechaun movie and just found it dull. It wasn't particularly fun. Is this one of the worst movies I've ever seen? No. I don't even think I can call it the worst film in the Leprechaun series (that's something I'll get to). Overall, I was happy to see that Warwick Davis was still having some fun. I just kind of wish that everything surrounding him could have been a lot more fun than the final result that we were given.

4 / 10 

Captain Marvel

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Carol Danvers (played by Brie Larson) is a highly trained, highly skilled warrior. When a mission hunting shapeshifting aliens called Skrulls is botched, she crash-lands on Earth circa 1995. She contacts her mentor (played by Jude Law) and she continues her mission to find the leader of the Skrulls, Talos (played by Ben Mendelsohn). Along the way, she teams up with Nick Fury (played by Samuel L. Jackson) and a cat named Goose. Larson does a legitimately good job as Danvers, and really handles all of her character’s aspects really well. But, if there is one person who really serves as the film’s standout, it’s Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. Here, Fury is a younger man who hasn’t yet been exposed to superheroes. Larson and Jackson truly have a phenomenal back and forth. The film’s visual effects are pretty damn solid (especially the de-aging effects on Jackson and Clark Gregg as Coulson). The action scenes are pretty good too. Occasionally, I did notice some shaky cam. Yes, the fact that this is something that’s still here bothers me. On the plus, there really isn’t that much of it. I will say that the film doesn’t always mesh tonally—or, at least as well as it could have. A lot of the humor works for me. However, I do have to say that it doesn’t work nearly as well as it has in other Marvel movies. Some of the pacing can drag the movie out a little bit. Granted, it’s never done to a point where it annoys me or really bothers me a lot. The problems I have with the movie never really reach a point where they bother me. But, they do reach a point where I notice them, and have to take note of them. The opinions on this film have probably been the most widely varied out of all of the movies within the MCU. For me, this ranks somewhere in the middle of the films within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There is a lot that works for me, and that I enjoyed. However, there are elements that I think could have been smoothed out a little bit more, and a little bit better. I would only recommend seeing this theaters to hardcore fans. Causal fans can probably wait for video. 

7 / 10 

Leprechaun 4: In Space

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How do I describe Leprechaun 4: In Space? By all accounts, this really is an awful movie. There is very little about the film that works on a legitimate level. The effects in this film are probably the absolute worst in the Leprechaun franchise. The CGI in the film has even been called awful by those who worked on it. The writing in this film is probably the cheesiest writing of the franchise. There is next to nothing in terms of actual character development. The main protagonist of the film is supposedly a scientist. I say supposedly because I don't really buy it for a second. She's the stereotypical hot blonde who is forced to strip down to her underwear by the end of the film. The actress (her name is Jessica Collins) doesn't really show the acting chops necessary to make me believe her performance in absolutely any respect. Yet, I still enjoy this movie. A lot. As usual, Warwick Davis has the time of his life playing the leprechaun. I think director Brian Trenchard-Smith (who also directed Leprechaun 3) and writer Dennis Pratt kind of knew the movie was ridiculous. I mean, the leprechaun is in space. Another example that sells me on this: one of the characters in the movie is an outer space nazi robot doctor. All of those words together should tell you everything you could possibly need to know about what this film is going to give you. This movie also has one of the most ridiculous, stupid, and amazing deaths I may have ever witnessed in a slasher movie. The leprechaun literally kills somebody by exploding out of their genitals. I couldn't make that up if I tried. The movie also features on my personal favorite genre actors, Miguel A. Nunez, Jr. This man's horror credentials speak for themselves (Friday the 13th: A New Beginning and Return of the Living Dead). I almost feel as though Leprechaun 4: In Space plays out more like an old school exploitation B-movie than anything else. This clearly isn't the best movie in the Leprechaun franchise, but it honestly might be the one I have the most fun with. In a series chock full of guilty pleasures, this one may just be the absolute guiltiest. If you've read this review, then by now you'll know whether you're interested in this movie or not. I feel as though I have described this wonderful piece of trash to the best of my ability.

6 / 10 

Leprechaun 3

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This time around, the leprechaun (played by Warwick Davis-still serving as the movie's greatest strength) terrorizes Las Vegas as several hapless people come into contact with one of his gold coins. Honestly, I kind of enjoy this piece of ridiculous horror cheese. This is probably the film that stands out to me the most in terms of its kills. For example, a guy has his eye plucked out. Another guy-a magician, no less-is sawed in half after being trapped in one of those boxes. In a lot of ways, this film still looks cheap (it is the first film in the franchise to be released direct to video). However, I think they really understood how to use the cheapness to their advantage. Since luck is a big thing in Las Vegas, I actually think it makes sense to send the leprechaun there. Now, as seems to be the case with almost all of these movies, a lot of the acting is really bad. There are times in the movie where I have to wonder whether or not some of these actors have been in front of a camera before in their lives. Fortunately, I like the characters in this film more than the ones in the second film. OK, they're nothing special. However, I think the writing and directing tries a little harder this time around. Don't get me wrong, some of the writing and directing is still pretty clunky and awkward. I honestly think this film is at its best when it's trying to be campy. It just makes the film a little more fun. A lot of the effects are pretty damn fun too. This is all the more impressive to me because this film is direct-to-video. I am usually impressed when a film is able to work around a cheap budget. I don't think I have a lot more to say about Leprechaun 3. I've kind of talked about most of the things I felt necessary for me to discuss. It's a decently fun guilty pleasure slasher movie. It's not something that changed the game for slasher movies. However, I don't think it was ever really trying to do so either. If you're a fan of the Leprechaun franchise, then I would recommend checking this film out (if, for some reason, you have never this film).

6 / 10 

Leprechaun 2

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Leprechaun 2 was released theatrically one year after the first film. This time around, we follow the titular leprechaun (played again by Warwick Davis) as he attempts to take a bride. Now, there is no chance in hell I can call Leprechaun 2 a good movie. In some ways, I think it's better than the first film. In other ways, I think it's worse. The kills are generally more fun and inventive than they were the first time around (even though I think the film would have greatly benefitted from a bigger budget). Still, the fact of the matter is, I remember more creative kills in this one compared to the first film where the majority of them were neck snaps. The acting is weird. Once again, Warwick Davis is clearly the best of the film. He is having a ball whenever he shows up on screen. Tony Cox shows up in the film for a brief scene, and it is bizarre, to say the least. His performance is memorably surreal. Actress Shevonne Durkin-playing the female lead-is the one who stands as the worst performer of the bunch. Most of the actors in this film are just kind of generically bad. This woman never once delivers a line convincingly. The film isn't particularly well written by any stretch of the imagination either. Many of the characters are fairly unlikable as well. I felt like I could at least enjoy some of the heroes in the first film. This time, I was fully rooting for the leprechaun to win. I don't really have much more to say about this film, mostly because I think it's the least memorable film in the franchise. It's not the best in the series, nor is it the worst. It's just kind of mediocre. The good stuff and the bad stuff really just even out. One never really feels as though it outweighs the other.

5 / 10 

Leprechaun

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Tori (played by a young Jennifer Aniston in her first film role) and her father move to a house in the country. She meets and "befriends" three people that were hired to help fix up their home in the middle of nowhere. An accident leads to an evil leprechaun (played by Warwick Davis) wreaking havoc until he gets his gold back. I think I should start with the negatives. There are some things in the plot you really have to be forgiving about because if you think about them too much, then they don't make much sense. For example, The three people are the strangest concoction of people running a small-time business, and their exact relationship is never actually explained. One of them has the mind of a little kid, and one of them actually is a little kid. It's something of a moot point to talk about character development, mostly because you shouldn't really expect much a lot of it from a slasher movie. The effects are generally pretty bad, though I don't know whether or not that's actually intentional. However, props should honestly be given to makeup effects on Warwick Davis (as I did find them to be genuinely impressive). I do have to appreciate the fact that this film has a fairly comedic tone. It feels as though the filmmakers know that the idea of a killer leprechaun is ridiculous, so they just kind of run with it. The acting isn't bad, by any means. Warwick Davis is clearly this movie's greatest strength. The man is obviously having the time of his life, and you can tell that he's making the most out of what he's been given. Jennifer Aniston is pretty good too. She's one of those people that just seems to be naturally charismatic, and that honestly works in her favor. There is one element to this film I have to admit to having mixed feelings towards. Those are the kills. The best kill in this movie involves a pogo stick (something I found to be genuinely creative). Unfortunately, the rest of them are kind of subpar. I bring this up because, at its core, Leprechaun is a slasher movie. Yet, I can also admit to enjoying this franchise as a whole on something of a guilty pleasure level. I think it should also be said that this first film is probably the best in the franchise objectively. I do have to recommend Leprechaun to fans of guilty pleasure movies. Just so you know, I am going to be reviewing the rest of the movies throughout the month of March.

6 / 10