Leprechaun Returns
A group of sorority sisters attempting to set up an off-the-grid sorority house awaken the pint-sized rhyming monstrosity at the bottom of their well and he is out for blo…well, actually he’s out for gold. The blood is just a bonus.
It just so happens that one of the girls is Lila Reding, daughter of Jennifer Aniston’s character from the original film. It seems like they’re going the Halloween 2018 route with this reboot and decided to retcon all the sequels and start fresh-ish. Honestly, I’m okay with this. Some of those sequels were kind of enjoyable and others make dog shit look good. (looking at you Leprechaun: Origins) We’ve forgotten most of them and the franchise might as well do the same.
I really don’t know where to start with this movie. I honestly didn’t have high expectations going in. I don’t think I even watched the trailer when it came out. But it has been a long fucking week so I decided to kick back and check out some campy SyFy movie fun. I figured there would be some lazy writing, sub-par acting, terrible CGI, and a few laughs and that’s usually a recipe for a good time. I was pleasantly surprised.
In fact, if you asked me to sum up Leprechaun Returns in two words they would be, “surprisingly good”. The writing was solid; the characters had a rare level of realness to them. They didn’t feel like tropes packed into a bad situation and that was refreshing. The story was fun and even when it was predictable it was well done. Lila played by Taylor Speitler , Mark Holton reprising his role as the loveable Ozzie, and Linden Porco as the Leprechaun were standout performances but the rest of the cast was great as well. There was some CGI but it wasn’t terrible; as far as CG in horror goes, it was pretty decent; the fact that it was used sparingly definitely helped. The practical effects in this movie are fucking top notch and the kills are really entertaining. They didn’t skimp on the laughs, either. Same ol’ sassy ass Leprechaun! It wasn’t what I expected but it was still a damn good time.
Let’s talk Leprechauns. I know there were some people who were upset because Warwick Davis wasn’t coming back as the short-statured shoe enthusiast but to be honest, I think Porco is just as good. They tweaked the look a little bit and made him look a little meaner and a little uglie; I dig it. It’s a little different but the spirit of the original is there, front and center. Don’t let a new actor stepping into the buckled shoes put you off of this movie.
All in all, would I recommend Leprechaun Returns? You bet your ass I would! It’s a well done movie with solid performances, good writing, and some great gory kills. This pot of blood, guts, and gold is out now on VOD, go check it out!
