The Leprechaun series occupies a weird place on the horror chain. The little gold-loving killer has never been one of the big boys, coming up short in more than just stature next to guys like Freddy, Jason, and Michael. Still, it isn’t a series that can be dismissed easily as it has built a large cult following over the years due to lead actor Warwick Davis’s fun, over-the-top performances.
WWE films (yes, that WWE) recognized the value in the franchise, which has laid dormant for a decade, and saw an opportunity to further build out their stable of films by picking up the rights to the series. And their first entry into the franchise, Leprechaun: Origins, looks to rewrite series history. And it is not good.
From the get go, Leprechaun: Origins attempts to set a different tone than Davis’s films. The film kicks off with a couple being chased by a creature of sorts through a forest. They drop a bag that looks to have gold coins in it and shortly thereafter they cease to exist. We never see what kills them, and this mysterious approach to the monster is held for a good portion of the film.
This reserved approach often works to build up tension. But doing so relies on the viewers caring about the characters in peril. Unfortunately, Leprechaun: Origins doesn’t deliver anything resembling quality characters. The main plot follows four tourists backpacking through Ireland, that have come across a little village with some ancient stone monuments. They are coaxed into staying at an old cabin by a creepy old man who promises them the best kept secret in Ireland. All of the four primaries seem nice enough, but their personalities are all paper thin. Sophie (Stephanie Bennett) is the main focus of the film but she exists only to provide exposition to the viewers on what is going on.
And what is going on? The village is a bad place to be. The people that live there are bad people and they harbor a very dark secret. Unfortunately that secret is the same secret countless other horror films have harbored. And we quickly realize that this is all going to play out exactly as each of those other horror films does, with everyone dying. Knowing this, I sat there thinking, this can still be OK; after all it is a Leprechaun film. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
Replacing Davis in the title role is WWE wrestler Hornswoggle (real name Dylan Postl) but aside from being a little person, there is no correlation between the two performances. Davis’s take relied more on his sharp tongue than on grisly killings, although there were plenty of the latter as well. Hornswoggle’s take is more monstrous, complete with a rubber suit, and his Leprechaun never utters more than some grunts and groans. Davis was the star of his Leprechaun films, Hornswoggle is a man in a rubber suit.
Because of this, Leprechaun: Origins has no personality. And with no personality, it is just a generic horror film that doesn’t do anything particularly well except waste your time.
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