Leprechaun (1993)

I've always saw Leprechaun as being an extremely underrated film. The majority of its praise tends to go to Warwick Davis, who played the title role, and deservedly so; he's a phenomenal actor and does absolutely amazing in everything he's in, and Leprechaun is no exception. But that, in itself, shouldn't negate the rest of the film in any way. By that, I simply mean that its an all-around great film, and you shouldn't sell it short just for the sake of praising Warwick Davis. It's made really well. It has great acting, directing, writing, pacing, character development, and plot. All the praise should really go to writer/director Mark Jones. It's him that really made the film what it is. Yes, Warwick Davis, Jennifer Aniston, Mark Holten and the rest of the cast were great, but they couldn't have been great if Mark Jones hadn't decided to make a horror movie about a distraught leprechaun. I mentioned Mark Holten when perhaps I should've mentioned Ken Olandt first, who, in fact, had a more significant role, because I feel that he performed extremely well, far surpassing the rest of the cast--who all did great as well. Maybe even, dare I say, as good as Warwick Davis? You may recognize Mark Holten from such 80's classics as Teen Wolf and its sequel and Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, and when seeing his performance in these films, it probably wouldn't arouse any great expectation of him as an actor. But once you see him in Leprechaun, you may realize that Mark Holten is a surprisingly talented actor. His portrayal of Ozzie is absolutely fantastic. If you've seen the film, then you may or may not understand exactly what I mean. And if, of course, you haven't seen the film, then I strongly urge you to. It seems somewhat imperative to me that I briefly mention the pacing of the film. It has a very quick pace, which I generally like. Although, sometimes, a quick pace isn't always good for a film. But in Leprechaun's case, I love the quick pace. It's one of my favorite aspects of the cinematography of the film. A quick pace makes for a fun ride, I feel. It naturally carries a lighter, higher elevated tone. For those of you who may not know what pacing is, its simply the speed at which the film carries itself. And a quicker speed, depending on the film, can mean the difference between a boring, slow film and an exciting, quick film. And Leprechaun is all the better because of its snappy pace. It's certainly one of the best horror films of the 1990's. It's always been a favorite of mine. I honestly couldn't tell you why. I just have a soft spot in my heart for it. Like most of the horror films that I've seen, I somehow managed to watch it at a very young age. Therefore, based on an assumption I am able to gather about myself, the reason why I have such deep love for some of the horror films that I do is because I am able connect it with a rooted memory from childhood, I think that any film from my childhood will always have a soft, warm spot in my heart. I think that's natural, anyways: have an emotional attachment to something because you relate it to an early, better, easier time in your life. So if I was to give reason for my love and favoritism of Leprechaun, I think this would be the reason. Absolutely.

"Fuck you, Lucky Charms!"

J. L. Pilkins