Number 21—LEPRECHAUN 3
For the month of October, we’re counting down the best horror movies of 1995! Check back every day for a new entry in the list.
Here I go again on my own.
Going down the only road I've ever known.
Like a drifter, I was born to walk alone.
“Here I Go Again” by Whitesnake
I sing this to myself with my best melodramatic David Coverdale impression as I begin to write about LEPRECHAUN 3 (1995). This will be the second time I am making a case for the magnificence of a Leprechaun movie. (See my article on LEPRECHAUN 4 IN SPACE (1996) here) It is not a coincidence that both of the best movies in this franchise are directed by the famed Ozploitation director Brian Trenchard-Smith. He is probably best known for DEAD END DRIVE-IN (1986), and TURKEY SHOOT (1982). Supposedly, he is one of Tarantino's favorite directors, with DEAD END DRIVE-IN being Tarantino's favorite Trenchard-Smith film. He's one of my favorite directors as well, but my favorites of Trenchard-Smith are these two Leprechaun films. They were my introduction to how artistic and masterfully done exploitation can be done. The dark and extremely corny humor in these movies also sits well within my macabre yet kooky soul. So yes, I'm a huge BTS fan. Brian Trenchard-Smith, that is.
If you haven't seen LEPRECHAUN 3, it continues the story of Lubdan (Warwick Davis), an evil leprechaun that gets unleashed and murders anyone who gets in between him and his gold. As the franchise goes on, the leprechaun becomes less scary and focuses more on the absurd and painfully punny comedy. Much like later Freddy Krueger, you come for the dark dad jokes and ridiculous kills. In this iteration, it follows a freshman college student Scott, played by John Gatins, and his new beautiful casino employee friend Tammy, played by Lee Armstrong. They get tangled up with Lubdan the Leprechaun and must find a way to kill him before he kills them. It's a simple plot with no real substance. You're not there for the plot anyway. The real show is Davis as Lubdan who commits fully to the absurdity and violence. So, here I go again telling you that LEPRECHAUN 3 is a sickly beautiful piece of art that has Frank Henenlotter vibes, Chiodo Brothers-esque effects, and scathing John Waters wit. To the numerous reviewers on Rotten Tomatoes who said things along the lines of “not for serious horror fans,” please suck my potatoes.
I have watched this movie on multiple occasions to introduce it to others that I believe will appreciate it past the irritating “so bad it's good” label. I know that it is indeed good and not bad, because repeatedly, others besides myself have commented that this feels like a Henenlotter movie but in Las Vegas. It has the same dirty, grimy, low budget feel of a city that has slow poison radiating from its core. The bright, neon, overly commercial lights only accentuate the darkness of its shadows. In the worst way, it feels like anything can happen. This includes a demon Leprechaun just openly and brutally murdering people while not a single police officer appears in the film.
Beyond just the overall aesthetic of trashy excess and despair, the movie provides us with solid practical effects when it comes to costuming and gore. For as fun and creative as some of these kills are, they wouldn't have had the same impact if it wasn't for disgusting transformations and visceral blood splatter. A big shout out to Frank Ceglia, the award-winning special effects coordinator and Atlantic West Effects for a job well done on a tight budget. Much like the Chiodo Brothers style of design, the special effects in this film felt both over the top gross and humorous simultaneously. I will always enjoy the robot surprise, and the big booty blowout, but oh that magic show scene will stay with me forever.
It also needs to be said that Brian Trenchard-Smith films are purposely meant to feel dumb in the smartest way possible. This is no exception. If we take a closer look at the dialogue between background characters, there's definitely meaty satire here. So meaty that my favorite character in the movie is Art, played by Tom Dugan, an actually funny loan shark in a business suit that has at least one redeeming quality. In one conversation with the seedy casino owner Mitch, Art says, “What do I want? I want brown hair. I want health insurance for all Americans. I want the Mets to get their shit together.” He later makes a short joke about the Leprechaun just before he dies that makes me laugh out loud every time. This guy had a sense of humor and fearlessness all the way to the very end. I want the Art and Tony spinoff movie stat. A Better Call Saul, but for Art the Shark.
Art wasn't the only instance of a subtle shot at the American healthcare system. There is an entire scene where a doctor refuses to help until he and the nurse confirm the patient has insurance. Later upon finding out that the patient is wealthy, they scheme a laundry list of unnecessary tests they can charge him for to take as much of his money as possible. I don't know if these stabs at the still garbage US healthcare system 30 years later was written by the writers Mark Jones and David DuBos, or if it was included as commentary from Brian Trenchard-Smith who comes from Australia and probably has more inclusive healthcare. Whomever the source, it's one of the ways this movie is much smarter than it seems.
To be clear, I do acknowledge there are definitely ways this movie does not age well. The franchise overall plays heavily on extremely over-the-top stereotypes of the Irish and leprechauns in particular. Some of the humor, especially the jokes that come with the leprechaun transformation are full on yikes, but with Brian Trenchard-Smith, who's known for his exploitation films, this is the point. You are supposed to laugh at how bad it is to say and do these things in real life. You are supposed to know better. That's probably my favorite thing about Trenchard-Smith movies, not only are you supposed to know better, he points it out to you in a way that shows you we are all fools. Humanity often needs an ego check from time to time before we arrogantly, gleefully, and recklessly dance our way into a dystopian future. LEPRECHAUN 3 is better than most give it credit for if only because people don't want to believe that a lot of genius can come from dirty and icky things. BTS? Yep, I'm crazy about him. I agree. He's my favorite horror pop filmmaker ever.
