• Activity
  • Votes
  • Comments
  • New
  • All activity
    1. Leprechaun lore

      So to celebrate St. Patricks day this year I decided to watch all 8 Leprechaun movies (each one for the first time, incidentally), and did so over the course of 3 days. While they're still...

      So to celebrate St. Patricks day this year I decided to watch all 8 Leprechaun movies (each one for the first time, incidentally), and did so over the course of 3 days. While they're still somewhat fresh in my mind I wanted to document all of the "lore" from the franchise and how it changes from sequel to sequel because... um... well I don't really know. Fun?

      Leprechaun (1993)

      • Four leaf clovers repel and can harm the Leprechaun (think crosses and vampires). If he eats one he'll explode.
      • Trapping the Leprechaun in a box and putting a four leaf clover on top of it will make it so the Leprechaun can't escape until the clover is removed.
      • The Leprechaun bites at least one person with no ill effect other than a bite wound (this becomes pertinent in a later sequel).
      • Possessing the Leprechaun's gold essentially marks you for death as he will take it back and kill you as revenge for having it in the first place (also becomes pertinent later).
      • The Leprechaun is a cobbler by trade and can't resist the urge to shine dirty shoes (so throwing dirty shoes at him can be used as an effective distraction technique).
      • If you leave tiny vehicles or other cute methods of transportation around the Leprechaun will use them and it will be amazing.

      Leprechaun 2 (1994)

      • Contrary to what was pretty firmly established in the first movie, now if you have a piece of the Leprechaun's gold he can attack you but you can't actually be hurt or killed by him.
      • The Leprechaun can be hurt by weapons, or trapped within containers made of wrought iron (it glows red like it's burning him when he comes into contact with it).
      • If you trap the Leprechaun he has to grant you three wishes, but it's like monkey's paw on steroids. (It's not actually clear to me whether this is true, or if the Leprechaun was just bluffing and playing along with the idea in order to escape. He does "grant" some wishes but basically just used his powers to turn the wishes against his captor.)
      • No mention of four leaf clovers in this one.

      Leprechaun 3 (1995)

      • This is the first appearance of an unexplained gold medallion that will imprison the Leprechaun by turning him into a statue when placed around his neck.
      • Each piece of the Leprechaun's gold now grants its holder one wish, but if you lose possession of that gold piece the wish will backfire (typically resulting in death).
      • It's not clear whether posession of the gold still protects you at all. There's no specific mention of it, but I think in all of the kills the person being killed has already somehow lost possession of the gold piece that granted them a wish.
      • In this one if the Leprechaun bites you, you slowly begin turning into another Leprechaun (think werewolves). This is the only sequel in which this is a thing, it's never brought up again (even though I'm pretty sure the Leprechaun bites more people).
      • Leprechauns are extremely territorial and will fight other Leprechauns if they come across them, even if one of the Leprechauns was created via a bite from the other one.
      • To kill the Leprechaun you must destroy all of his gold.
      • No mention of four leaf clovers in this one that I can remember.

      Leprechaun 4: In Space (1997)

      • The Leprechaun may be an alien? At least he has knowledge of and interactions with other alien races in the galaxy (but humans do too at this point, so it's not really clear whether the Leprechaun was already involved in galactic affairs prior to whenever humans made contact).
      • No mention of clovers, shoes, wishes, the medallion, bites, or for that matter (I think) the Leprechaun's gold at all that I can remember. In fact I don't think anyone even says the word "Leprechaun" throughout the entire movie.
      • The Leprechaun can transfer himself into your body via your urine if you pee on him (or a chunk of him).

      Leprechaun in the Hood (2000)

      • The medallion that can turn the Leprechaun into a statue is back in this one.
      • The Leprechaun possesses a magical flute that makes everyone who hears it blindly follow and adore the person who played it (think pied piper). Once its effects wear off the listeners have no memory of anything that happened while they were under its spell.
      • If the Leprechaun smokes weed laced with four leaf clovers he'll lose his powers and/or pass out for a while.
      • The Leprechaun has the ability to summon "zombie fly girls" from hell who will assist him in fighting and/or escaping from people who stole his gold or trapped him, and also act as backup dancers when he's performing rap numbers. The final sequence actually confuses this a bit, as it shows him turning normal girls into the zombie fly girls by touching them, so it's unclear to me if he actually ever summoned anything from hell or not.
      • As mentioned, in this one the Leprechaun has the ability to mind-control or possess humans by touching them (you can tell when someone is possessed because their eyes glow green).
      • No mention of wishes in this one.

      Leprechaun: Back 2 Tha Hood (2003)

      • Splashing the Leprechaun with holy water laced with four leaf clovers can summon demons that will drag him back to hell (maybe only if you're a priest though). The Leprechaun will only be released from hell if someone finds and takes his gold from wherever he stashed it.
      • In previous films the Leprechaun's gold was always represented by a pot that typically had exactly 100 gold pieces in it (counting it is how the Leprechaun would know someone still has some of his gold). In this one that's been replaced by a small wooden chest that contains essentially unlimited gold pieces because it magically refills itself whenever closed.
      • This is the first one where I don't think the Leprechaun uses any magical powers at all, instead relying purely on physical attacks (except maybe when fighting the witch, I forget now).
      • Shooting the Leprechaun with bullets containing four leaf clovers will hurt him, but not very much.
      • Oh yeah, and witches (or at least humans with magical powers) are real too now, but not really powerful enough to effectively fight the Leprechaun.

      Leprechaun: Origins (2014)

      • The Leprechaun isn't even a Leprechaun anymore, they're more like those things from the cave in The Descent.
      • The Leprechaun(s) will feed on villagers unless they satiate him/them with occasional human sacrifices.
      • The less said about this one the better.

      Leprechaun Returns (2018)

      • This is the kickoff of the Leprechaun Multiverse because it's a direct sequel to the first movie, erasing all the other ones from history (except possibly Leprechaun 4: In Space, since that one occurs in the distant future).
      • Four leaf clovers can hurt the Leprechaun again. He'll explode if he eats them again.
      • The Leprechaun's compulsion to shine dirty shoes is a thing again. To be fair this did come up in some of the other movies too, but only as a gag and never really utilized as a distraction like this since the first movie.
      • I think wrought iron was mentioned again, but I don't recall it actually being used.
      • The Leprechaun's gold is exactly 100 pieces in a pot again.
      • If you leave things that he can ride laying around he'll do that again too.
      • Ghosts are real.
      • The Leprechaun can transfer himself into your body if he can get some of himself into your mouth. I think this is the only time some new lore established in Leprechaun 4: In Space makes an appearance in another movie.

      I'm sure I forgot some things (or possibly even got some wrong), but I find it interesting and entertaining that it seems like other than "the Leprechaun likes his gold and will kill you to get it" there isn't really a single "rule" that sticks across every movie in the franchise (even if you exclude Origins, which basically isn't even a Leprechaun movie at all).

      19 votes
    2. Movie of the Week #21 - High Noon

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Third movie of Best Picture nominees that didn't win is High Noon from 1952 directed by Fred Zinnemann and starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly. Gary Cooper won for best actor, Dimitri Tiomkin won for the score and for the title song "The Ballad of High Noon ("Do Not Forsake Me, O My Darlin'")"

      IMDb
      Letterboxd
      Wikipedia

      Besides any thoughts on this movie, have you seen the other nominees that year and do you think this deserved the win instead?

      The other nominees:

      • The Greatest Show on Earth (winner)
      • Ivanhoe
      • Moulin Rouge
      • The Quiet Man

      The rest of the schedule is:

      • 25th: Saving Private Ryan
      7 votes
    3. Midweek Movie Free Talk

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Have you watched any movies recently you want to discuss? Any films you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.

      Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.

      7 votes
    4. Movie of the Week #20 - Life is Beautiful

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Second movie in the Best Picture Losers month is Life is Beautiful from 1997 directed by and starring Roberto Benigni. It won for Best Foreign Language Film, Best Leading Actor and Best Original Dramatic Score.

      IMDb
      Letterboxd
      Wikipedia

      Besides any thoughts on this movie, have you seen the other nominees that year and do you think this deserved the win instead?

      The other nominees:

      • Shakespeare in Love (winner)
      • Elizabeth
      • Saving Private Ryan
      • The Thin Red Line

      The rest of the schedule is:

      • 18th: High Noon
      • 25th: Saving Private Ryan
      6 votes
    5. Midweek Movie Free Talk

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Have you watched any movies recently you want to discuss? Any films you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.

      Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.

      4 votes
    6. Movie of the Week #19 - There Will Be Blood

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      First movie in the Best Picture Losers month, starting with There Will Be Blood from 2007 directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. While it didn't win Best Picture, Daniel Day-Lewis won for Best Actor and Robert Elswit won for Best Cinematography.

      IMDb
      Letterboxd
      Wikipedia

      Besides any thoughts on this movie, have you seen the other nominees that year and do you think this deserved the win instead?

      The other nominees:

      • No Country for Old Men (winner)
      • Atonement
      • Juno
      • Michael Clayton

      The rest of the schedule is:

      • 11th: Life is beautiful
      • 18th: High Noon
      • 25th: Saving Private Ryan
      11 votes
    7. Final 2024 Oscar predictions

      We are officially one week away from the Oscar's and all the precursors (being the award shows that happen before the Oscar's) have come and gone. Here's where I think the Oscar's will go on March...

      We are officially one week away from the Oscar's and all the precursors (being the award shows that happen before the Oscar's) have come and gone. Here's where I think the Oscar's will go on March 10th.

      Picture: Oppenheimer

      It's a done deal.

      Director: Christopher Nolan - Oppenheimer

      Original Screenplay: Anatomy of a Fall

      After unexpectedly winning the Golden Globe for Best Screenplay it immediately became the front-runner in the category besting previous front-runners The Holdovers and Barbie (which got switched over to Adapted anyway). Having picked up the BAFTA in the same category, it's locked.

      Adapted Screenplay: American Fiction

      Also having won the BAFTA for Adapted Screenplay, beating out Poor Things and Oppenheimer (which BAFTA loved) this is also pretty clearly the favorite to win here. Two weak winners in a row for this category imo.

      Lead Actor: Cillian Murphy - Oppenheimer

      This seemed obvious for a long time, but now that he's swept all the awards it's a done deal..

      Lead Actress: Lilly Gladstone - Killers of the Flower Moon

      This is actually a tight race between her and Emma Stone in Poor Things. They both won the Globe and Stone won the BAFTA while Gladstone won SAG. Gladstone wasn't even nominated at BAFTA (despite the jury being there to nominate minorities) which complicated the race. However, with SAG having gone after BAFTA I think that'll have more influence and give Gladstone more momentum. Also, most of the time when SAG gives Best Ensemble to the eventual Picture winner they tend to go 4/4 in the acting categories.

      Supporting Actor: Robert Downey Jr. - Oppenheimer

      He swept like Brad Pitt in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

      Supporting Actress: D'avine Joy Randolph - The Holdovers

      Also swept.

      Original Score: Oppenheimer

      Original Song: What Was I Made For? from Barbie

      Sound: Oppenheimer

      Production Design: Poor Things

      Cinematography: Oppenheimer

      Makeup & Hairstyling: Maestro

      Costume Design: Barbie

      Poor Things won BAFTA, however BAFTA as a whole did not like Barbie very much. And there's too much iconography attached to the film in this category that I think the Oscar's will go for it over Poor Things.

      Film Editing: Oppenheimer

      Visual Effects: The Creator

      After the branch snubbed both Oppenheimer and Poor Things, it muddled the winner in this category. People initially thought Guardians of the Galaxy 3 would be the winner. But there's pretty severe anti-superhero bias in the category. The Creator won at the VFX guild, it's flashy, it looks good, and it's somewhat of a "serious" movie.

      Animated Feature: Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

      This isn't as clear as a race as I thought it would have been. Globes and BAFTA went with Boy and the Heron in this category while Critic's Choice and PGA went with Spider-Verse. The Oscar's usually goes populist in this category (eg they went with Toy Story 4 when Globes and BAFTA went in a more artsy direction). So I'm sticking with Spider-Man here.

      Documentary Feature: 20 Days in Mariupol

      Live Action Short: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

      This would give Wes Anderson his first Oscar win, if the Academy doesn't blue ball him.

      Animated Short: Letter to a Pig

      Documentary Short: The ABC's of Book Banning

      8 votes
    8. Midweek Movie Free Talk

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Have you watched any movies recently you want to discuss? Any films you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.

      Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.

      10 votes
    9. Movie of the Week #18 - Gangs of New York

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Second Martin Scorsese movie is Gangs of New York from 2002.

      IMDb
      Letterboxd
      Wikipedia

      Besides any thoughts any thoughts on this movie, now that we have done this little comparison between Scorsese and superhero movies, what do you think sets these types of movies apart and are they really as opposites as it is sometimes made out to be?


      The schedule for March is:

      • 4th: There Will Be Blood
      • 11th: Life is beautiful
      • 18th: High Noon
      • 25th: Saving Private Ryan
      8 votes
    10. Nominate for "Movie of the Week" in March - Best Picture nominees that didn't win

      Voting closed Sorry for the title gore, but since it is the Oscars next month, lets find a Oscar relevant selection of 4 movies, with narrowing it down to Best Picture nominees that didn't win. So...

      Voting closed

      Sorry for the title gore, but since it is the Oscars next month, lets find a Oscar relevant selection of 4 movies, with narrowing it down to Best Picture nominees that didn't win. So if you have a favorite movie where another movie took the award that year, now is a good time to bring that up.

      Rules

      • Must have been nominated in the Best Picture category for the Oscars
      • Must not be the winner of Best Picture
      • Not from this years award, since we don't know who will win yet
      • Not one we have already done
      • Only one nomination per user
      • Please only nominate if you intent to participate
      • Upvote the post(s) with a nomination you would like to be picked for discussion next month

      Wikipedia has a list of all the nominees through the years. Or this list on Letterboxd.

      In case of ties in the number of votes, random.org will decide. Voting closes Sunday.

      12 votes
    11. Midweek Movie Free Talk

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Have you watched any movies recently you want to discuss? Any films you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.

      Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.

      11 votes