Director: Rob Spera

Starring: Warwick Davis, Ice-T, Anthony Montgomery

“A friend with weed is a friend indeed, but a friend with gold is the best I’m told.” (Leprechaun, Leprechaun In The Hood)

By the time the Leprechaun series reached its fifth instalment horror’s pint-sized Paddy had already terrorised a young Jennifer Aniston, hunted for a bride, rampaged through Las Vegas and even gone into space. Logic therefore dictated that there was only one place left for him to go – the hood.

It probably goes without saying given the title and the premise, but this film is madder than a caravan filled with seahorses. Rapper-turned-actor Ice-T plays Mack Daddy, a pimp who discovers the Leprechaun in a fossilised state and steals his magic flute, which gives him the ability to enchant anyone who hears it.

In time Mack Daddy becomes a huge rap star thanks to the flute, but when a trio of young up-and-coming rappers ask him for some help and he “disses” them (as the youth of today say) they break into his house, steal the flute, hide out at a drag queen’s house for some reason then use the flute to kick off their own rap career. Oh, and during all this, the Leprechaun’s come out of his stony state and is ready to fuck up whoever has his flute. 

Leprechaun In The Hood is a bit of a schizophrenic film. For the most part it’s as cringeworthy as you’d expect, with some truly terrible rhyming lines emerging from the titular titch’s tongue throughout (“look at all these glittering goods, I’ve got more loot than Tiger Woods”) and some horribly unfunny moments like a stereotypical Chinese shopkeeper dancing and “getting down with his bad self”.  Yet from time to time, it does hit you with a genuinely funny line that takes you by surprise and makes you question why the film isn’t always this consistent.

Ultimately the bad outweighs the good, and while the film’s clearly meant to be cheesy sometimes it just gets so bad that you can’t help but shake your head. A completely random and pointless cameo from Coolio (who doesn’t even say anything) is bewildering rather than bedazzling, and the rap during the end credits, in which the Leprechaun himself and three tone-deaf hoes chant “Lep in the hood come to do no good” has to be one of the most painful sequences in cinematic history.

Still, as long as you go in expecting pure cheese (and how could you not, bearing in mind what it’s called) then Leprechaun In The Hood will satisfy to a degree. It’s definitely not going to end up in your top fifty horror films list (or even your top ten killer midgets list) but it’s odd enough to keep you entertained for a while.

WHERE CAN I FIND IT?
Unsurprisingly, Leprechaun In The Hood is DVD-only, so you can get the UK DVD by clicking here or the US one by clicking here.

If you enjoyed this review and would like to read more, here’s a complete list of reviews on That Was A Bit Mental.