Leprechaun: Origins (2014)

Two couples vacationing in Ireland decide to visit a small Irish town. Their driver leaves them at a large rock covered with symbols and tells them they must traverse the rest of the way by foot because he doesn't want to go into town.  No suspicions are raised by this behavior.

When they arrive in town, they visit the local pub to get a drink.  As Sophie talks about her college plans next year and her interest in historical research, a local man named Hamish turns to them. He tells them if they're interested in history, there is a site they should see that is not in any of the guidebooks.

Only Sophie's boyfriend is hesitant, but since he's outvoted, the couples gladly accept a ride from Hamish and his son.   The site is a seven mile walk and since it's toward the end of the day, Hamish has kindly offered the use of a cabin where the kids can stay for the night.

No one is suspicious that the house has a padlock on the outside of the front door. They just troop into the home like lemmings, as the viewer awaits the inevitable discovery that they are locked in the cabin and a leprechaun wants them dead.  In another twist on our leprechaun tale, years ago the town stole all the leprechauns gold and in penance they provide him with people to consume.  

No one shall ask why the townsfolk don't move (since the creature is confined to a specific area by stone monuments and couldn't follow them).  Also please don't even consider how much a leprechaun can eat. It kills numerous people, but leaves them essentially whole. Is it a really picky eater? Stupid leprechaun.

Based on the title of the film, I thought this was going to be a prequel to all the other leprechaun movies. But this has nothing to do with them.  It's essentially a remake, which unfortunately eliminates any humor and becomes just another slasher with kids in a cabin in the woods - and not an original one at that. Also there's that pesky problem where they've eliminated anything that looks like a leprechaun.

The only way we know this is monster is a leprechaun is because they tell us it is, and the film is called Leprechaun.  The Irish characters are dressed like they're right out of the potato famine, but our title creature looks more like a cross between a goblin and an insane chimpanzee.  If they made the exact same movie but there was no mention of Ireland and no accents, this could be a movie about an alien, a goblin, or a mutant.

mutant-alien-goblin-chimp-rechaun