Oct 021999
 
two reels

American Jack Woods (Randy Quaid) travels to a village in Ireland to buy up property, and falls in love with local girl Kathleen Fitzpatrick (Orla Brady).  He also saves the leprechaun king,  Seamus Muldoon (Colm Meaney).  While Jack and Kathleen begin a stormy relationship, Mickey (Daniel Betts), the son of the leprechaun king, and Princess Jessica (Caroline Carver), the daughter of the trooping faerie king (Roger Daltrey), are reenacting Romeo and Juliet.  Although The Grand Banshee (Whoopi Goldberg) warns of dread consequences to nature, the two groups go to war.

I have the same thought when watching any of the too few leprechaun movies that exists: it isn’t very good, but its all we’ve got for St. Patrick’s Day.  The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns is overlong, silly instead of funny, saccharine instead of romantic, and routine instead of exciting.  But you can only watch Darby O’Gill and the Little People so many times, and it isn’t all that good either.  So, until someone makes five or six good movies for the holiday, this will have to do.

Going for a non-hip, 1950s-era family audience, there are some touching moments.  The story of the two fae lovers works, although it follows the plot of Romeo and Juliet point by point.  They are likable and a fair amount of sympathy is built for them.  While too generic to carry the entire show, they are charming for their portion.  Unfortunately, as they are part of a dramatic romance, much of the slapstick and broad (though not funny) comedy undercuts any emotions their situation invokes.

Randy Quaid is believable as an everyman.  It is odd he doesn’t play this kind of part more often.  However, he has little chemistry with Orla Brady.  Why should these two get together?  Well, she’s beautiful and there aren’t many other options available in the area for her.  I guess those are reasons, but not ones to get me involved in their plight.

Colm Meaney makes an acceptable leprechaun, although his King Muldoon isn’t substantially different than the standard rogue he’s played in multiple films.  The rest of the actors are woefully miscast.  Daltrey (once the lead singer for The Who), purses his lips and speaks with the kind of puffed up bluster that children manage when imitating people they don’t like.  It is embarrassing.  The extraordinarily non-Irish Whoopi Goldberg (who doesn’t attempt an accent to everyone’s relief) does her wise Guinan routine from Star Trek, and I can’t think of anyway she could have been less like a Celtic spirit.  However, I’m sure screenplay and directing had more to do with their pathetic performances than their abilities.

The special effects do their job, but nothing more and have no “wow” factor.  The expansive Irish hills and fields (filmed in England) look attractive so if you want a travel log (to the wrong country), this will suffice.

The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns strikes the wrong note.  It needed to drop the drama and insert some honestly funny moments, or pull back on all of the absurdities, and give us an action-adventure fantasy.  As it is, I can’t imagine who it could satisfy.  But, in a supply and demand world, there is still a place for it in mid-March.

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