Every genre has rules, but how well does a St Patrick's Day film follow the Slasher film rules?
Leprechaun 2 (1994) is, as should be obvious, the sequel to the previous year's Leprechaun.
The following analysis may contain spoilers for
LEPRECHAUN 2 (1994)
One thousand years after he is denied his bride a leprechaun returns to claim her descendant... and kill anyone who gets in his way.
Rule #1
A Warning Will Come From...
"What's that you say? Leprechaun's don't exist?" ~ The Leprechaun.
- The homeless guy's rant at the police station is overheard by Cody and Morty but isn't believed.
Rule #2
There Will Be T&A
"You said your parents weren't home." ~ Ian.
"So?" ~ Bridget.
"Well, aren't you going to invite me in?" ~ Ian.
"So?" ~ Bridget.
"Well, aren't you going to invite me in?" ~ Ian.
- Nudity - Faux-Bridget opens her top and removes her bra showing off a body double's breasts.
- Sex - Ian wants sex and the Leprechaun talks about what will happen when he gets his bride.
Rule #3
Death Will Be A Punishment For...
"Cody, if you were taking some dope, you'd tell me, right?" ~ Morty.
The Leprechaun is punishing two things: trying to stop him getting his bride (or trying to sleep with her) and stealing his gold. William is killed for stopping the Leprecahun taking his daughter and Ian for wanting to have sex with Bridget. The barman is killed for asking for payment (which the Leprecahun calls trying to get his gold) and Morty is killed by getting the Leprechaun's girl. Cody has one of the Leprechaun's coin and is seeing Bridget, so he's a target throughout the film (but survives.)
- 3a. Sex - Ian is killed because he is tricked into thinking he's going to bury his head in boobs.
- 3b. Nudity - No nudity, except that created by the Leprechaun to trick Ian.
- 3c. Drinking - Morty is a drunk. Then again so is the homeless guy and he survives (but loses a gold tooth.) Neither is killed for drinking, though.
- 3d. Drugs - Drinking only.
- 3e. Hitchhiking - No.
- 3f. Other criminal behaviour - Cody and Morty are petty criminals out to make a buck. Cody survives, but Morty takes it too far and is killed.
- 3g. Being annoying/being cowardly/being a sleazy guy - Ian is a sleazy guy and killed by that. The barman is annoying. Morty is killed by his greed.
- 3h. Being a bystander - William O'Day.
Rule #4
Never Go...
"Why don't we go inside? This place is giving me the creeps." ~ Ian.
- 4a. Basements - N/A.
- 4b. Upstairs - N/A.
- 4c. Showers - N/A.
- 4d. Into old sheds or out buildings - Ian is killed in a garage.
- 4e. Running off to the “safety” of the forest - William does this to escape the Leprechaun. But it's 994, so there's not much but woods.
- 4f. Anywhere alone - Everyone is alone or with Cody when killed.
- 4g. Anywhere Remote, Isolated or Confined - The Leprechaun's lair probably counts.
- 4h. Abandoned buildings - N/A.
Rule #5
Order of Death...
"And I'll thrash any soul who dare try and stop this union." ~ The Leprechaun.
- 5a: First person to appear on screen - William O'Day, first person on screen & first person killed.
- 5b: Black guy dies first - A couple of black policemen appear. None are in any danger.
- 5c. The Stoner - Morty is a drunk.
- 5d: The Bimbo - No real female characters but Bridget.
- 5e: Nerdy/Funny Guy - The Barman.
- 5f: The Macho-Jerk - Ian and the security guard.
- 5g. The Strong Female Character - No real female characters but Bridget.
- 5h. The Protector - William O'Day, as father of the original potential bride.
- 5i. The Sensitive Guy - Cody, who survives acts as this and the protector.
- 5j. Children and animals – None.
- 5k. The Final Girl - Bridget, mostly a strong female who survives.
1. (1) William O'Day [H]
2. (2) Ian [F]
3. (3) The Barman [E]
4. (4) Morty [C]
5. (5) The Security Guard [F]
Rule #6
Especially When They Are Most Needed, The Following Things Cannot Be Relied On…
"We're back where we started." ~ Cody.
There's got to be a way out." ~ Bridget.
Let's try this one." ~ Cody.
There's got to be a way out." ~ Bridget.
Let's try this one." ~ Cody.
- 6a. Communication devices - N/A.
- 6b. Lighting problems - N/A.
- 6c. Vehicular Transport - N/A.
- 6d. Your Own Legs - N/A.
- 6e. The Authorities - N/A.
- 6f. Weapons – N/A.
- 6g. Escape routes - Bridget and later Cody.
Rule #7
The Final Girl
Would you listen to me? "On its thousandth birthday, the leprechaun laid claim to the lass, and by daybreak she never heard from again." My God. That's why he came for Bridget." ~ Cody.
Bridget
- 7a. Final - With Cody, yes.
- 7b. Girl - Yes.
- 7c. Boyish - Not really. Maybe guyish clothes (replaced by a dress the Leprechaun makes her wear) but long hair and stuff.
- 7d. Well Drawn - Barely.
- 7e. Virginal & innocent - In a relationship with Cody (all that's said is they kiss) and refuses sex with Ian.
- 7f. Will be reborn - A little.
Rule #8
The Killer has a connection to...
"He was 3 feet tall, had a green suit, striped socks and a little hat." ~ Homeless Guy.
"And I bet he had little gold buckles on his little black socks." ~ Desk Sergeant.
"Yeah, that's right. Yeah." ~ Homeless Guy.
"And I bet he had little gold buckles on his little black socks." ~ Desk Sergeant.
"Yeah, that's right. Yeah." ~ Homeless Guy.
Leprechaun.
- 8a. The Location - No connected to the location.
- 8b. The Final Girl - Briget is the descendant of the bride he wanted 1,000 years earlier.
- 8c. The Protector - No connection to Cody.
- 8d. The Other Victims - No connection to the other victims (although William O'Day was his slave.
- 8e. Feminity - Not really.
- 8f. A Specific Look - He looks like a leprechaun or a clurichaun but sill acts more like a clurichaun. But you still don't know what that is, though, do you?
- 8g: A specific weapon - Whatever's handy.
Rule #9
Evil Never Dies...
"He's dead? It's over? It's really over?" ~ Bridget.
- 9a: You always have to kill the bad guy twice - Once, really. Just blown up.
- 9b: Even then the bad guy lives on - No suggestion that he lived on, despite the previous Leprechaun surviving being blown up.
- 9c: Evil is immortal - This film has a new leprechaun, rather than the original returning. He is 2,000 years old and hasn't aged for at least 1,000 years, though. There's also the identical female members of the same family (3 shown in the film, and more implied by the credits) which gives good it's own sort of immortality, too, I guess.
Rule #10
The Sequel Will Be Bigger/More Formulaic
"What a cliche." ~ Cody.
- 10a. They will follow the rules more - About the same.
- 10b. They will be more formulaic - Touches on the same concept - a Leprechaun kills people to get his gold back, but adds the element of the bride.
- 10c. There will be more T&A - One set of breasts appear in this film which could be considered to be more than the complete lack of nudity in the first film.
- 10d. There will be more and bigger deaths of the victims - Five deaths, so one more, but the deaths in the previous film may have been very slightly bigger.
- 10e. The killer’s death will be bigger - The explosion occured on-screen in this film, as opposed to off screeen. However, the previous Leprechaun melted first so it may have been bigger that time.
Results
"Are you going keep it?" ~ Bridget.
"Trust me. It's not worth it." ~ Cody.
- The following rules are followed: 1; 5; 8.
- The following rules are partially followed: 2; 3; 4; 6; 7; 9; 10.
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