Red Clover (2012)

the audience applauded

A Masterpiece!

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

I absolutely loved this movie! I'm a fan of "bad" horror flicks and such, but this was a genuinely good and fun flick! It's a perfect mix of horror and comedy, with some genuine startle-moments, some genuine creepiness, and some incredibly good humorous moments.My biggest gripe was that the ending felt quite rushed and that it ended a bit too abruptly, that there was no final Climactic Showdown as I might've expected, no hand-reaching-up-from-underground-to-grab-the-heroine, no "twist" like that.Courtney Halverson was a treat to watch, a sort of redheaded Abby Brammell, and showed a fine mix of strength and vulnerability in her character.William Devane was great as the cantankerous (but right!) grandpa.Billy Zane was a real treat in all his billyzanian goodness, and delivered some PERFECT humorous lines (especially about his nametag!).The movie didn't take itself seriously. It was NOT intended to be a straight-up horror flick, but was filled to the brim with self-deprecating humor. Those who poo-pooed "Red Clover" (sorry, but that's the title that flashes on the screen in the movie that I have) obviously didn't "get it". Quips such as "It's like I'm trapped in some bad monster movie and I can't get out." are so up-front and obvious about that, I'm amazed anyone DIDN'T get it.It's unfortunate that the somewhat abrupt and anticlimactic ending is the last you'll experience of the movie, and what you'll likely remember most, but the rest of the movie, the first 99% of it, is well worth the time spent in giving this little gem a go.First, take the movie for what it is: a fun horror-comedy that pokes fun of itself with some biting humor. Second, don't expect the antagonist to be the Lucky Charms dood (who's creepy in his own right, granted), but more Pumpkinhead instead. Keep those two points in mind, and you should love and appreciate this flick as much as I do.

Red headed chick picks the red four-leaf clover holding a demonic leprechaun captive in the woods, which curses her and frees him; he wreaks bloody havoc throughout the tiny little burg on St. Patrick's Day.It's not as annoying as the Warwick Davis/ Leprechaun flicks, with a from-out-of-nowhere monologue by Billy Zane a bizarre highlight, while most of the rest of his dialogue, and the rest the cast, is just there taking up space.As one character so very aptly puts it, "If this was a bad monster movie, it would kill everybody but you." In the end, the plot just kills off most everyone involved except the girl; was that line the filmmaker's way of letting the audience in on the joke, that this really is just a bad monster movie? And one wonders how the girl managed to explain all of this death and mayhem after the final scene? I'll give it points for trying a different look for the leprechaun than we are used to, but that's not necessarily good, and almost none of the plot makes sense. Here the leprechaun looks like Pumpkinhead gone drinking and doused in green beer. The rest of the effects are quite graphic, if sometimes badly done. Odd framing has several scenes of dialogue filmed at wide angels, when close up shots were needed. Use of camera wipes and dissolves, which haven't really been seen since the 1980s, is curious; so is the constant use of brown or green filters on the camera lens.

Yesterday I was watching the SyFy Leprechaun marathon. Most of it was the silly Warwick Davis series that has grown to be a guilty pleasure with me. I enjoyed those for the most part, they have a certain silly charm to them. I tuned in now and then during the marathon. But at 9PM they premiered a new made for SyFy film called 'Leprechaun's Revenge'. Unfortunately it had nothing what-so-ever to do with the other films even though Syfy included it in the marathon making it seem it was an addition to the series. Anyway, what a piece of emerald green garbage that was. It starred Billy Zane and William Devane, two decent actors when they want to be. I can only imagine what enticed them to be in this mess, the almighty dollar most likely and lack of work. Come to think of it Zane seems to be making it a habit these days of being in bad films. It's like he deliberately chooses them.************************** CONTAINS SPOILERS AHEAD ************************** The Leprechaun here is more like something out of the Pumpkinhead films, even being buried out in the woods till someone stupidly causes him to raise up. In this case it was by picking a red four leafed clover nearby....geesh. And part of the story seemed to be pulled from 'Drag Me to Hell' where the girl was expected to die in a few days after being cursed and started seeing things. In all fairness, the premise had some potential if it was executed properly with some degree of skill. It was the bad directing, final story and dialog that did it in. By the end of the film every one of the main characters but one was dead. And we really didn't care much when they kissed that big blarney stone in the sky either. I'm not sure the film could decide whether it wanted to be a straight out horror film with a bit of lightheartedness thrown in or a total farce not to be taken seriously in the least, either way it failed miserably. One of the dumbest scenes was when Billy Zanes character was explaining how he had lost his wife. It was in the mall shopping in a mob on black Friday that he lost his beloved wife. Some sheriff he was. Anyway, the movie was a total waste of time. It ended abruptly as if they realized in the last ten minutes we have no where to go with this so lets just kill everyone off as a joke, some Joke.

Karen O'Hara is out in the woods with her Grandfather, when they get momentarily separated and she gets attacked by a recently resurrected leprechaun. she appears to get out unscathed so when her sheriff father (billy Zane) gives grandpa an earful for taking her to hunt, she decides to keep the slowly deteriorating mysterious mark on her hand a secret little knowing that a Leprechaun is after her.All the major characters are.. Serviceable enough and the film eschews the more comedic elements of the much more well-known "Leprechaun" films (a series that has nothing to do with this one, by the way) Oh and Billy Zane has the most bizarrely funny monologue that comes out of left field of the film.All in all, this film while not being anyone that special, could have been so much worseMy grade: C-