The Worst St Patrick’s Day Movies

Leprechauns!  Ah yes, these little fellows are probably the first thing that comes to your mind when you think about St Patrick's Day and the Irish, however, the Irish are none to keen on the modern day idea of Leprechauns.  I would attribute this to the way they have been depicted in movies lately.

Irish or not, we will likely see a leprechaun or two, maybe on our green shirts on St Patrick's day on Sunday.  So here are some of the absolute worst films that have ever featured a leprechaun or leprechauns in all of their Americanized Hollywood glory.  I can certainly guarantee that you may want to partake of the green beer prior to watching some of these, however I cannot guarantee that will make the movies any better.  As magical as this little folks are, you would think that someone could conjure up enough magic to produce a decent flick.  Right?

The Luck of the Irish (2001)

In one of the classic Disney Channel Original Movies, we find Ryan Merriman playing Kyle, a teenage who always relied on a lucky charm. But when he loses the charm, he ends up discovering he’s actually part leprechaun who now needs to get back his charm and defeat en evil leprechaun from gaining total control.

Finian’s Rainbow (1968)

Fred Astaire stars as a mysterious Irishman named Finian who arrives in town with his daughter to plant a leprechaun’s stole crock of gold in the ground so it will grow faster in this surprisingly nice musical. But trouble arrives in the form of Og the leprechaun, who followed Finian to America bent on retrieving his gold.

Darby O’Gill and the Little People (1959)

In this Disney classic, we find Darby O’Gill spinning tales of leprechauns and banshees on an enchanted isle. But when one of the tall tales comes true, O’Gill ends up capturing the King of the Leprechauns, who must grant him three wishes. But he should have heeded the “be careful what you wish for” warning, because all of the wishes backfire in amusing and alarming ways. But, Sean Connery sings which is certainly a reason to watch.

The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns (1999)

When Jack Woods rents a cottage on an enchanted isle occupied by a family of leprechauns, he finds himself in a strange and exciting magical adventure. The adventure begins when a young leprechaun falls in love with a fairy princess. Their forbidden love reignites an age-old feud between leprechauns and fairies, which escalates into war and the potential for terrible consequences.

A Very Unlucky Leprechaun (1998)

Before Warwick Davis was portraying a goblin in the Wizarding World or a rather true-to-form version of himself, he donned the role of a leprechaun in this family friendly film. After Molly and her father inherit a house in Ireland, she discovers the leprechaun living in her house. But he isn’t so lucky because he hasn’t eaten a four-leaf clover in over a hundred years. When the bad luck rubs off in Molly, she must take it upon herself to grow a clover and save the day.

Leprechaun (1993)

Certainly one of the most memorable leprechaun movies because it stands apart from the rest in that it is not only a series of six years over a decade, but it’s a collection of horror films, too! Warwick Davis stars, again, as a sadistic leprechaun who goes on a killing rampage in search of his beloved pot of gold. We don’t promise that these are “good” movies, but they are entertaining for the sheer value of them and the idea of a frightening little leprechaun preying on unsuspecting humans.

Chasing Leprechauns (2012)

This Hallmark Holiday movie is new this year, but with Adrian Pasdar leading the cast, we are already left charmed by the commercials we’ve seen. Pasdar stars as the top troubleshooter that an American company sends over to Ireland when they want to build a smelting plant outside a small Irish village, but he encounters problems – and perhaps even love – when a woman and an antiquated law aims to protect the leprechauns supposedly living on the property.