The first “Leprechaun” was easily one of the worst horror movies I’ve seen and “Leprechaun 2” is just more of the same. I just don’t get the appeal of the franchise and I can’t believe that there are so many darn sequels. However, this was the last one in the original run to get a theatrical release. When even “Hellraiser” gets more theatrical sequels than your franchise (and we know just how bad some of those “Hellraiser” sequels are), you know you have got a real problem.

The Leprechaun (Warwick Davis “Willow”, “Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi”) is out to get himself a bride. The vile little creature has his sights set on Bridget (Shevonne Durkin “Tammy and the T-Rex”), who is a descendant of a slave of the Leprechaun.

The Leprechaun character is just awful. I never found him funny or entertaining. He’s just so annoying that I wanted to kick him every time he was on the screen. The rest of the characters are painfully dull and the performances are so amateurish. We just don’t care about the girl or any of the people we see. Nobody is even remotely intelligent in this movie. Clint Howard (“Apollo 13”, “The Ice Cream Man”) has a small role.

This is just as terrible as the first movie. I went into this thinking that it has to be better than the first one but the two are almost indistinguishable from one another. The first one had a young Jennifer Aniston (“Picture Perfect”) in it and that’s about the only real difference. This sequel does actually take place on St. Patrick’s Day so you might consider this a holiday movie. If the Leprechaun just wants his gold then he can have it, as long as it means he stops making movies.

Godzilla returns in “Godzilla Raids Again” but this time, he’s not alone. This was the first sequel in the “Godzilla” franchise and I actually think this one improved upon the first movie by giving him another monster to fight. This was also the last black and white entry in the series before the switch to colour with “King Kong vs. Godzilla”.

Godzilla and Anguirus are spotted battling on an island by members of Japan’s fishing fleet. The government and military hear about this and try to come up with a plan to defeat the monsters. The two monsters make their way to Japan and cause mayhem. As the destruction continues, the race is on to try to save the nation of Japan from total destruction.

The characters in this movie are okay. Takashi Shimura (“Ikiru”, “Godzilla”) is back so if you wanted to see him again, you will do. Of course, the real focus is on the monsters. Godzilla is more menacing here than he is in many of the later sequels. Anguirus is not one of the absolute best monsters from the franchise but I still like him. He appears in some of the sequels as an ally of Godzilla.

“Godzilla Raids Again” is a lot like the first movie but the addition of another monster really helps make this one more entertaining. I know I’m in the minority but I like this one better than the original film. It has a relatively dark tone like the first movie before the series transitioned to a far lighter style. It’s not one of the absolute best “Godzilla” movies out there but I enjoyed and I think it’s worth seeing. It’s also intriguing to see one of the black and white giant monster flicks from Japan before the switch to colour for “Rodan”, “Mothra” and the endless stream of “Godzilla” sequels.

“Firepower” is a cheesy but undeniably enjoyable sci-fi/action flick. It seems to blend together concepts from both “RoboCop” and “Bloodsport” and is actually far more entertaining than I was expecting it to be.

In the near future, parts of Los Angeles have been handed over to gangs for them to do as they wish. Darren (Chad McQueen “The Karate Kid”) and Nick (Gary Daniels “Rage”, “The Expendables”) are two tough cops that are on the hunt for a dangerous outlaw (Jim Hellwig) and decide to go undercover in the off-limits zone of the city. There they will have to participate in a deadly fighting tournament.

Chad McQueen is sadly not very convincing. Gary Daniels shows off some his impressive fighting skills and is way better suited to this type of film than McQueen is. Jim Hellwig is best known for being wrestler the Ultimate Warrior. Here, he just has to stand around and look menacing. We see various other fighters involved in the tournament and most of them pull off a few good moves. The other characters are not particularly interesting and the parts with Darren’s family feel really underdeveloped. It probably would have been better to cut them out of the film as the scenes with them feel pointless as they are.

“Firepower” is a low-budget film but it actually looks pretty good. It did a decent job of sucking me into the sci-fi world. This is from the same company that did “Cyber Tracker” with Don ‘The Dragon’ Wilson and I can safely say that this one was way better. The movie has the fight sequences that are actually a little bit like the fights in “Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome” with weapons being used during the fights. If you are a fan of cheesy action films and you like movies such as “RoboCop” and “Bloodsport” then this is worth checking out.

Brendan Fraser (“The Mummy”, “George of the Jungle”) and Liz Hurley (“Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery”) star in the 2000 remake of “Bedazzled”. The original came out in the 60s with Dudley Moore (“Arthur”) and Raquel Welch (“Myra Breckinridge”). This remake is a movie that sounds good on paper but it severely misfires in reality.

Elliot Richards (Fraser) is a socially awkward guy that irritates his co-workers and gets ignored by his crush, Alison (Frances O’Connor “Timeline”). The Devil (Hurley) offers Elliot the chance to turn his life around by granting him 7 wishes so that she can have his soul. Elliot tries his best to use the wishes to get the girl he wants but it turns out that nothing is as good as it first appears.

Fraser looks completely lost at times during this movie. His character gets thrown into lots of weird and wild situations and the actor just really seems to struggle to know what to do. I don’t really blame as the script is all over the place. Hurley is clearly having fun with the role. The film really just feels like an excuse for her to pose around in various sexy outfits while teasing the goofy Brendan Fraser. The other characters are disappointing.

Hurley is fun to watch as the Devil but the rest of the movie is just underwhelming. A lot of the gags are not that funny, some of the special effects are awful and some sequences just come across as weird. The part where Fraser gets to become a basketball player just looks so unsettling as he’s turned into a really tall guy. I can’t compare it to the original because I’ve not seen the 60s version but from what I hear, it’s far better than this. Skip “Bedazzled” and just stick to “George of the Jungle” if you want laughs from Fraser.

“Riot” is another entertaining action flick starring Gary Daniels (“Rage”, “City Hunter”). Sure, the production values are not great but the film features enough impressive action sequences to keep you happy. It feels like a fun mix of “Patriot Games”, “Escape From New York” and “Rumble In The Bronx”.

Major Shane Alcott (Daniels) is a S.A.S. man deployed to the United States to help train American soldiers. He sees on the news that riots are happening in the city despite it being Christmas. His services are called upon when his ex-girlfriend and daughter of the British ambassador is kidnapped by street thugs during the carnage. However, it turns out that the I.R.A. are masterminding this operation.

Daniels is still not a great actor but he’s believable in the role and his fighting skills are terrific. Boxer Sugar Ray Leonard appears as Major Williams, a friend and colleague of Alcott. Patrick Kilpatrick (“Minority Report”, “Death Warrant”) plays the main I.R.A. bad guy and he’s clearly having a lot of fun with the role. He’s ridiculous but I enjoyed the performance. Thom Barry (“Space Jam”, “Independence Day”) is okay as a simple family man living in the rough part of town that is seeing the worst of the violence.

Despite the fact that “Riot” is clearly a low-budget movie, it sure manages to pack a punch. We see Daniels fight with black gangs as well as the I.R.A. and we also have both an exploding helicopter and a car chase. Having Daniels sent alone into hostile territory did remind me a lot of “Escape From New York” and the whole Northern Irish angle definitely made me think of “Patriot Games”. It’s fair to say that this is not a completely original movie but it’s original in delivering this combination of ideas. It’s not a spectacular movie but if you just want a fun action flick then go and check it out.

Gary Daniels (“Firepower”, “City Hunter”) stars in “Rage”, a surprisingly enjoyable action flick with some sci-fi elements. It appears to lift plot elements from films such as “Universal Soldier” so it’s not entirely original but it is entertaining.

Alex (Daniels) is a schoolteacher that is in the wrong place at the wrong time as a man jumps into his car with a gun. It isn’t long before he’s captured and experimented on as part of a secret government program to create an army of super soldiers. He escapes and is now being hunted. Alex must find a way to prove his innocence and expose the program before he dies due to the serum in his body.

Gary Daniels is a kickboxer from the United Kingdom and he gets to demonstrate some of his great skills during the various action sequences. When it comes to his acting skills, he’s not so great but he tries his best and his character is very likeable. He gets to do everything from fistfights to shootouts to hanging to the side of a building to car chases. The other characters in this movie are not so great and I really did not care for the reporter character.

“Rage” is a low-budget action flick but the action sequences themselves are actually very impressive. The sequence where Daniels hangs onto the side of a building while a gunman on a helicopter tries to blast him could have easily been found in a Jackie Chan (“Who Am I?”) picture. The vehicular stunts are also really good. The film was made by PM Entertainment and in one scene, you see a video store filled with posters of some of their other low-budget action movies. As I mentioned, it’s not totally original but you won’t care when you see Daniels knocking out everybody with his kicks.

The third entry in the “Hatchet” series was intended to be the last but of course, no horror franchise can ever stay buried. The first of the “Hatchet” films was not particularly entertaining but it did have some merit, “Hatchet III” is as underwhelming as most other slasher sequels.

Marybeth (Danielle Harris “Halloween 4: The Return Of Michael Myers”, “The Last Boy Scout”) has survived her encounter with Victor Crowley (Kane Hodder “Friday The 13th Part VII: The New Blood”) and has told her story to the local police. The authorities go in search of the bodies of Crowley’s massacre but the killer is still alive and he’s not finished killing just yet.

Like the other entries in the series, this is all about showing us stars from old horror movies. We of course have Harris from some of the “Halloween” sequels, Hodder from a few “Friday The 13th” entries, Zach Galligan from “Gremlins” and Caroline Williams from “Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2”. I will admit that some of the prosthetics on the Victor Crowley character are impressive. The make-up and special effects people that worked on this have done a great job with Crowley and the countless mutilated bodies you see.

“Hatchet III” is a showcase for some great special effects with tons of gore. However, the script is so incredibly dull. We don’t care about what’s going on because we know this is the type of film where the villain can never truly die. The movie literally starts with Crowley getting slashed up by a chainsaw. We know the writers can just bend the rules if the studio wants them to crank out another one. Don’t waste your time with “Hatchet III” because it’s just another boring slasher sequel that’s no more creative than the countless “Halloween” and “Friday The 13th” sequels.

The first “Candyman” movie was pretty darn awful and this sequel is even worse. The movie caused some controversy during its release as it was around the time of the trial of O.J. Simpson and its depiction of a large black man threatening a white woman with extreme violence was seen as feeding into a certain narrative. Thankfully, we can now just view it as a horror movie.

Candyman (Tony Todd “The Rock”) strikes again, this time he’s in New Orleans. It turns out that the secret to defeating Candyman can be found in his past. The dark and disturbing story of how the folks of New Orleans wronged him will reveal his one true weakness. Can Candyman finally be stopped?

I imagine Tony Todd could be genuinely intimidating but he’s stuck with a horrendous script. The Candyman has really inconsistent powers as sometimes he shows up immediately he kills the people that summoned him but sometimes, he takes his time. Why have a character like this? When we have a supernatural character that plays by no rules, we lose interest because it’s clear the filmmakers were not thinking. At times, we are meant to feel sorry for Candyman due to the racist violence he endured. However, this is a guy that still goes around butchering innocent people with a hook for a hand. The other characters are really boring.

“Candyman: Farewell To The Flesh” has some dialog about hurricanes that really has not aged well in the post-Katrina era. This is another movie that highlights New Orleans as one of the few places in the world (along with Haiti) to have relatively high levels of adherence to voodoo. Pondering the possible relationship between the area’s spiritual practices and the natural disasters it faces is far more worthwhile than watching “Candyman: Farewell To The Flesh”.

“Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies” is pretty much the same as the first movie with some impressive practical special effects but everything else is pretty lame. This one did not even get a theatrical release as this was a tv movie.

The same demonic djinn (Andrew Divoff “Air Force One”) is back after being accidentally released from his slumber during a botched robbery. Now, he’s out to grant wishes to anybody he meets so that he can claim 1,001 souls in order to fulfil an ancient prophecy and take control of the Earth. Can this evil entity be stopped or is the world doomed?

Andrew Divoff is clearly having a lot of fun with the role as the evil genie. He’s actually fairly entertaining whenever he’s on the screen but unfortunately, the rest of the movie is a complete mess. When he’s in his true form, the costume design is pretty good but he still doesn’t look all that scary. The other characters in this movie are just dreadful. I didn’t care about the main girl, Morgana (Holly Fields). Basically, whenever Divoff is not there, this movie just grinds to a complete halt. Some of the effects used when people’s wishes are fulfilled are quite good.

I think the performance from Divoff and the practical effects are good but that’s about it. Some of the wish fulfilments are really odd as we see a lawyer literally have sex with himself and we also see an old woman excrete gold coins (thankfully we don’t see any graphic detail in either case). Most of the characters are really bland and some of the digital special effects look terrible. If you really liked the first “Wishmaster” then I imagine you will enjoy this one too. You don’t need to have seen the first one to understand this one either.

If you thought “Jaws: The Revenge” was the worst “Jaws” movie then wait till you see “Cruel Jaws”. You probably have not heard of this sequel and that’s because it’s not part of the official “Jaws” series. It’s made by Italian schlockmeister Bruno Mattei (“Night Killer”, “Strike Commando”) and steals footage from various shark films including the “Jaws” movies (some releases of the film have since removed the “Jaws” footage due to a copyright dispute).

A huge shark terrorises a coastal community in Florida. The area is hoping to have its beaches packed but the more people go to the seaside, the greater the number of dead bodies. The townsfolk will have to do their best to destroy the monster.

The shark in this movie looks absolutely terrible as it keeps changing because the filmmakers are using footage from many different movies such as “Deep Blood” and “The Last Shark”. At least it doesn’t roar like the shark in “Jaws: The Revenge”. The human characters are really awful and there are just way too many of them. Seriously, there are tons of teens, a corrupt businessman, mobsters and just way too many others and it just becomes a total mess.

“Cruel Jaws” is a film that steals so much from other movies. The plot is essentially the same as the first “Jaws” movie, the shark footage is taken from several other movies and this movie even steals some of the music from “Star Wars”. It’s worse than “Jaws: The Revenge” (and any other shark film I can think of) because there is virtually nothing original on offer here. As bad as many other shark films are, they at least feature new footage and don’t just steal from other movies. Aside from the blatant theft, this is an abysmal movie from beginning to end and one I urge you to avoid like a real shark in the water.