🔗 Share this article

“Well, the situation is pretty dire here. The guidance we offer all of our clients to commit their entire holdings into tinned provisions and hunting rifles.” That bit of sage advice comes from the Brain Gremlin – a lab-engineered, talking, spectacled member of the slick creature crowd that overruns Manhattan’s ultra-modern Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s madcap sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s simply an financial suggestion from one monster to another. Yet, oddly enough, it’s also surprisingly sturdy existential counsel. Seriously, hear me out.

When things go bad, the most counterproductive action you can do is take things too seriously. The Brain Gremlin grasps this. In fact, a large portion of the dentally-gifted beasts that inhabit Dante’s chaotic 1990 feature (possibly his finest) possess the same knowing, self-referential sense of humour regarding the indistinct border separating the mundane and unadulterated chaos. It’s a single component of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that ensures my return – and as I age, it’s the message that strikes the deepest chord.

An Early Life Obsession

Naturally, my attachment to this movie didn’t start on such an philosophical plane. In my youth, we were limited to a few scratched-up video tapes at home. Included within that collection were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a chunky ex-rental box likely purchased from an independent video outlet and boasting growling monsters on its worn-out artwork. I was right away smitten and these films wasted no time lodging themselves inside my young, susceptible psyche. After that point, they became an almost-daily part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s first film typically gets all the praise, thanks largely to its status as a partly frightening holiday classic – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins more times than I can count. Nevertheless, its follow-up seldom receives the same level of lofty appreciation, which feels a travesty. As a kid, I’d never miss an opportunity to watch Gremlins 2. During sunny school summer breaks, I’d lock myself inside and pop it in. When I obtained my very own TV-VHS combo unit, it continued playing looped in my bedroom. Gradually, it became deeply rooted in my psyche. If my parents observed this fixation, they didn’t seem to mind.

Subtler Rewards and Cultural Nuggets

As I got older, new insights rewarded repeat viewings, elevating the fun of watching small emerald creatures joyously wreck a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused development mogul and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was inspired directly by the eventual commander-in-chief Donald Trump, with his ginger staff member Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his second wife Marla Maples. Fortunately, Clamp possesses greater compassion than his actual-world equivalent.

The “apocalyptic” video Clamp plays during the height of creature carnage? I discovered it was inspired by a real-life “Doomsday” video created by the CNN boss Ted Turner should the world actually met its demise. I noticed how Dante made a special effort to film varying versions of a self-referential segment where Gremlins take over the exact movie you are viewing. A version for theaters, one for VHS and TV, each offering a winking bit of self-referential entertainment sorcery before the term was even a thing.

A Lasting Legacy

While it was makeup maestro Rick Baker’s wonderfully grotesque creatures that drew my gaze as a child, this subsurface richness held my interest as an adult. In time, I even conversed with Dante about it myself and he had no hesitation informing me he made the movie with the express purpose of poking fun at those who loved its absurd-yet-genuine predecessor and desired a sequel. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he cheerfully disclosed. This anarchic rebelliousness and commitment to not take his sequel as seriously as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only increased my affection for it.

When I endured a abrupt familial death not long ago, I was taken aback to discover that, during my heightest mourning, all I desired to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Weird, right? Perhaps not. The soothing reminiscence it provided was essential to weaken my mind’s sadness sludge – but the perspectives it had given me as an adult were equally valuable.

Like Gremlins rampaging through a genetics laboratory, there’s some things in life you just can’t control. Dante understands this. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to emulate them: accept the turmoil, commit your entire being into tinned provisions and hunting rifles and try not to take things too seriously.

It’s powerful existential guidance from a highly unexpected fountain – and it’s why Gremlins 2: The New Batch will always be my feelgood film.