‘Ingrained in My Mind’: Why Gremlins 2: The New Batch Is My Comfort Movie
“Well, conditions are quite harsh here. We’re advising all of our clients to invest all their resources into tinned provisions and hunting rifles.” This piece of wise counsel comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, talking, spectacled member of the slick creature crowd that overruns Manhattan’s super-smart Clamp Tower skyscraper in director Joe Dante’s unhinged continuation Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s merely an portfolio pointer from one monster to another. Yet, in a strange manner, it’s also pretty solid life advice. Truly, hear me out.
When life takes a turn for the worse, the biggest mistake you can do is view events with undue solemnity. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. Actually, the majority of the toothy monsters that occupy Dante’s chaotic 1990 feature (arguably his best) possess the same sly, self-aware comic sensibility regarding the hazy boundary separating everyday life and pure pandemonium. It’s a single component of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that keeps me coming back – and with the passage of time, it’s the underlying idea that strikes the deepest chord.
An Early Life Obsession
Of course, my fondness for 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. Among them were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a chunky ex-rental box probably bought from an off-brand video shop and sporting growling monsters on its worn-out artwork. I was right away smitten and these films did not delay inserting themselves inside my tiny, impressionable mind. From then on, they became an almost-daily part of my early years entertainment regimen.
Dante’s first film usually receives all the accolades, thanks largely to its legacy as a partly frightening holiday classic – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins on countless occasions. However, its sequel seldom receives the same level of elevated esteem, which feels unjust. As a kid, I’d always seize the chance to watch Gremlins 2. During bright summer vacations, I’d retreat into the house and pop it in. When I acquired my personal TV-VHS combo unit, it continued playing looped in my bedroom. With repetition, it became deeply rooted in my psyche. If my parents observed this fixation, they appeared unbothered.
Hidden Discoveries and Societal Easter Eggs
As I matured, new understandings rewarded frequent screenings, elevating the fun of watching small emerald creatures happily vandalize a New York high-rise. I learned the ahead-of-its-time property magnate and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was based squarely upon the later-to-be-president Donald Trump, with his red-headed employee Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his one-time partner Marla Maples. Thankfully, Clamp demonstrates more humanity than his real-life counterpart.
The “doomsday” video Clamp plays during peak-Gremlin chaos? I discovered it was based on a genuine “Doomsday” video created by the CNN boss Ted Turner should the world truly faced apocalypse. I noticed how Dante took extra pains to film alternate cuts of a self-aware scene where Gremlins hijack the actual feature in progress. An edit for movie houses, one for VHS and TV, each providing a grinning portion of self-referential entertainment sorcery before the term was even a thing.
An Enduring Influence
While it was makeup maestro Rick Baker’s fantastically vile creatures that drew my gaze as a child, this subsurface richness kept me hooked as an adult. Eventually, I even interviewed Dante about it myself and he had no qualms informing me he made the movie with the express purpose of poking fun at those who loved its absurd-yet-genuine predecessor and wanted more. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he happily revealed. This anarchic insubordination and resolve to not take his sequel as solemnly as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only deepened my appreciation further.
When I experienced a sudden family bereavement not long ago, I was astonished to realize that, during my most profound sorrow, all I wanted to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Strange, isn’t it? Maybe not. The comforting familiarity it offered was needed to dilute my mind’s mourning mire – but the stuff it had imparted to me as an adult were similarly beneficial.
Like Gremlins tearing apart a genetics laboratory, there’s particular aspects in life you just are powerless over. Dante is aware of it. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to follow their example: accept the turmoil, put everything you’ve got into canned food and shotguns and try not to approach life with excessive gravity.
It’s strong life advice from a highly unexpected fountain – and it’s why Gremlins 2: The New Batch will eternally stand as my comfort movie.