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“Well, conditions are quite harsh here. Our recommendation is all of our clients to put everything they’ve got into canned food and shotguns.” This piece of shrewd guidance comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, speaking, bespectacled member of the oozy monster mob that swarms Manhattan’s high-tech Clamp Tower skyscraper in helmer Joe Dante’s zany follow-up Gremlins 2: The New Batch. At first glance, it’s simply an financial suggestion from one monster to another. However, oddly enough, it’s also remarkably sound existential counsel. Honestly, listen to my reasoning.

When life takes a turn for the worse, the most counterproductive action you can do is approach matters with excessive gravity. The Brain Gremlin understands this. In fact, most of the toothy monsters that populate Dante’s unrestrained 1990 movie (arguably his best) possess the same sly, self-aware funny bone regarding the blurry line separating daily routine and absolute bedlam. It’s a single component of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that maintains my loyalty – and the older I get, it’s the theme 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 well-worn videocassettes at home. Among them were Gremlins and its second chapter, the latter housed in a thick former-rental sleeve probably bought from an independent video outlet and boasting grimacing beasts on its tattered front. I was immediately enamoured and these films quickly proceeded embedding themselves inside my small, malleable brain. Henceforth, they became an practically routine part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s original typically gets all the plaudits, thanks largely to its legacy as a partly frightening holiday classic – and don’t get me wrong, I’ve watched Gremlins more times than I can count. However, its follow-up infrequently obtains the same level of elevated esteem, which feels criminal. As a kid, I’d never miss an opportunity to watch Gremlins 2. During long summer holidays, I’d seclude myself indoors and play it. When I obtained my very own TV-VHS combo unit, it stayed in constant rotation in my bedroom. With repetition, it became deeply rooted in my mindset. If my parents detected this preoccupation, they gave no indication of concern.

Hidden Discoveries and Cultural Nuggets

As I got older, new insights rewarded repeat viewings, elevating the fun of watching little green monsters joyously wreck a New York high-rise. I learned the forward-thinking development mogul and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was based squarely upon future president Donald Trump, with his red-headed employee Marla (Haviland Morris) echoing his second wife Marla Maples. Fortunately, Clamp possesses greater compassion than his real-life counterpart.

The “apocalyptic” video Clamp plays during peak-Gremlin chaos? I discovered it was based on a actual “Doomsday” video created by the CNN boss Ted Turner should the world truly faced apocalypse. I noticed how Dante made a special effort to film alternate cuts of a self-aware scene where Gremlins hijack the actual feature in progress. One for cinemas, one for VHS and TV, each offering a winking bit of meta pop-culture magic prior to the concept being mainstream.

A Persistent Legacy

While it was effects expert Rick Baker’s gloriously nasty-looking creatures that caught my eye as a child, this hidden treasure kept me hooked as an adult. Eventually, I even interviewed Dante about it myself and he had no reservations telling me he made the movie with the express purpose of mocking those who loved its silly-yet-sincere predecessor and desired a sequel. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he happily revealed. This anarchic rebelliousness and determination to not take his sequel as solemnly as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only made me love it even more.

When I went through a sudden family bereavement earlier this year, 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. Odd, no? Maybe not. The soothing reminiscence it offered was essential to thin out my mind’s grief morass – but the insights it had imparted to me as an adult were just as useful.

Like Gremlins tearing apart a genetics laboratory, there’s certain elements in life you just can’t control. Dante is aware of it. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to follow their example: accept the turmoil, commit your entire being into tinned provisions and hunting rifles and try not to approach life with excessive gravity.

It’s robust worldly wisdom from a very unlikely source – and it’s why Gremlins 2: The New Batch will forever remain my comfort movie.