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“Well, the situation is pretty dire here. We’re advising all of our clients to commit their entire holdings into tinned provisions and hunting rifles.” This piece of shrewd guidance comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, talking, spectacled member of the oozy monster mob that overruns Manhattan’s ultra-modern Clamp Tower skyscraper in director Joe Dante’s unhinged continuation Gremlins 2: The New Batch. On the surface, it’s nothing more than an investment tip from one monster to another. But, oddly enough, it’s also pretty solid existential counsel. Truly, hear me out.

When life takes a turn for the worse, the biggest mistake you can do is approach matters with excessive gravity. The Brain Gremlin understands this. Actually, the majority of the toothy monsters that inhabit Dante’s chaotic 1990 feature (debateably his greatest) possess the same knowing, self-referential sense of humour regarding the blurry line separating everyday life and unadulterated chaos. It’s a single component of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that maintains my loyalty – and as I age, it’s the underlying idea that resonates the most.

An Early Life Obsession

Of course, my connection with this movie wasn’t born on such an deeply thoughtful note. In my youth, we possessed merely a few battered VHS tapes at home. Among them were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a chunky ex-rental box probably bought from an independent video outlet and featuring growling monsters on its worn-out artwork. I was immediately enamoured and these films did not delay lodging themselves inside my small, malleable brain. Henceforth, they became an practically routine part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s first film commonly garners all the praise, thanks mostly because of its reputation as a semi-scary seasonal fave – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins an incalculable number of times. That said, its follow-up infrequently obtains the same level of high regard, which feels a travesty. As a kid, I’d never miss an opportunity to watch Gremlins 2. During bright summer vacations, I’d lock myself inside and stick it on. 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 observed this fixation, they gave no indication of concern.

Deeper Rewards and Societal Nuggets

As I grew, new insights rewarded frequent screenings, amplifying the pleasure of watching diminutive verdant beasts gleefully trash a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused real estate tycoon 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 one-time partner Marla Maples. Thankfully, Clamp has more heart than his genuine article inspiration.

The “end of civilisation” video Clamp plays during the height of creature carnage? I discovered it was inspired by a real-life “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner as a contingency for the world truly faced apocalypse. I noticed how Dante went out of his way to film different iterations of a self-referential segment where Gremlins hijack the actual feature in progress. An edit for movie houses, another for home video and television, each providing a grinning portion of fourth-wall-breaking cultural alchemy before the term was even a thing.

A Lasting Influence

While it was creature designer Rick Baker’s wonderfully grotesque creatures that caught my eye as a child, this hidden treasure held my interest as an adult. Ultimately, I even interviewed Dante about it myself and he had no reservations revealing to me he made the movie with the direct intention of mocking those who loved its absurd-yet-genuine predecessor and craved further installments. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he gleefully confessed. This cartoonish defiance and commitment to not take his sequel as solemnly as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only deepened my appreciation further.

When I endured a unexpected loss in the family earlier this year, I was taken aback to discover that, during my heightest mourning, all I felt compelled to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Weird, right? Possibly not. The nostalgic calm it furnished was necessary to dilute my mind’s mourning mire – but the perspectives it had given me as an adult were similarly beneficial.

Like Gremlins running amok in a genetics laboratory, there’s some things in life you just cannot manage. Dante knows it. The Brain Gremlin agrees completely. Sometimes, you have to follow their example: accept the turmoil, invest all your resources into preserved goods and firearms and try not to view the world with undue solemnity.

It’s robust worldly wisdom from a highly unexpected fountain – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will eternally stand as my go-to cinematic solace.