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“Well, the situation is pretty dire here. We’re advising all of our clients to commit their entire holdings into preserved goods and firearms.” This piece of sage advice comes from the Brain Gremlin – a scientifically altered, speaking, spectacled member of the slick creature crowd that overruns Manhattan’s ultra-modern Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s zany follow-up Gremlins 2: The New Batch. At first glance, it’s nothing more than an investment tip from one monster to another. However, oddly enough, it’s also remarkably sound existential counsel. Seriously, consider my perspective.

When things go bad, the worst thing you can do is view events with undue solemnity. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. Indeed, the majority of the fang-bearing creatures that populate Dante’s chaotic 1990 feature (possibly his finest) possess the same sly, self-aware funny bone regarding the indistinct border separating the mundane and unadulterated chaos. It’s a particular aspect of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that keeps me coming back – and with the passage of time, it’s the underlying idea that echoes the loudest.

An Early Life Obsession

Of course, my fondness for this movie wasn’t born on such an philosophical plane. Growing up, we only had a few well-worn videocassettes at home. Among them were Gremlins and its second chapter, the latter housed in a bulky previously-rented case probably bought from an non-chain rental store and featuring snarling creatures on its knackered cover. I was immediately enamoured and these films wasted no time embedding themselves inside my tiny, impressionable mind. Henceforth, they became an near-everyday part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s first film usually receives all the accolades, thanks largely to its status as a partly frightening holiday classic – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins an incalculable number of times. Nevertheless, its successor seldom receives the same level of elevated esteem, which feels a travesty. 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 got my own TV-VHS combo unit, it continued playing looped in my bedroom. Gradually, it ingrained itself in my psyche. If my parents noticed this obsession, they appeared unbothered.

Deeper Rewards and Societal References

As I grew, new revelations enhanced frequent screenings, amplifying the pleasure of watching small emerald creatures joyously wreck a New York high-rise. I learned the forward-thinking property magnate and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was based squarely upon future president Donald Trump, with his auburn-haired worker Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his former spouse Marla Maples. Fortunately, Clamp demonstrates more humanity than his real-life counterpart.

The “end of civilisation” video Clamp plays during peak-Gremlin chaos? I discovered it was inspired by a genuine “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner as a contingency for the world actually met its demise. I noticed how Dante went out of his way to film different iterations of a self-referential segment where Gremlins seize control of the actual feature in progress. A version for theaters, another for home video and television, each delivering a smirking slice of fourth-wall-breaking cultural alchemy prior to the concept being mainstream.

A Lasting Legacy

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. Ultimately, I even spoke to Dante about it myself and he had no qualms informing me he made the movie with the direct intention of poking fun at those who loved its goofy-but-heartfelt predecessor and craved further installments. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he gleefully confessed. This anarchic insubordination and determination to not take his sequel as seriously as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only deepened my appreciation further.

When I endured a sudden family bereavement earlier this year, I was astonished to realize that, during my most profound sorrow, all I felt compelled to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Odd, no? Possibly not. The nostalgic calm it provided was needed to weaken my mind’s grief morass – but the perspectives it had bestowed upon me as an adult were just as useful.

Like Gremlins rampaging through a genetics laboratory, there’s some things in life you just cannot manage. Dante is aware of it. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to be like them: welcome the pandemonium, invest all your resources into canned food and shotguns and try not to take things too seriously.

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