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“Well, conditions are quite harsh here. We’re advising all of our clients to put everything they’ve got into canned food and shotguns.” This piece of wise counsel comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, speaking, spectacled member of the oozy monster mob that swarms Manhattan’s super-smart Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s madcap sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s merely an portfolio pointer from one monster to another. However, oddly enough, it’s also remarkably sound life advice. Truly, hear me out.

When life takes a turn for the worse, the most counterproductive action you can do is view events with undue solemnity. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. In fact, a large portion of the fang-bearing creatures that inhabit Dante’s chaotic 1990 feature (arguably his best) possess the same wry, meta comic sensibility regarding the indistinct border separating everyday life and pure pandemonium. It’s one element of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that maintains my loyalty – and with the passage of time, it’s the message that resonates the most.

A Childhood Obsession

Naturally, my connection with this movie did not begin on such an philosophical plane. As a child, we possessed merely a few well-worn videocassettes at home. Included within that collection were Gremlins and its second chapter, the latter housed in a thick former-rental sleeve likely purchased from an non-chain rental store and sporting grimacing beasts on its worn-out artwork. I was instantly captivated and these films quickly proceeded inserting themselves inside my young, susceptible psyche. From then on, they became an near-everyday part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s initial installment typically gets all the plaudits, thanks mostly because of its status as a partly frightening holiday classic – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins an incalculable number of times. That said, its follow-up rarely gets the same level of elevated esteem, which feels a travesty. As a kid, I’d always seize the chance to watch Gremlins 2. During long summer holidays, I’d retreat into the house and play it. When I obtained my very own TV-VHS combo unit, it stayed in constant rotation in my bedroom. Gradually, it became deeply rooted in my mental framework. If my parents detected this preoccupation, they gave no indication of concern.

Subtler Delights and Societal References

As I matured, new understandings enhanced multiple watches, elevating the fun of watching little green monsters happily vandalize a New York high-rise. I learned the forward-thinking real estate tycoon and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was modeled closely on the eventual commander-in-chief Donald Trump, with his auburn-haired worker Marla (Haviland Morris) echoing his second wife Marla Maples. Luckily, Clamp has more heart than his actual-world equivalent.

The “end of civilisation” video Clamp plays during the height of creature carnage? I discovered it was modeled after a real-life “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner as a contingency for the world really ended. I noticed how Dante went out of his way to film varying versions of a self-referential segment where Gremlins take over the actual feature in progress. A version for theaters, one for VHS and TV, each delivering a smirking slice of meta pop-culture magic ahead of its time.

A Lasting Influence

While it was creature designer Rick Baker’s fantastically vile creatures that captured my attention as a child, this subsurface richness held my interest as an adult. Ultimately, I even conversed with Dante about it myself and he had no reservations informing me he made the movie with the direct intention 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 Looney Tunes-esque defiance and commitment to not take his sequel as solemnly as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only deepened my appreciation further.

When I went through a abrupt familial death earlier this year, I was astonished to realize that, during my deepest grief, all I wanted to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Odd, no? Possibly not. The soothing reminiscence it offered was essential to weaken my mind’s sadness sludge – but the stuff it had given me as an adult were similarly beneficial.

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

It’s robust worldly wisdom from a very unlikely source – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will forever remain my feelgood film.