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“Well, it’s rather brutal here. We’re advising all of our clients to invest all their resources into preserved goods and firearms.” This piece of shrewd guidance comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, talking, spectacled member of the slimy Gremlin horde that swarms Manhattan’s super-smart Clamp Tower skyscraper in helmer Joe Dante’s zany follow-up Gremlins 2: The New Batch. On the surface, it’s simply an portfolio pointer from one monster to another. Yet, oddly enough, it’s also pretty solid existential counsel. Honestly, listen to my reasoning.

When things go bad, the most counterproductive action you can do is view events with undue solemnity. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. Actually, most of the fang-bearing creatures that populate Dante’s unrestrained 1990 movie (debateably his greatest) possess the same wry, meta funny bone regarding the blurry line separating daily routine and unadulterated chaos. 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 resonates the most.

A Youthful Obsession

Of course, my attachment to this movie wasn’t born on such an philosophical plane. As a child, we possessed merely a few battered VHS tapes at home. Included within that collection were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a thick former-rental sleeve probably bought from an independent video outlet and boasting snarling creatures on its worn-out artwork. I was immediately enamoured and these films did not delay inserting themselves inside my small, malleable brain. From then on, they became an near-everyday part of my early years entertainment regimen.

Dante’s original commonly garners all the praise, thanks primarily due to its legacy as a semi-scary seasonal fave – and don’t get me wrong, I’ve watched Gremlins on countless occasions. That said, its sequel rarely gets the same level of lofty appreciation, which feels a travesty. As a kid, I’d never miss an opportunity to watch Gremlins 2. During bright summer vacations, I’d retreat into the house and play it. When I got my own TV-VHS combo unit, it remained on repeat in my bedroom. Gradually, it etched itself permanently in my psyche. If my parents observed this fixation, they didn’t seem to mind.

Subtler Rewards and Pop-Culture Easter Eggs

As I matured, new insights rewarded repeat viewings, amplifying the pleasure of watching little green monsters gleefully trash 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 eventual commander-in-chief Donald Trump, with his ginger staff member Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his second wife Marla Maples. Thankfully, Clamp demonstrates more humanity than his real-life counterpart.

The “end of civilisation” video Clamp plays during maximum monster mayhem? I discovered it was modeled after a genuine “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner should the world actually met its demise. I noticed how Dante made a special effort to film different iterations of a meta sequence where Gremlins seize control of the actual feature in progress. A version for theaters, 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 effects expert Rick Baker’s fantastically vile creatures that captured my attention as a child, this hidden treasure maintained my fascination as an adult. Eventually, I even spoke to Dante about it myself and he had no qualms revealing to me he made the movie with the express purpose of ridiculing those who loved its goofy-but-heartfelt predecessor and desired a sequel. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he gleefully confessed. This cartoonish insubordination and resolve to not take his sequel as seriously as his Warner Bros bosses clearly wanted him to, only increased my affection for it.

When I endured a sudden family bereavement 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? Maybe not. The comforting familiarity it offered was essential to weaken my mind’s sadness sludge – but the perspectives it had imparted to me as an adult were just as useful.

Like Gremlins running amok in a genetics laboratory, there’s some things 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, commit your entire being into tinned provisions and hunting rifles and try not to take things too seriously.

It’s strong life advice from a most improbable origin – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will forever remain my go-to cinematic solace.