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“Well, the situation is pretty dire here. Our recommendation is all of our clients to invest all their resources into tinned provisions and hunting rifles.” This nugget of sage advice comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, talking, bespectacled member of the oozy monster mob that infests Manhattan’s ultra-modern Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s madcap sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch. At first glance, it’s simply an portfolio pointer from one monster to another. But, oddly enough, it’s also remarkably sound life advice. Seriously, consider my perspective.

When things go bad, the worst thing you can do is approach matters with excessive gravity. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. Indeed, the majority of the fang-bearing creatures that inhabit Dante’s wild 1990 film (debateably his greatest) possess the same sly, self-aware funny bone regarding the indistinct border separating the mundane and absolute bedlam. It’s a particular aspect of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that maintains my loyalty – and with the passage of time, it’s the message that echoes the loudest.

An Early Life Fixation

Naturally, my connection with this movie did not begin on such an philosophical plane. As a child, we only had a few battered VHS tapes at home. Included within that collection were Gremlins and its sequel, 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 instantly captivated and these films quickly proceeded lodging themselves inside my small, malleable brain. After that point, they became an near-everyday part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s original commonly garners all the accolades, thanks mostly because of its reputation as a partly frightening holiday classic – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins on countless occasions. However, its sequel seldom receives 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 lock myself inside and play it. When I got my own TV-VHS combo unit, it remained on repeat in my bedroom. Over time, it etched itself permanently in my psyche. If my parents observed this fixation, they gave no indication of concern.

Deeper Delights and Cultural Nuggets

As I got older, new revelations enriched frequent screenings, elevating the fun of watching small emerald creatures happily vandalize a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused development mogul 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) alluding to his second wife Marla Maples. Luckily, Clamp has more heart than his real-life counterpart.

The “apocalyptic” video Clamp plays during maximum monster mayhem? I discovered it was modeled after a actual “Doomsday” video created by the CNN boss Ted Turner as a contingency for the world truly faced apocalypse. I noticed how Dante made a special effort to film different iterations of a meta sequence where Gremlins hijack the very film you’re watching. An edit for movie houses, one for VHS and TV, each providing a grinning portion of fourth-wall-breaking cultural alchemy before the term was even a thing.

An Enduring Appeal

While it was creature designer Rick Baker’s wonderfully grotesque creatures that captured my attention as a child, this deeper gold maintained my fascination as an adult. In time, I even spoke to Dante about it myself and he had no qualms telling 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 cheerfully disclosed. This Looney Tunes-esque insubordination and resolve to not take his sequel as seriously as his Warner Bros bosses evidently expected, only made me love it even more.

When I experienced a sudden family bereavement earlier this year, I was taken aback to discover that, during my deepest grief, all I felt compelled to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Strange, isn’t it? Possibly not. The nostalgic calm it provided was essential to dilute 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 some things in life you just are powerless over. Dante knows it. The Brain Gremlin agrees completely. 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 powerful existential guidance from a most improbable origin – and it’s why Gremlins 2: The New Batch will always be my feelgood film.