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“Well, it’s rather brutal here. Our recommendation is all of our clients to put everything they’ve got into canned food and shotguns.” That bit of shrewd guidance comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, speaking, bespectacled member of the slimy Gremlin horde that swarms Manhattan’s high-tech Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s unhinged continuation Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s merely an financial suggestion from one monster to another. However, in a strange manner, it’s also surprisingly sturdy life guidance. Seriously, consider my perspective.

When life takes a turn for the worse, the most counterproductive action you can do is view events with undue solemnity. The Brain Gremlin grasps this. Indeed, a large portion of the toothy monsters that inhabit Dante’s unrestrained 1990 movie (possibly his finest) possess the same knowing, self-referential funny bone regarding the hazy boundary separating everyday life and unadulterated chaos. It’s a single component of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that keeps me coming back – and the older I get, it’s the theme that echoes the loudest.

An Early Life Obsession

Naturally, my attachment to this movie did not begin on such an deeply thoughtful note. Growing up, we possessed merely a few scratched-up video tapes at home. Part of that group were Gremlins and its second chapter, the latter housed in a chunky ex-rental box probably bought from an off-brand video shop and sporting snarling creatures on its worn-out artwork. I was instantly captivated and these films wasted no time embedding themselves inside my small, malleable brain. Henceforth, they became an almost-daily part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s first film usually receives all the praise, thanks mostly because of its status as a moderately spooky festive favorite – and don’t get me wrong, I’ve watched Gremlins on countless occasions. However, its successor 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 lock myself inside and pop it in. When I acquired my personal TV-VHS combo unit, it remained on repeat in my bedroom. With repetition, it etched itself permanently in my psyche. If my parents observed this fixation, they didn’t seem to mind.

Deeper Rewards and Cultural Easter Eggs

As I grew, new insights enhanced multiple watches, amplifying the pleasure of watching little green monsters joyously wreck a New York high-rise. I learned the forward-thinking development mogul and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was inspired directly by future president Donald Trump, with his auburn-haired worker Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his one-time partner Marla Maples. Luckily, Clamp demonstrates more humanity than his actual-world equivalent.

The “doomsday” video Clamp plays during peak-Gremlin chaos? I discovered it was inspired by a genuine “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner in case the world actually met its demise. I noticed how Dante went out of his way to film different iterations of a self-aware scene where Gremlins seize control of the very film you’re watching. An edit for movie houses, another for home video and television, each delivering a smirking slice of self-referential entertainment sorcery prior to the concept being mainstream.

A Persistent Legacy

While it was creature designer Rick Baker’s fantastically vile creatures that caught my eye as a child, this hidden treasure maintained my fascination as an adult. Eventually, I even interviewed Dante about it myself and he had no reservations informing me he made the movie with the specific aim of mocking those who loved its silly-yet-sincere predecessor and wanted more. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he cheerfully disclosed. This cartoonish defiance and commitment to not take his sequel as gravely as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only increased my affection for it.

When I went through a abrupt familial death not long ago, I was surprised to find that, during my most profound sorrow, 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 needed to dilute my mind’s mourning mire – 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 certain elements in life you just cannot manage. Dante is aware of it. The Brain Gremlin agrees completely. Sometimes, you have to be like them: embrace the chaos, put everything you’ve got into tinned provisions and hunting rifles and try not to approach life with excessive gravity.

It’s strong life advice from a most improbable origin – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will eternally stand as my comfort movie.