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“Well, it’s rather brutal here. Our recommendation is all of our clients to invest all their resources into preserved goods and firearms.” This nugget of sage advice comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, articulate, glasses-wearing member of the oozy monster mob that swarms Manhattan’s super-smart Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s unhinged continuation Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s nothing more than an financial suggestion from one monster to another. However, oddly enough, it’s also surprisingly sturdy existential counsel. Seriously, listen to my reasoning.

When situations deteriorate, the biggest mistake you can do is approach matters with excessive gravity. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. In fact, a large portion of the toothy monsters that populate Dante’s unrestrained 1990 movie (debateably his greatest) possess the same wry, meta comic sensibility regarding the indistinct border separating daily routine 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 underlying idea that resonates the most.

An Early Life Obsession

Understandably, my attachment to this movie wasn’t born on such an introspective level. As a child, we were limited to a few well-worn videocassettes 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 independent video outlet and featuring growling monsters on its worn-out artwork. I was immediately enamoured and these films did not delay lodging themselves inside my tiny, impressionable mind. From then on, they became an near-everyday part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s first film commonly garners all the plaudits, thanks largely to its status as a partly frightening holiday classic – and to be fair, I’ve watched Gremlins on countless occasions. That said, its follow-up seldom receives the same level of lofty appreciation, which feels criminal. As a kid, I’d invariably jump at the prospect to watch Gremlins 2. During long summer holidays, I’d seclude myself indoors and stick it on. When I got my own TV-VHS combo unit, it stayed in constant rotation in my bedroom. Over time, it etched itself permanently in my mental framework. If my parents observed this fixation, they gave no indication of concern.

Subtler Delights and Cultural Nuggets

As I grew, new revelations enriched frequent screenings, heightening the enjoyment of watching diminutive verdant beasts joyously wreck a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused property magnate and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was modeled closely on future president Donald Trump, with his auburn-haired worker Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his one-time partner Marla Maples. Luckily, Clamp has more heart than his actual-world equivalent.

The “apocalyptic” video Clamp plays during the height of creature carnage? I discovered it was inspired by a real-life “Doomsday” video created by the CNN boss Ted Turner as a contingency for the world actually met its demise. I noticed how Dante took extra pains to film varying versions of a meta sequence where Gremlins take over the actual feature in progress. One for cinemas, another for home video and television, each delivering a smirking slice of self-referential entertainment sorcery prior to the concept being mainstream.

An Enduring Influence

While it was effects expert Rick Baker’s gloriously nasty-looking creatures that captured my attention as a child, this subsurface richness held my interest as an adult. Eventually, I even conversed with Dante about it myself and he had no reservations telling 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 happily revealed. This cartoonish insubordination and commitment to not take his sequel as seriously as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only increased my affection for it.

When I experienced a unexpected loss in the family recently, I was surprised to find that, during my heightest mourning, all I wanted to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Weird, right? Maybe not. The comforting familiarity it provided was needed to weaken my mind’s grief morass – but the perspectives it had given me as an adult were similarly beneficial.

Like Gremlins rampaging through a genetics laboratory, there’s some things in life you just can’t control. Dante knows it. The Brain Gremlin agrees completely. Sometimes, you have to follow their example: embrace the chaos, commit your entire being into canned food and shotguns and try not to take things too seriously.

It’s robust worldly wisdom from a highly unexpected fountain – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will forever remain my comfort movie.