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“Well, it’s rather brutal here. Our recommendation is all of our clients to commit their entire holdings into canned food and shotguns.” That bit of sage advice comes from the Brain Gremlin – a lab-engineered, talking, spectacled member of the slimy Gremlin horde that swarms Manhattan’s ultra-modern Clamp Tower skyscraper in director Joe Dante’s zany follow-up Gremlins 2: The New Batch. At first glance, it’s merely an investment tip from one monster to another. Yet, curiously, it’s also pretty solid life guidance. Seriously, listen to my reasoning.

When things go bad, the biggest mistake you can do is take things too seriously. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. Actually, most of the toothy monsters that occupy Dante’s wild 1990 film (debateably his greatest) possess the same wry, meta sense of humour regarding the indistinct border separating everyday life and pure pandemonium. It’s a particular aspect of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that ensures my return – and with the passage of time, it’s the message that echoes the loudest.

A Childhood Fixation

Of course, my attachment to this movie wasn’t born on such an deeply thoughtful note. As a child, we were limited to a few scratched-up video tapes at home. Included within that collection were Gremlins and its second chapter, the latter housed in a bulky previously-rented case almost certainly acquired from an non-chain rental store and featuring growling monsters on its tattered front. I was instantly captivated and these films quickly proceeded lodging themselves inside my small, malleable brain. Henceforth, they became an practically routine part of my youthful watching schedule.

Dante’s initial installment typically gets all the plaudits, thanks mostly because of its status as a moderately spooky festive favorite – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins more times than I can count. Nevertheless, its follow-up seldom receives the same level of high regard, which feels criminal. As a kid, I’d invariably jump at the prospect to watch Gremlins 2. During sunny school summer breaks, I’d retreat into the house and stick it on. When I acquired my personal TV-VHS combo unit, it stayed in constant rotation in my bedroom. Over time, it etched itself permanently in my mindset. If my parents noticed this obsession, they didn’t seem to mind.

Subtler Rewards and Pop-Culture Nuggets

As I matured, new revelations enhanced multiple watches, elevating the fun of watching little green monsters joyously wreck a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused real estate tycoon and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was inspired directly by future president Donald Trump, with his red-headed employee Marla (Haviland Morris) alluding to his second wife Marla Maples. Fortunately, Clamp possesses greater compassion than his genuine article inspiration.

The “doomsday” video Clamp plays during peak-Gremlin chaos? I discovered it was based on a genuine “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner as a contingency for the world truly faced apocalypse. I noticed how Dante took extra pains to film different iterations of a meta sequence where Gremlins seize control of the actual feature in progress. One for cinemas, one for VHS and TV, each providing a grinning portion of meta pop-culture magic ahead of its time.

An Enduring Appeal

While it was creature designer Rick Baker’s gloriously nasty-looking creatures that captured my attention as a child, this deeper gold kept me hooked as an adult. Eventually, I even interviewed Dante about it myself and he had no qualms revealing to me he made the movie with the direct intention of mocking those who loved its goofy-but-heartfelt predecessor and craved further installments. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he gleefully confessed. This anarchic insubordination and commitment to not take his sequel as solemnly as his Warner Bros bosses evidently expected, only deepened my appreciation further.

When I went through a abrupt familial death recently, I was surprised to find that, during my most profound sorrow, all I desired to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Weird, right? Perhaps not. The soothing reminiscence it furnished was needed to weaken my mind’s grief morass – but the insights it had given me as an adult were equally valuable.

Like Gremlins tearing apart 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 approach life with excessive gravity.

It’s strong life advice from a very unlikely source – and it’s why Gremlins 2: The New Batch will eternally stand as my feelgood film.