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“Well, it’s rather brutal here. We’re advising all of our clients to commit their entire holdings into tinned provisions and hunting rifles.” That bit of shrewd guidance comes from the Brain Gremlin – a lab-engineered, articulate, bespectacled member of the oozy monster mob that swarms Manhattan’s high-tech Clamp Tower skyscraper in director Joe Dante’s unhinged continuation Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s simply an portfolio pointer from one monster to another. Yet, in a strange manner, it’s also pretty solid existential counsel. Honestly, listen to my reasoning.

When life takes a turn for the worse, the biggest mistake you can do is view events with undue solemnity. The Brain Gremlin understands this. Indeed, a large portion of the fang-bearing creatures that inhabit Dante’s chaotic 1990 feature (possibly his finest) possess the same knowing, self-referential funny bone regarding the hazy boundary separating the mundane and absolute bedlam. It’s a single component of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that ensures my return – and with the passage of time, it’s the underlying idea that resonates the most.

A Childhood Fascination

Understandably, my attachment to this movie didn’t start on such an philosophical plane. In my youth, we only had a few scratched-up video tapes at home. Part of that group were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a chunky ex-rental box almost certainly acquired from an independent video outlet and featuring snarling creatures on its worn-out artwork. I was instantly captivated and these films wasted no time inserting themselves inside my young, susceptible psyche. Henceforth, they became an almost-daily part of my youthful watching schedule.

Dante’s initial installment usually receives all the accolades, 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 infrequently obtains the same level of high regard, which feels a travesty. As a kid, I’d never miss an opportunity to watch Gremlins 2. During long summer holidays, I’d retreat into the house and stick it on. When I obtained my very own TV-VHS combo unit, it remained on repeat in my bedroom. With repetition, it became deeply rooted in my mental framework. If my parents detected this preoccupation, they didn’t seem to mind.

Subtler Delights and Societal Nuggets

As I matured, new understandings enriched frequent screenings, elevating the fun of watching small emerald creatures happily vandalize a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused real estate tycoon 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) echoing his former spouse Marla Maples. Fortunately, Clamp possesses greater compassion than his actual-world equivalent.

The “doomsday” video Clamp plays during the height of creature carnage? I discovered it was based on a real-life “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner in case the world really ended. I noticed how Dante made a special effort to film alternate cuts of a self-referential segment where Gremlins take over the exact movie you are viewing. A version for theaters, another for home video and television, each offering a winking bit of fourth-wall-breaking cultural alchemy prior to the concept being mainstream.

A Lasting Legacy

While it was effects expert Rick Baker’s wonderfully grotesque creatures that drew my gaze as a child, this deeper gold held my interest as an adult. Eventually, I even spoke to 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 absurd-yet-genuine predecessor and desired a sequel. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he gleefully confessed. This anarchic defiance and determination to not take his sequel as solemnly as his Warner Bros bosses clearly wanted him to, only deepened my appreciation further.

When I experienced a unexpected loss in the family earlier this year, I was taken aback to discover that, during my most profound sorrow, all I wanted to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Odd, no? Maybe not. The comforting familiarity it provided was essential to thin out my mind’s mourning mire – but the insights it had given me as an adult were just as useful.

Like Gremlins rampaging through a genetics laboratory, there’s certain elements in life you just cannot manage. Dante is aware of it. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to follow their example: embrace the chaos, invest all your resources into canned food and shotguns and try not to view the world with undue solemnity.

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