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“Well, the situation is pretty dire here. The guidance we offer all of our clients to commit their entire holdings into tinned provisions and hunting rifles.” This nugget of shrewd guidance comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, speaking, bespectacled member of the oozy monster mob that overruns Manhattan’s super-smart Clamp Tower skyscraper in director Joe Dante’s madcap sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch. On the surface, it’s simply an investment tip from one monster to another. Yet, curiously, it’s also surprisingly sturdy life advice. Seriously, listen to my reasoning.

When situations deteriorate, the most counterproductive action you can do is take things too seriously. The Brain Gremlin comprehends this. In fact, most of the toothy monsters that inhabit Dante’s unrestrained 1990 movie (possibly his finest) possess the same sly, self-aware comic sensibility regarding the blurry line separating everyday life and pure pandemonium. It’s a particular aspect of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that ensures my return – and as I age, it’s the underlying idea that strikes the deepest chord.

An Early Life Fixation

Naturally, my fondness for this movie did not begin on such an philosophical plane. In my youth, we only had a few battered VHS tapes at home. Included within that collection were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a thick former-rental sleeve almost certainly acquired from an independent video outlet and boasting grimacing beasts on its knackered cover. I was right away smitten and these films wasted no time embedding themselves inside my small, malleable brain. From then on, they became an almost-daily part of my youthful watching schedule.

Dante’s original usually receives all the accolades, thanks mostly because of its reputation as a partly frightening holiday classic – and to be fair, I’ve watched Gremlins more times than I can count. Nevertheless, 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 lock myself inside and stick it on. When I acquired my personal TV-VHS combo unit, it remained on repeat in my bedroom. Gradually, it became deeply rooted in my psyche. If my parents detected this preoccupation, they didn’t seem to mind.

Deeper Rewards and Cultural Easter Eggs

As I got older, new revelations enhanced repeat viewings, heightening the enjoyment of watching little green monsters joyously wreck a New York high-rise. I learned the forward-thinking real estate tycoon and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was modeled closely on the later-to-be-president Donald Trump, with his red-headed employee Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his former spouse Marla Maples. Luckily, Clamp demonstrates more humanity than his real-life counterpart.

The “end of civilisation” video Clamp plays during maximum monster mayhem? I discovered it was inspired by a real-life “Doomsday” video created by the CNN boss Ted Turner as a contingency for the world really ended. I noticed how Dante went out of his way to film alternate cuts of a self-referential segment where Gremlins take over the very film you’re watching. An edit for movie houses, one for VHS and TV, each providing a grinning portion of self-referential entertainment sorcery prior to the concept being mainstream.

An Enduring Legacy

While it was creature designer Rick Baker’s gloriously nasty-looking creatures that captured my attention as a child, this hidden treasure maintained my fascination 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 poking fun at 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 gleefully confessed. This cartoonish defiance and resolve to not take his sequel as seriously as his Warner Bros bosses clearly wanted him to, only made me love it even more.

When I experienced a abrupt familial death recently, I was taken aback to discover that, during my deepest grief, all I wanted to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Odd, no? Possibly not. The nostalgic calm it provided was essential to weaken my mind’s grief morass – but the stuff it had bestowed upon me as an adult were similarly beneficial.

Like Gremlins running amok in a genetics laboratory, there’s certain elements in life you just can’t control. Dante knows it. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to follow their example: welcome the pandemonium, commit your entire being into preserved goods and firearms and try not to approach life with excessive gravity.

It’s robust worldly wisdom from a very unlikely source – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will eternally stand as my feelgood film.