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“Well, conditions are quite harsh here. Our recommendation is all of our clients to invest all their resources into canned food and shotguns.” This piece of shrewd guidance comes from the Brain Gremlin – a lab-engineered, speaking, glasses-wearing member of the oozy monster mob that swarms Manhattan’s ultra-modern Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s unhinged continuation Gremlins 2: The New Batch. On the surface, it’s nothing more than an financial suggestion from one monster to another. But, in a strange manner, it’s also pretty solid life guidance. Truly, 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. In fact, a large portion of the fang-bearing creatures that occupy Dante’s unrestrained 1990 movie (possibly his finest) possess the same sly, self-aware funny bone regarding the indistinct border separating daily routine 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 theme that resonates the most.

A Youthful Obsession

Naturally, my connection with this movie wasn’t born on such an introspective level. Growing up, we only had a few battered VHS tapes at home. Part of that group were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a thick former-rental sleeve almost certainly acquired from an off-brand video shop and sporting grimacing beasts on its knackered cover. I was right away smitten and these films quickly proceeded inserting themselves inside my small, malleable brain. From then on, they became an almost-daily part of my youthful watching schedule.

Dante’s first film typically gets all the accolades, thanks primarily due to its status as a semi-scary seasonal fave – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins more times than I can count. However, its sequel seldom receives 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 lock myself inside and play it. When I got my own TV-VHS combo unit, it remained on repeat in my bedroom. Gradually, it became deeply rooted in my mindset. If my parents detected this preoccupation, they appeared unbothered.

Deeper Rewards and Cultural Easter Eggs

As I got older, new revelations rewarded repeat viewings, elevating the fun of watching little green monsters gleefully trash a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused development mogul and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was modeled closely on the later-to-be-president Donald Trump, with his ginger staff member Marla (Haviland Morris) referencing his one-time partner Marla Maples. Fortunately, Clamp possesses greater compassion than his real-life counterpart.

The “apocalyptic” video Clamp plays during the height of creature carnage? I discovered it was inspired by a real-life “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner in case the world really ended. I noticed how Dante took extra pains to film different iterations of a meta sequence where Gremlins hijack the very film you’re watching. A version for theaters, one for VHS and TV, each delivering a smirking slice of fourth-wall-breaking cultural alchemy ahead of its time.

A Persistent Influence

While it was effects expert Rick Baker’s wonderfully grotesque creatures that captured my attention as a child, this hidden treasure kept me hooked as an adult. Ultimately, I even interviewed Dante about it myself and he had no qualms telling me he made the movie with the direct intention of poking fun at those who loved its silly-yet-sincere predecessor and desired a sequel. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he gleefully confessed. This Looney Tunes-esque rebelliousness and determination to not take his sequel as gravely as his Warner Bros bosses evidently expected, only made me love it even more.

When I endured a abrupt familial death recently, I was astonished to realize that, during my deepest grief, all I desired to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Odd, no? Maybe not. The nostalgic calm it provided was essential to thin out my mind’s sadness sludge – but the insights it had bestowed upon me as an adult were just as useful.

Like Gremlins rampaging through a genetics laboratory, there’s some things in life you just cannot manage. Dante understands this. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to emulate them: accept the turmoil, commit your entire being into preserved goods and firearms and try not to view the world with undue solemnity.

It’s strong life advice from a very unlikely source – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will forever remain my comfort movie.