‘Gremlins 2: The New Batch’ Remains One of the Best Pick-Me-Up Horror Movies [We Love ’90s Horror]
The ‘90s often get a bad rap with horror fans. After the numerous successful slashers and creature effects films of the ’80s, the ‘90s offered a different variety of horror fare. Though there were plenty of hits, hidden gems, and misunderstood classics, the ‘90s usually don’t get the kind of love that other decades get when it comes to horror. It’s time to change that.
Like most of you, I adore Gremlins. It’s an annual watch around Christmastime and it has heavily informed my particular interest in genre film. It’s a cornerstone of my childhood and one of my all-time favorite movies. In recent years, there has been a school of thought that posits that the sequel, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, is the superior of the two movies. While I certainly loved the second entry as a kid – and played the heck out of the Nintendo video game – I was always a staunch defender of the original film as the best of the duology.
But even I have to finally admit it: Gremlins 2: The New Batch is an outright masterpiece.
And yes, it’s also the best Gremlins movie.
The decision to move the sequel to New York City and center the action inside a building that represents the entirety of American consumer culture is brilliant. It allows director Joe Dante a plethora of gags and satire that never fails to be hilarious. There are plenty of stories about the conceptualization and production of this movie, and they all come back around to a, “Let’s just do it. Why not?” kind of mentality that fits perfectly with the chaotic energy of the gremlins. Dante even called the film a way to prove why there shouldn’t be a sequel to Gremlins.
And let’s talk about the gremlins themselves. The original designs by Chris Walas are still fantastic and iconic, but bringing in Rick Baker took the gremlins to a whole new level in terms of design and articulation. Add to that the creative decision to create as many distinct gremlins as possible and you have a cavalcade of memorable movie monsters. The gremlins range from comical extremes like the Vegetable Gremlin and the wonderful Brain Gremlin, to genuinely creepy designs like the Bat Gremlin and Mohawk. And when Mohawk becomes the Spider Gremlin? NIGHTMARES FOR LIFE.
Even beyond the designs, there are just so many gremlins in Gremlins 2: The New Batch. As a practical production, Gremlins 2: The New Batch is a jaw-dropping achievement. The climax involves a sea of gremlins that still boggles my mind every time I watch it. It’s a technical marvel that will likely never be rivaled in any future Gremlins endeavor. If just for the sheer magnitude of effects work in the film, Gremlins 2: The New Batch is a staggering success.
But Gremlins 2: The New Batch is more than just a phenomenal effects film. The returning cast all fit right into the film’s self-parodic tone extremely well. Zach Galligan and Phoebe Cates actually work even better since they retain their Capraesque goodheartedness in a sea of corporate cynicism and monolithic urban apathy. It makes their naiveté come off as delightfully silly and endearing. Add to that grin-inducing turns from the legendary Dick Miller and Jackie Joseph as the Futtermans and this Gremlins fan has his heart instantly warmed.
What’s surprising is just how uniformly incredible all the new cast members are. There isn’t a weak link in the bunch. You’ve got John Glover delivering one of the best performances of his entire career as the airheaded mogul Daniel Clamp. Seriously, he’s supposed to be something of a bumbling satire of Ted Turner and Donald Trump but he just ends up being so dang likable. Robert Picardo brings middle management smarm to Forster, the Clamp company toadie who ends up finding love with Greta the Girl Gremlin. Robert Prosky creates a charming and kooky character out of Grandpa Fred, the horror host that has dreams of legitimate television journalism. Haviland Morris threatens to run away with the movie as opportunistic and seductive businesswoman Marla Bloodstone. And then, you top things off by having horror legend Christopher Lee as the ghoulishly droll Doctor Catheter. Every one of these actors is doing dynamite work and you can tell they are having an absolute blast in every scene.
When we talk about sequels, Gremlins 2: The New Batch needs to be a necessary part of the discussion. Most sequels struggle to find the right balance of delivering what people expect and crafting something new out of existing material. Gremlins 2: The New Batch somehow manages to strike that balance by blowing up the entire idea of a sequel. Gremlins was already a movie that leaned into cartoon absurdity, but Gremlins 2: The New Batch ramps it up to a historic level that possibly remains unmatched in all of cinema. It’s a movie that should be part of any film studies class because it’s remarkable it exists at all. We’re so lucky this bizarro piece of madcap lunacy escaped from whatever dimension it came from.
Whenever you need to put a smile on your face, Gremlins 2 is a guaranteed pick-me-up.
