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“Well, the situation is pretty dire here. The guidance we offer all of our clients to put everything they’ve got into canned food and shotguns.” That bit of sage advice comes from the Brain Gremlin – a lab-engineered, speaking, bespectacled member of the oozy monster mob that swarms Manhattan’s high-tech Clamp Tower skyscraper in helmer Joe Dante’s madcap sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s nothing more than an portfolio pointer from one monster to another. But, curiously, it’s also surprisingly sturdy life advice. Honestly, listen to my reasoning.

When situations deteriorate, the biggest mistake you can do is view events with undue solemnity. The Brain Gremlin grasps this. Indeed, the majority of the dentally-gifted beasts that inhabit Dante’s unrestrained 1990 movie (debateably his greatest) possess the same knowing, self-referential 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 keeps me coming back – and the older I get, it’s the underlying idea that echoes the loudest.

A Youthful Obsession

Of course, my fondness for this movie didn’t start on such an philosophical plane. Growing up, we possessed merely a few well-worn videocassettes at home. Part of that group were Gremlins and its follow-up, the latter housed in a bulky previously-rented case almost certainly acquired from an independent video outlet and boasting growling monsters on its knackered cover. I was instantly captivated and these films quickly proceeded inserting themselves inside my small, malleable brain. Henceforth, they became an near-everyday part of my youthful watching schedule.

Dante’s initial installment usually receives all the praise, thanks largely to its legacy as a partly frightening holiday classic – and let me be clear, I’ve watched Gremlins an incalculable number of times. That said, its sequel rarely gets the same level of high regard, which feels criminal. 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 obtained my very own TV-VHS combo unit, it stayed in constant rotation in my bedroom. Gradually, it became deeply rooted in my psyche. If my parents noticed this obsession, they didn’t seem to mind.

Hidden Rewards and Pop-Culture Easter Eggs

As I matured, new understandings rewarded repeat viewings, amplifying the pleasure of watching little green monsters gleefully trash a New York high-rise. I learned the ahead-of-its-time property magnate and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was modeled closely on the eventual commander-in-chief Donald Trump, with his ginger staff member Marla (Haviland Morris) echoing his one-time partner Marla Maples. Fortunately, Clamp possesses greater compassion than his genuine article inspiration.

The “doomsday” video Clamp plays during the height of creature carnage? I discovered it was based on a actual “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 hijack the exact movie you are viewing. One for cinemas, another for home video and television, each providing a grinning portion of fourth-wall-breaking cultural alchemy ahead of its time.

A Lasting Influence

While it was makeup maestro Rick Baker’s fantastically vile creatures that captured my attention as a child, this deeper gold maintained my fascination as an adult. Ultimately, I even interviewed Dante about it myself and he had no hesitation revealing to me he made the movie with the express purpose 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 cheerfully disclosed. This cartoonish defiance and commitment to not take his sequel as gravely as his Warner Bros bosses clearly wanted him to, only deepened my appreciation further.

When I endured a unexpected loss in the family not long ago, I was surprised to find that, during my heightest mourning, all I felt compelled to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Odd, no? Perhaps not. The nostalgic calm it provided was necessary to weaken my mind’s grief morass – but the perspectives it had imparted to me as an adult were just as useful.

Like Gremlins tearing apart a genetics laboratory, there’s particular aspects in life you just are powerless over. Dante understands this. The Brain Gremlin knows it too. Sometimes, you have to follow their example: accept the turmoil, commit your entire being into canned food and shotguns and try not to view the world with undue solemnity.

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 go-to cinematic solace.