‘Fred, what we want is, I think, what everyone wants, and what you and your viewers have: civilization…’
Gremlins is one of my all-time favourite Christmas films and a movie that I have adored ever since I was a kid. Joe Dante’s sequel never threatens to surpass the original. Indeed, it never even bothers to try. Instead, Gremlins 2 is an anarchic, gonzo piece of performance art that explodes everything that was introduced in the source material…
Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan) and Kate Beringer (Phoebe Cates) return but not in Kingston Falls. Instead, the now co-habiting couple are living in New York and both working for the Clamp Corporation. When another gremlin breakout occurs, it’s up to Billy and Kate (and Gizmo) to try and save the day.
The most obvious comparison to be made to Gremlins 2 is Evil Dead 2. As with that film, this second and final entry in the Gremlins franchise satirises the source material and sees an auteur director throwing absolutely everything at the screen to see what sticks. In this case, that includes an intellectual gremlin, a spider gremlin (genuinely terrifying) and erm… Hulk Hogan. This will be too much for some, and watching Gremlins 2 does feel like the cinematic equivalent of eating three cones of candy floss, but it’s also impossible to resist.
Gremlins 2: The New Batch is a lot to take in but it should be applauded for swinging for the fences, even if only some of those shots connect with the ball.
