Gremlins

Made in a time when they had to make use of practical effects instead of CGI, 'Gremlins' still holds very well by today's standards. It's hard to believe this film was made almost four decades ago!

The film is an interesting mix of comedy and horror. There are some really silly, illogical moments, but 'Gremlins' is not to be taken too seriously. You might sit shaking your head wondering why the creatures would do the silly things they do, but hey, it's all in the name of fun, right? Since these are also fictional creatures, who's to say what they are capable of and what their behavior should be?

Towards the end all hell breaks loose, and some scenes are disgusting (in a comedy-horror good way), and it's wonderful! The film has a good, fairly suspenseful, action-packed final act.

Gremlins is a legendary 80s movie. Everything about it just screams "The 80s" in a really fun way.

A dark, crazy, twisted, inventive, and violent Christmas classic. There's really no way to classify or categorize Gremlins. It's too mean-spirited to be a kid's film, but not quite intense enough to justify a higher rating (though the 15-rated UK version makes a mockery of the BBFC guidelines). That grown-up 15 logo on the old VHS and the classic John Alvin poster artwork was enough to intrigue me as a kid and I've been hooked ever since.

Gremlins has long been an annual tradition for movie fans. The cozy, snowy atmosphere of Kingston Falls (which appears to be in upstate New York somewhere but is, in actual fact, Hill Valley at Universal studios) is the perfect small town that we all wish we came from. Even when the Gremlins invade it's a homely place to be envious of.

I was frightened of the Gremlins when I was a kid, but they're really nothing more than gigantic smiles with arms and legs. They exist only to have fun at the expense of human life and private property. I suppose they could be a metaphor for hedonism or apathy. Originally a much more evil script (intended to be an anti-Wonderful Life), Chris Columbus was inspired to write Gremlins as he listened to the rats in his apartment scurry about in the dark during the night. He lightened the material somewhat before filming began, but Joe Dante's wild vision makes it a twisted, festive reality.

Special mention must be made of Jerry Goldsmith's outrageous score and that famous theme tune 'The Gremlin Rag', a demented circus fanfare of anarchy and mayhem. It's crazy to think that we had to wait 27 years to get released on CD. It's one of the first movie themes I even began humming as a young child, and I still do to this day.

Gremlins sparked the rise of Chris Columbus as a creative force in Hollywood. Only 25 at the time of filming his career has been made up of classics, and Christmas classics, such as The Goonies, Young Sherlock Holmes, Home Alone, Home Alone 2, Harry Potter, and Bicentennial Man. Joe Dante never scored a bigger hit, but his subsequent career significantly defined 80s and 90s cinema with movies such as Innerspace, The 'burbs, Gremlins 2, and Small Soldiers. Goldsmith scoring every one of them until his death in 2004 (and movie scoring has simply never recovered from this loss).

Neither of them knew the massive franchise and fan-following which Gremlins would provoke, but it certainly deserves it's place in pop culture history.

Gremlins was a fantastic comedy film from 1984-the best year ever in my opinion for great movies.

Basically, a guy called Billy Peltzer picks up a new pet called Gizmo and after breaking a few rules he shouldn't have, ends up spawning a bunch of ugly creatures called Gremlins who proceed to terrorize the town.

The film is a success because it succeeds at producing both a comedy and a horror in one go which can't be easy. Most comedy horror films are a joke (such as some of the Ghoulies films which emulated the Gremlins series) but Gremlins is both funny and scary. It's funny seeing the Gremlins cause mischief but it's also scary throughout-they're not exactly pretty creatures and are quite scary as well.

Gremlins deserves a look from anyone interested in seeing a good comedy horror movie.

After this movie there were several other movies that tried to capitalize on the success of this movie. For the most part though they failed to live up to the energy and fun of this movie. Heck, not even the sequel of this one had the energy of this movie. Here we have a guy getting a pet as an early xmas gift, a cute creature called a Mogway. It however, does have a few problems, as it needs special care. One thing you can't do to it is get it wet. Well Billy does (that is the guy who got it). This breeds more of the little critters, and they are harmless enough at first as well. Then they are fed after midnight and this turns them into Gremlins. This new form is a beer drinking, candy eating, mischief machine that isn't above killing. Most of the original batch is killed off in a gruesome kitchen scene, but the leader, Stripe, gets away and dives into a ycma swimming pool, so the whole town gets overrun by the little monsters. This movie is very funny and enjoyable to watch. Even though the Gremlins do kill, this movie never gets as dark as some of the copycats, or too goofy like some of them do. It ends up being a well-made movie that is fun to watch.