Lights out! (Gremlins (DVD))

Member Name: SWSt

Product:	Gremlins (DVD)
Date:	14/05/07 (83 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Funny, warm, with a wonderfully skewed sense of humour

Disadvantages: Effects look a little dated in parts, slightly OTT ending

What’s it about?
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A young boy’s new pet causes havoc when it spawns an army of destructive little green monsters.

Who’s in it?
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This is really one of those movies where the cast doesn’t really matter, as they will always be outdone by the Gremlins themselves! For the record, though, Zach Galligan and Phoebe Cates prove bland, but competent leads as Billy and Kate respectively. The best human performances probably come from Hoyt Axel as eccentric inventor Randall Peltzer and Dick Miller as Murray Futterman. Although both only have limited screen time, they make the most of it, clearly having fun with silly cameos.

For the most part, the human actors turn in competent, if uninspired, performances and most have done little of significance since. They do work well together, though, and this is important, as it helps you to accept them as “real people”. Gremlins is a small movie and to have a big name star would have seriously unbalanced the feel of the film.

Is it any good?
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Gremlins is one of those films which really has no right to be as good as it is. It’s essentially a B movie with little plot, low grade special effects and no-name actors. Yet somehow, it all comes together to be greater than the sum of its individual parts.

Much of this is due to the humour, which is silly fun and, at times, cruel. The whole look and feel is one of a comic book and this works very well. The monsters are comical, rather than truly scary; the violence clearly inspired by cartoons, rather than being truly gory. It’s a comedy with a smattering of horror thrown in, rather than a proper horror film.

Much of the fun lies in seeing the havoc the little creatures cause to the poor, unfortunate residents of Kingston Falls. The gleeful way they go about their mayhem is a joy to watch and provides some of the film’s funniest moments (the stair lift sequence particularly springs to mind). Never has violence been so much fun! At the same time, the film is quite imaginative in the way various Gremlins are killed, without ever becoming too silly.

Despite the humour, Gremlins can be quite dark at times. There are actually some genuinely tense moments – not scary, but enough to get you thinking the worst. The film takes great delight in playing on expectations honed by watching horror movies into anticipating something which never actually really happens. Certainly, Gremlins could never be described as terrifying (it is meant to be a “family” movie, after all!), but there is a genuine edge to the film.

As well as the obvious humour and fun action sequences, the film is a film geek’s paradise, crammed with references and in-jokes. There are obvious nods to Indiana Jones, E.T., the Wizard of Oz and It’s a Wonderful Life and less obvious ones to The Time Machine and Forbidden Planet. Even once you’ve seen the film, it’s still fun to watch occasionally, as you’ll pick up more of the in-jokes each time you watch it.

Then, of course, there are the creatures themselves. Importantly, they have a real sense of personality and are more than able to hold their own against the human actors. A number of scenes (Dory’s Tavern, the cinema) show the Gremlins parodying or learning from human behaviour). At the same time, there are clear personalities for some of the Gremlins – they are not just one big mass of little green monsters, but a collection of individuals. It’s surprising what a difference this makes.

The special effects on the creatures themselves have actually stood up pretty well. The decision to make them puppets, means they still look reasonably convincing (if a little rubbery at times!). The puppeteers give them a distinct sense of personality which makes them fun to watch. The only exception to the generally good effects is when we see the Gremlins in full shot, walking: their little spindly legs don’t look right and remind you the creature is only a pile of green rubber! Gremlins was released in the same year as Ghostbusters – whose special effects were hailed as fantastic at the time. Yet, over 20 years on, it’s Ghostbusters’ effects which now look dated, whilst Gremlins’ has stood the test of time fairly well.

I’ve already mentioned that the creatures have a personality of their own, and nowhere is this more obvious that in, Gizmo. The perfect cute counterpart to the hideous Gremlins, I defy anyone not to go “ahhhhh” when they see him. Gizmo is like Yoda in the Star Wars series – you know he’s only a puppet, yet the script and puppeteers bring him to life so perfectly, that it’s impossible not to view him as a real thing and care about what happens to him.

As a piece of fun, disposable entertainment, it’s difficult to find many downsides with the film. Yes, the effects do now look a little creaky at times, but this isn’t enough to spoil the film. If you don’t get the knockabout cartoon style sense of humour, you’ll think it’s all a bit silly and won’t enjoy it – but that’s true of any comedy. As a general guide, if you’ve seen and enjoyed Ghostbusters, the chances are you’ll get Gremlins. If you thought that film was silly, then steer well clear.

Possibly the biggest criticism of the film I could come up with is that the ending is a little over-blown and drawn out and, just maybe, a little silly. Having said that, it is in keeping with what has gone before. However, the parts with Gizmo racing around the toy store just feel a little strained. It’s as though the writers weren’t quite sure how to end it all, but wanted to make sure that little Giz had a starring role (to help with the sale of cute, fluffy toys, no doubt!) The ending perhaps becomes just a little TOO cartoony in tone and style and jars just very slightly with the darker feel of the rest of the film.

Overall
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1984 was a great year for silly horror comedies, with both Gremlins and Ghostbusters appearing. Both are fun films which have (for the most part) stood the test of time well, and are as enjoyable to watch today as they were 20 years ago.

Basic Information
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Gremlins
1984
Director: Joe Dante
Running Time: approximately 106 minutes
Certificate: 15

Trivia
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The cinema is showing “A Boy’s Life” and “Watch the Skies”. These were the codenames for Executive Producer Steven Spielberg’s “E.T.” and “Close Encounters of the Third Kind respectively”.

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