"They're Here!" (Gremlins (DVD))

Member Name: Burning_Darkness

Product:	Gremlins (DVD)
Date:	29/10/09 (14 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: great sfx, dark sense of humour, very entertaining, great music

Disadvantages: none

Released back in 1984, the Spielberg-produced gremlins is a cartoonish yet supisingly dark horror comedy set at Christmas-time. Central protagonist Billy recieves a mogwai -a strange and incredibly cute furry little creature- from his father as a gift after buying it from a Chinese Curio shop that specialises in the odd and the mysterious. All is going well, until Billy breaks the rules he was sworn to follow when he was given Mogwai (which he names Gizmo) by shop-owner Mr Wing; Do not feed him after midnight and do not allow him to get wet.

When Billy's friend accidentally spills some water onto Mogwai he spawns five other little mogwais, who though initially cute soon turn into aggressive and mischievous little monsters known as Gremlins. The Gremlins then go on a rampage through the small American town, multiplying all the time and causing some frequently darkly funny carnage, such as running over a local family in a JCB and hotwiring an old lady's stairlift so that she zooms up her long spiral staircase at around 100mph before being launched out through an upstairs window at something approaching Mach Three.

Meanwhile Billy and his girlfriend Kate, aided by Gizmo, do their best to wipe out the army of mischievous monsters, decapitating them with a sword and shredding them with power tools, whilst the majority of the creatures amuse themselves by continuing to slaughter the local tonnsfolk and taking over the local bar and promptly getting completely drunk.

Gremlins has a cartoonish quality to it that will appeal to younger audiences, yet at the same time its humour is very dark and the gremlins themselves- ingenious latex/animatronic/puppet hybrids with grotesque faces and razor-sharp grins- are both delightfully silly and genuinely creepy-looking. An entertaining and unique horror comedy with a hugely memorable musical score to boot, Gremlins is a great seasonal film and is the perfect antidote to too much Christmas cheer.

Summary: A great anti-christmas film