Don't Ignore the Rules---Gremlins

"He hates bright light, especially sunlight it will kill him. Do not get him wet. The most important rule, no matter how much he cries no matter how much he begs never feed him after midnight." In this movie, the rules were meant to be broken.



The genre for Gremlins is widely accepted as a horror/comedy. Lets get one thing straight Mogwais, especially Gizmo, are very cute, but this is not a movie for children. In fact my mom told be about when the movie first came out. She was going to take my sister, who was eleven years old at the time, but she decided not to because of one scene…the kitchen scene. If you are not familiar with the scene multiple gremlins are mutilated with common things you could find in the kitchen. One of them is licking the cookie dough out of the mixer when the mixer is turned on and green slime is flung everywhere. The next gremlin gets cooking spray to the eyes and is stabbed with a knife. The next is perhaps the most gruesome thing I have ever seen in a movie. The gremlin is pushed into the microwave and the door is slammed on him. The gremlin’s skin begins to bubble and then it explodes. This scene alone would be enough to haunt a young child for the rest of their young lives and they probably would never cook a hot dog in the microwave again.

The movie also has some great comedy to go along with the story. The mannerisms of the creatures are hilarious. There is one scene where the other Mogwai spit what looks like chewing tobacco slime on Gizmo. The part is absolutely hilarious. The other really funny part that comes to mind is the scene at the Deegle residence. The gremlins are standing outside with earmuffs and attempting to sing Christmas carols, this is classic. The part of the movie that really sums up the comedy is in the bar. In the bar there are gremlins playing cards, flashing the bartender, drinking beer, and even wearing leg warmers while doing aerobics.

The next thing I wanted to talk about is CGI vs. puppet/animatronics. What happened to the good old days of movies like E.T: The Extra Terrestrial, Alien, and Jaws? Could you imagine E.T computer generated or Jaws as a computer generated shark…no you could not. That is because these movies are classics because the way the character looks. These creatures are so much more realistic and stick with you longer if they are not computer generated.

I think the reason that this movie is a classic is it was made in the 1980s and there was no such thing as CGI. In my opinion CGI is the downfall of many movies. Puppets and animatronics make the movie so much more relatable and realistic. There was talk of Gremlins 3 being made with CGI. I really hope that no such movie is ever made because I would have to go and personally protest the premier. Part of the charm of the movie, along with the comedy and cuteness, is the animatronics and puppets. This movie is great if you have not seen it I highly recommend it. There are some great laughs, some scary moments, and some really cool looking creatures.