I grew up loving Gremlins (1984); the film not only spawned my love of the tiny monster sub-genre, but is currently celebrating its 35th anniversary with a 4K UHD release thanks to Warner Brothers. Gremlins was crafted in an age before political correctness reigned and exemplifies how horror films in the ‘80s were unabashedly made and marketed to kids. Thanks to Gremlins, along with Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, really starting to push those boundaries of violence and gore in cinema, the high and mighty PG-13 rating was created two months after Gremlins’ release.
Gremlins is a perfect storm of talent, written by Chris Columbus, directed by Joe Dante, and produced by Steven Spielberg. It’s the story of everyman bank teller Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan), who lives in the small town of Kingston Falls with his parents. His crackpot inventor father gives Billy a mysterious creature called a Mogwai for Christmas (in the novelization it’s revealed these creatures are in fact aliens), which he purchased in a tiny rundown shop in Chinatown. The new pet comes with a very specific set of rules: keep him out of sunlight; don’t get him wet; and never, ever, feed him after midnight. Of course, the rules are broken, and the Gremlins who are the after aftermath of eating after midnight lay siege to the small town, led by the nefarious mohawked gremlin named Stripe, as hilarity and chaos ensues.
The film’s pitch-black humor is what really shines through the film’s clunky yet endearing Amblin-esque narrative, along with its amazing practical effects. Seeing the film in 4K is indeed a treat and a testament to how the effects are still as convincing as when the film originally hit theaters, which isn’t always the case with these UHD releases. Usually the seams begin to show at a certain point with the jump in clarity, but Gremlins still looks and sounds great. In honor of the film’s anniversary, it was remastered from the original 35mm camera negatives into a new 4K digital intermediate for this release and paired with a newly remixed DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack. The film has never looked or sounded better IMO.
If anything, my re-watch really highlighted for me not only how great this film is, but also just how much this film has been aped over the years, with films like Ghoulies, Munchies, Hobgoblins, Troll, and my personal favorite Critters all following in Gizmo’s tiny footsteps. While some of the ‘80s pop-culture spoofs (Flashdance, Rambo) might be lost on audiences today, they still are wacky enough to work in some form for viewers. For my money, the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs singalong gag will never get old. I can definitely see this edition of Gremlins becoming the hot ticket this holiday season with folks looking to show off their new 4K setup with a holiday classic and a whole new generation becoming exposed to one of the best pieces of pop-culture produced by the ‘80s.
