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“Well, it’s rather brutal here. The guidance we offer all of our clients to put everything they’ve got into preserved goods and firearms.” This nugget of sage advice comes from the Brain Gremlin – a genetically modified, articulate, spectacled member of the oozy monster mob that overruns Manhattan’s high-tech Clamp Tower skyscraper in filmmaker Joe Dante’s zany follow-up Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Superficially, it’s simply an investment tip from one monster to another. But, in a strange manner, it’s also pretty solid life advice. Honestly, listen to my reasoning.

When life takes a turn for the worse, the worst thing you can do is take things too seriously. The Brain Gremlin grasps this. In fact, a large portion of the fang-bearing creatures that populate Dante’s chaotic 1990 feature (possibly his finest) possess the same knowing, self-referential funny bone regarding the blurry line separating the mundane and absolute bedlam. It’s a particular aspect of Gremlins 2: The New Batch that keeps me coming back – and with the passage of time, it’s the underlying idea that strikes the deepest chord.

A Youthful Obsession

Understandably, my fondness for this movie wasn’t born on such an philosophical plane. As a child, we possessed merely a few scratched-up video tapes at home. Part of that group were Gremlins and its second chapter, the latter housed in a thick former-rental sleeve likely purchased from an non-chain rental store and sporting grimacing beasts on its tattered front. I was right away smitten and these films wasted no time embedding themselves inside my young, susceptible psyche. Henceforth, they became an near-everyday part of my childhood viewing routine.

Dante’s first film commonly garners all the plaudits, thanks mostly because of its reputation as a semi-scary seasonal fave – and to be fair, I’ve watched Gremlins an incalculable number of times. That said, its sequel rarely gets the same level of elevated esteem, which feels a travesty. As a kid, I’d invariably jump at the prospect to watch Gremlins 2. During bright summer vacations, I’d retreat into the house and stick it on. When I got my own TV-VHS combo unit, it stayed in constant rotation in my bedroom. Over time, it ingrained itself in my mindset. If my parents noticed this obsession, they gave no indication of concern.

Deeper Rewards and Cultural Easter Eggs

As I got older, new revelations enriched multiple watches, heightening the enjoyment of watching little green monsters happily vandalize a New York high-rise. I learned the future-focused real estate tycoon and Clamp Tower owner, Daniel Clamp (John Glover), was based squarely upon the eventual commander-in-chief Donald Trump, with his auburn-haired worker Marla (Haviland Morris) alluding to his second wife Marla Maples. Thankfully, Clamp demonstrates more humanity than his genuine article inspiration.

The “doomsday” video Clamp plays during peak-Gremlin chaos? I discovered it was modeled after a genuine “Doomsday” video commissioned by the CNN boss Ted Turner should the world truly faced apocalypse. I noticed how Dante went out of his way to film different iterations of a meta sequence where Gremlins take over the very film you’re watching. A version for theaters, one for VHS and TV, each offering a winking bit of self-referential entertainment sorcery ahead of its time.

A Persistent Legacy

While it was makeup maestro Rick Baker’s gloriously nasty-looking creatures that drew my gaze as a child, this deeper gold held my interest as an adult. In time, I even conversed with Dante about it myself and he had no qualms revealing to me he made the movie with the specific aim of poking fun at those who loved its absurd-yet-genuine predecessor and wanted more. “We were going to make fun of the fact you came to see it,” he cheerfully disclosed. This anarchic insubordination and commitment to not take his sequel as gravely as his Warner Bros bosses obviously desired, only increased my affection for it.

When I experienced a sudden family bereavement recently, I was taken aback to discover that, during my deepest grief, all I wanted to do was sit and watch Gremlins 2: The New Batch. Weird, right? Perhaps not. The soothing reminiscence it furnished was necessary to dilute my mind’s mourning mire – but the insights it had given me as an adult were just as useful.

Like Gremlins running amok in a genetics laboratory, there’s particular aspects in life you just can’t control. Dante understands this. The Brain Gremlin shares this wisdom. Sometimes, you have to be like them: accept the turmoil, invest all your resources into tinned provisions and hunting rifles and try not to approach life with excessive gravity.

It’s strong life advice from a highly unexpected fountain – and it’s the reason Gremlins 2: The New Batch will always be my go-to cinematic solace.