Perfectionist Style over Slightly Above Average Substance

Rating: Null/10 (23 December 2018)

How have I never watched Gremlins before?
Gremlins was such an interesting film, because having never watched it before, I was expecting a very cute movie about a furry creature that interacts with humans. I was expecting a really amazing family film, especially because Stephen Spielberg's name was attached to this as a producer. However (but not unfortunately), Gremlins was actually a really goofy and oddly acted film that has elements of comedy, family, romance, and even horror.
I would compare my experience watching this film to watching From Dusk Till Dawn, because the first half (or first quarter in Gremlins) is so radically different than the rest of the film. We have cute little Gizmo (a mogwai) getting introduced to the family in the first part of the film, and it was so adorable, sweet, and amazing. But then, gremlins (evil version of mogwai's) come about, and the film because straight up horror comedy. For example, there was literally a shocking (but hilarious) sequence where the mother uses the father's inventions to radically murder the evil gremlins in her kitchen. The audience was dying of laughter, and so was I.
But while the first part of the film is heavily involved with the sweet interactions between Gizmo and his family, the rest of the movie is dedicated to showing the gremlins and their absolute destruction of the city. Given, it is really well done and I laughed a ton, but I found that it was more or less lacking in story, and was more focused on giving the audience tons of spectacle. And sure, the spectacle is fantastic. The visuals of the creatures are all either stop motion or hand crafted via animatronics, and it looked amazing. Watching this makes me think that CGI is absolutely awful in most cases, and the practical effects here really added to my experience.
Nonetheless, the visuals were a little too praised in some cases, and I was slightly annoyed. What I mean is that the film tried to be a little too style over substance with their practical effects, that there were two direct sequences with the gremlins that just showed them screwing around for over five minutes at a time. Think of their segment in the bar, where they were imitating gangsters; it was funny, but it went on a little too long.
Also, I have a little bit more issues. The glaring issue was that everybody accepted these creatures. Nobody questions these things or even gets scared at all, and I am just thinking about films like ET or Ghostbusters, which had people in the film be genuinely terrified of the alien/ghosts. I just wish people would act a little more scared, to add some element of realism, which the film obviously wasn't going for. But even if Gremlins isn't going for realism and is trying to be more goofy, you can still have the audience express real reactions yet still have comedy, like in Killer Klowns from Outer Space.
The other glaring issue was the bad acting from our main lead, Zach Galligan. He was just terrible, I am sorry. He wasn't in the film much, because the film is really about the creatures, but when he occupied the screen with his girlfriend, I was kind of cringing a little bit. Just a little bit though.
Finally, what makes this film so great is that fact that I thought little Gizmo was so adorable and sweet at the beginning of the film, but when his alter ego came out by way of the gremlins, I was grossed out. It makes me think of humans; sweet on the outside, but cruel jerks once you get to know most of them. But hey, Gizmo is such a cutie. I want a poster of him.
Will be watching the film again with my brother (who hasn't seen it) before school starts again. Perhaps it will be a 4/5 by then.