Grembrilliant

Rating: Null/10 (25 February 2003)

I was lucky enough to see Gremlins on the big screen a few days ago after a 10 year or so stint without seeing this masterpiece. I was reminded on what a fantastic peice of filmmaking that Gremlins is, it stands head and shoulders above all eighties monster flicks and as a eighties horror it also fares very well. Comparing to it's peers, The Goolies, Critters etc seems a little unfair, the story is sharp, fast paced and is carried by all the actors.
It has the distinct feel of a B movie but the dialouge at the end reminds us that we have seen a film which dares to be corny and comes out trumps. On top of all this it is the best peice of anti-CGI work since the Jason and the Argonauts Skellington fight. The models show real character from the unquestionably adorable mogwi puppet to the humerous yet somehow frightening gremlins. Had this film been made in the last 8 or 9 years the character of the film would have been lost and along with that half the fun. Take the scene where Spike is followed by thousands of Gremlins all stomping their tiny legs, to the audience this isn't perfect animation by any means but the movement gives them real character. When I read reviews that state this movie is predictable and one dimensional I remind myself that idiots that make comments like this must've forgotten that from start to finish the movie is presented as a ghost story. The essence of any good ghost story is telling you a moral. However predictable it is. When the moral is as well presented as this anyone who doesn't enjoy the film should check their pulse.