A Crazed Holiday Creature Feature That's Good for More Than Just Scares

Rating: 7/10 (28 December 2012)

With its inane mix of genres, attitudes and inspirations, there's really no good reason for this movie to work as well as it does. Like the ubiquitous creatures at the heart of the plot, Gremlins delights in mayhem. The proud owner of a restless spirit and a tendency to rattle the gearbox at the slightest hint of a lull, the film can be splendidly unpredictable, charmingly sweet and morbidly profane, sometimes all within the same scene. It's vividly violent, often shockingly so, but still touts a wild sense of humor and an unexpected knack for sentimentality. I was pleasantly surprised at the lengths it was willing to go to, considering no member of the cast indispensable, and that left me hooked right up until the closing showdown. It's not the perfect picture - there are holes in the plot large enough to roll a bulldozer through - but as a sharp, silly change of pace in the holiday season, one could do far worse.