Gremlins 2: The New Batch (Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates)
In 1984, the world was introduced to a new kind of crazy little monster. No, I'm not talking about a film cameo by then-unknown actor Corey Feldman, I am referring to Gremlins. With superior effects and puppetry, the slimy brown and green creatures spawned a few cinematic knockoffs, including the 1990 sequel Gremlins 2: The New Batch, which is similar to the original only in set-up and framework than in tone. It's primarily a satire with copious digs at other movies and pop culture references rather than a creepy critter flick.
Zach Galligan (whose career has never seemed to rebound after these films) reprises his role as Billy Peltzer. Now a designer inside a millionaire's high-rise building in New York (the aptly named Mr. Clamp, played with clueless panache by John Glover), Billy is trying to forge enough of a career for himself to be able to marry his lovely girlfriend Kate (Phoebe Cates). Meanwhile, Clamp's cronies have shut down the old curio shop that formerly housed the mischievous Mogwai named Gizmo. Once the cute animal ends up inside Clamp's building, it doesn't take long for it to cross paths with Billy once again. Of course the innocent Mogwai inadvertently gets splashed with water which causes it to multiply, and then the offspring eat after midnight, which put them into metamorphosis, and then these creatures finally emerge as Gremlins.
Directed by Joe Dante, the movie likes to play with those in the audience who have been following the Gremlins' adventures. Leonard Maltin, who panned the first film in real life when it came out, appears and is awarded his come-uppance. Phoebe Cates, who delivered a somber monologue in the first film about death and Christmastime, lampoons herself with a new speech here. And the Gremlins sabotage the movie itself by supposedly "playing with the projector", at which point the wrestler Hulk Hogan appears, rips up his shirt, and demands the film be resumed immediately.
For all the fun though, it's the Gremlins themselves that aren't up to snuff this time around. In the first film, they all pretty much looked and sounded the same. Here, every effort is made to make each one individual. A forced subplot about a demented research scientist (Christopher Lee sleepwalking towards a paycheque here) allows for some of the Gremlins to chug some experimental vials that affect their physiology. For example, there's a spider Gremlin, a brainy Gremlin (voiced by Tony Randall), a flying Gremlin (with quite terrible special effects), a vegetable Gremlin, and even an electric Gremlin, in one of the stupidest stretches in the film.
All in all though, this sequel hasn't held up very well over the years compared to its predecessor, particular on a technical and special effects level. While there's nothing wrong with taking Gremlins 2 into comical terrain, the gags are sometimes strained and only serve to remind that the first installment, with more subtle in-jokes overall, hit the right note. The Next Batch could easily have been dubbed "The Next Sketch" as it bounces from scene to scene with too many characters and too little consistency. And while I'm all for a good joke, the Gremlins are much better when you're cheering on their mischief rather than waiting for them to entertain you as quirky caricatures.
