Gremlins
The Original Gizmo Movie - Enhanced
Bright light hurts them; water makes them multiply; and feeding
them after midnight can turn them into vicious, nasty, (but fun-loving)
monsters.
Sounds almost like Democrats...
Anyway, Gremlins (the breakout film for writer/director Chris
Columbus of "Harry Potter" fame) is about a
young man who receives a Christmas present from his dad. It's a cute little
furry creature called a mogwai. At first, you wonder what harm this adorable
little thing could possibly bring, but once the events start unfolding it
becomes clear.
Billy Peltzer (Zach Galligan) and his friend Pete (Corey Feldman)
are hanging out, when Pete accidentally spills some water on Gizmo (the
mogwai). This causes it to go into convulsions, and eventually toss out a few
hairballs which turn out to be more mogwais. Unfortunately, these ones are not
as cute and cuddly as Gizmo, and trick Zach into feeding them after midnight.
Then, they go into the pupa stage, and eventually hatch into the Gremlins.
Though the premise sounds like a horror film, Gremlins is actually
funnier than it is scary. Not many laughs come in the first half, but once the
Gremlins appear, it turns out that they just want to have fun (I guess they're
just victims; they don't mean to hurt people, they're just misunderstood
monsters. Yep, Democrats for sure).
The effects were good for the time, and they hold up okay in
today's digital world. The acting is generally pretty over the top, but
deliberately so. All in all, it's a fun movie, typically Joe Dante, and a
classic 80's movie (classic movies and classic 80's movies are two completely
different categories).
And keep an eye out for the nifty Dante touches (for instance,
Chuck Jones in a bar and, in the opening scene, the AMC Gremlin car) that prove
you should always look at what's going on in the background of his films.
This Special Edition DVD features a newly remastered picture and
soundtrack, and it both looks great and sounds great. Some shots are a tad
grainy, but on the whole this DVD release is much better than the earlier
DVD release. The video has a bright and colorful
1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen (16x9 TV compatible) transfer and the sound has
been given a nice 5.1 Dolby Digital mix.
Then there are the extras! First of all is over 10 minutes of
'never before seen' footage (though we assume someone somewhere must have seen
it - at least in order to put it on the disc!) and a behind the scenes
documentary that's pretty interesting. You also get two full length
commentaries, one featuring director Dante and cast members, and the other
featuring Dante, producer Mike Finnell and creature creator Chris Walas.
They're pretty good commentaries, as is usual with Dante flicks that are so
equipped.
And that isn't all. Warners has also thrown in a photo/storyboard
gallery, cast/crew filmographies and the trailer.
In all, it's a pretty good package - and a welcome remastering of
this Joe Dante/Steven Spielberg outing.
Gremlins, from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
106 minutes, anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) 16X9 enhanced, 5.1 Dolby Digital
Starring Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton, Polly Holliday and Frances
Lee McCain
Produced by Michael Finnell,
Written by Chris Columbus,
Directed by Joe Dante.
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