Gremlins (1984)
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A young man's gift of a cute pet leads to a chaotic infestation of mischievous monsters during Christmas Eve.
The story
When a young man named Billy Peltzer receives a small, furry creature called a mogwai as a gift, he is warned of three strict rules: keep it out of the light, keep it away from water, and never let it eat after midnight. However, after a mishap causes the creature to multiply, the situation spirals out of control. The offspring begin to transform into destructive, reptilian monsters known as gremlins. As the holiday season arrives, these creatures begin to wreak havoc on the local community, forcing Billy and his friends to confront the growing threat before it consumes their hometown.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Randall Peltzer buys a mogwai named Gizmo for his son, Billy, from a shop in Chinatown. Despite warnings to keep the creature away from water, light, and food after midnight, a mishap leads to the creation of several more mogwai. These offspring, led by a particularly aggressive one named Stripe, are tricked into eating after midnight and transform into destructive gremlins. The monsters begin a rampage through the town of Kingston Falls, causing destruction and injury to the residents. Billy, his friend Pete, and his girlfriend Kate must navigate the chaos. They eventually corner the gremlins in a movie theater, causing an explosion that eliminates most of them. The lone survivor, Stripe, is eventually exposed to sunlight in a nearby store, which kills him. The film concludes with the owner of Gizmo, Mr. Wing, reclaiming the creature and acknowledging Billy's growth.
- First release year
- 1984
- Runtime (minutes)
- 106
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Joe Dante
- Writers
- Chris Columbus · writer
- Cast and characters
- Zach Galligan · Billy; Phoebe Cates · Kate; Howie Mandel · Gizmo; Frank Welker · Stripe; Hoyt Axton · Rand; Polly Holliday · Mrs. Deagle; Frances Lee McCain · Lynn; Glynn Turman · high school science teacher
- Genres
- comedy; horror
- Themes
- satire of Western civilization; anti-technology; anti-colonialism
- Tone and mood
- comedy; horror; dark humor
- Premise and plot tags
- monster movie; holiday horror; urban legend
- Source material / true-story basis
- folklore and a 1943 book by Roald Dahl
- Franchise connections
- Gremlins
- Reception
- The film was a critical and commercial success, though it faced criticism for its violence and prompted the creation of the PG-13 rating.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 86% · scale: percentage · review count: 91; Metacritic · score: 70 · scale: score · review count: 13
- Awards and nominations
- Saturn Award · Best Music · win
- Production trivia
- The film's title and characters inspired the name of the band Mogwai.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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