Gremlins (1984) reviews

The Fuzzy Mushroom take on Gremlins

By Fuzzy Mushroom · Updated 11 November 2026 · The Pros 77 · The Punters 79 · Spore Score 78 · How we write our takes

The Pros and The Punters on Gremlins

Gremlins gets nearly identical marks from both camps: The Pros 77, The Punters 79, a Spore Score of 78. The 2-point gap is tiny because the film knows exactly what it is: a nasty little monster comedy dressed up as a Christmas family film, and both sides enjoy the joke.

What it does well

Inventor Rand Peltzer buys an unusual pet for his son Billy (Zach Galligan) from a shop in Chinatown: a furry, big-eyed creature called a mogwai, named Gizmo. There are three rules. Keep him out of bright light. Don't get him wet. And never, ever feed him after midnight. In the small town of Kingston Falls, at Christmas, every rule gets broken.

Director Joe Dante loves old monster movies and cartoons, and Gremlins is stuffed with both. Gizmo is one of the most lovable puppets ever made, and the gremlins that hatch from his offspring are gleefully anarchic, wrecking a bar, a cinema and a department store. The kitchen fight, in which Billy's mother takes on three gremlins with whatever she has to hand, is the best scene. Chris Columbus wrote the script, and Steven Spielberg produced.

Where people push back

The tone lurches. One minute it is a cosy small-town comedy, the next there are bodies, microwaves and blenders. Kate's monologue about why she hates Christmas is famous for being both funny and grim. Some parents in 1984 were alarmed, and Gremlins and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom are often credited with pushing the US ratings board to create the PG-13 rating.

Who it is for

Older children who like a scare, and adults who want a Christmas film with teeth. Not for anyone looking for a gentle festive watch.

The Fuzzy Mushroom verdict

Worth a watch, Spore Score 78. The Pros and The Punters agree it is a gleeful, mean, funny film, and so do we. Just don't watch it after midnight.