Gremlins (PG)

A comic horror movie classic.

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Common Sense rates it
5
Seen the movie? Review it
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Movie details
  • Studio: Warner Bros.
  • Directed By: Joe Dante
  • Cast: Zach Galligan, Hoyt Axton
  • Running Time: 106 minutes
  • Release Date: 06/08/1984
  • Video/DVD Release Date: 09/30/1997
  • Genre: Thriller
  • MPAA Rating: PG
  • MPAA Explanation: scary situations and mild violence

Parents need to know

Parents need to know that this horror film has many scary scenes, including a mom chopping up a Gremlin with a kitchen knife is scary, a Gremlin-in-blender and classic Gremlin-in-microwave scenes.

Families can talk about the movie's message. What do you think the point was? Do most horror movies have messages? What are some others you can think of?

Message

Social Behavior:

Consumerism:

Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:

Gremlins smoke, drink like fish, and gamble with abandon.

Violence

Gremlins gruesomely kill people -- and vice versa.

Sex

Language

Moderate bathroom and religiously themed expletives.

Common Sense says

What's the story?

Reviewed by Randy White

In the heart of Chinatown, Billy's dotty dad discovers a Mogwai (mog-why) and buys it as a Christmas present for him. Billy loves his sweet furry pet Gizmo, but disregards the basic rules of owning a Mogwai. Gizmo spawns nasty offspring, and the new creatures immediately go wild, dispatching a science teacher and tearing up the house. Billy and his mom are forced to destroy the little suckers. The mayhem looks under control until Spike, the malicious Gremlin leader, hops into the school swimming pool and multiplies exponentially. Soon the whole town is under attack. In the end, Billy and his girlfriend Kate (Phoebe Cates) blow up the town theater with the Gremlins inside. Just when the plot seems predictably laid out, the movie transforms into something else -- something much worse. The monsters mutate, and you just don't see the nastiness coming.

Is it any good?

5
This hit from the 1984 has lost none of its ability to frighten and entertain. Both a dark comedy and a cultural commentary, GREMLINS adds up to much more than a monster flick. Although they grow meaner, the Gremlins possess a sick sense of humor that establishes the twisted comic tone. Visually, the movie is also filled with fun touches, like a "Have a Safe and Happy Holiday" sign shown while a science teacher is rather indelicately butchered.

The special effects are also convincing if not original: Gizmo looks a bit like an Ewok from Star Wars, and the Gremlin pods seem lifted directly from Alien. Gremlins even attempts a message by exploring the evils of mid-'80s corporate culture: human acquisitiveness and the drive to conquer and control nature. In the end, the old Chinese man who sold Billy's dad the Mogwai returns to sum it up: "You do with Mogwai what your society has done with all of nature's gifts. You are not ready."

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Parents and kids say

All Reviews

There are 16 reviews.

1

Posted on 01/02/09 by Anonymous Adult contributor

DO NOT ALLOW KIDS UNDER 10 YEARS TO SEE!!!!! VERY DISTURBING

I got this for my kids to see. Scary but fun I thought. Watched on New Years Eve with my 8 and 11 year olds and I cried myself to sleep. What were the writer and directors thinking with the whole Phoebe Cates story as to why she hates Christmas. I couldn't get my remote fast enough to shut it off, I could tell where it was going but it was even worse than I thought with her last line. I had to do a little explaining to my eight year old that night, New years eve, I explained and than cried myself to sleep over the loss of his innocence. This did not even tie in with the movie at all. It was put the intentionally to be disturbing. This is a dark and disturbing scene. I hate myself for allowing my kids to see it because of that one scene. Her father stuck in a chimney in a Santa Claus outfit with gifts in hand to be found by the smell of decay and thats how she found out there was no santa claus. Steven Speilberg should be ashamed!!! Absolutely not age appropriate.
3


Posted on 07/13/08 by bibliophile Kid contributor, age 15

Okay

This was an okay movie. There was some violence, but I wouldn't call it gory. When they say a mom blends and chops a gremlin, it's pretty much off screen. You see the gremlin in the blender, but really only its legs, and some goopy stuff flying from the bowl (we assume guts, but I didn't even catch it. Only my dad did). There is definitely some smoking and drinking. Mentioning of suicides. SEVERAL swear words (like fifteen or so, counting the Lord's name taken in vain). I highly recommend an edited version, such as ClearPlay. Really, though, not a very scary movie, though the gremlins with red eyes would scare kids under ten, probably.
4

Posted on 03/31/08 by Anonymous Kid contributor, age 13

Cool yet grusom horror comedy!!

This's probably the coolest horror/ comedy I have ever seen! (come to think of it this is the ONLY horror comedy i have ever seen),well on to the issues! 1. lots of grusom violence,gremlins are beheaded,explode,burn,and one gets choped up in a bleneder,People are also killed and hurt, little human blood, but there is alot of gremlin blood (all green though), the gremlin leader grusomly has his skin burned off. 2.Moderate language including: D--n,Go---mn,and H--l. 3.Alittle comicialisim,"Snow white","burgur king",and"it's a wounderful life". 4.The gremlins smoke and drink profusely, they even semm to enjoy it!?! Over all this is one cool movie! any Brave kids 10 and up should love it!
3


Posted on 03/18/08 by Smartcritic Kid contributor, age 10
5


Posted on 12/30/07 by mrt123 Kid contributor, age 12

iffy

i have to say i actually think this movie should be pg-13 because there is alot of drinking and smoking and voilence. though this is my favorite movie and should be okay for 10 and up.
4

Posted on 11/25/07 by Anonymous Kid contributor, age 10

this movie was into scaryness. lots of blood, beer, cussing a very little, guns, gambling, kissing 1 time only, and trying to kill humans, vise versa. the good part about this movie, is the little friend walking around is so cute he makes you laugh!! i love this movie, but you have to know your kid to watch it!!
4


Posted on 11/04/07 by gitters Adult contributor

Green little monsters terrorize a town during Christmas!

Gremlins is pretty violent and gory for a PG movie. Some parents may not want their young children to watch it. The language is PG, the d word, a few gd's and 1 a-hole.
4


Posted on 08/20/07 by movies make me :) Kid contributor, age 9

funny but the second is better

it is good but when i watched the second gremlins the were laufing constently
4


Posted on 06/05/07 by movienut33 Adult contributor
5


Posted on 06/03/07 by Bebop Kid contributor, age 11

Grimlins

Grimlins is one of my fav. movies. It has some blood/gore, a little bit of language, and some of the Gremlins smoke, gamble etc. But... it's still a great movie

See all 16 reviews >

Adult Reviews

There are 6 reviews.

1

Posted on 01/02/09 by Anonymous Adult contributor

DO NOT ALLOW KIDS UNDER 10 YEARS TO SEE!!!!! VERY DISTURBING

I got this for my kids to see. Scary but fun I thought. Watched on New Years Eve with my 8 and 11 year olds and I cried myself to sleep. What were the writer and directors thinking with the whole Phoebe Cates story as to why she hates Christmas. I couldn't get my remote fast enough to shut it off, I could tell where it was going but it was even worse than I thought with her last line. I had to do a little explaining to my eight year old that night, New years eve, I explained and than cried myself to sleep over the loss of his innocence. This did not even tie in with the movie at all. It was put the intentionally to be disturbing. This is a dark and disturbing scene. I hate myself for allowing my kids to see it because of that one scene. Her father stuck in a chimney in a Santa Claus outfit with gifts in hand to be found by the smell of decay and thats how she found out there was no santa claus. Steven Speilberg should be ashamed!!! Absolutely not age appropriate.
4


Posted on 11/04/07 by gitters Adult contributor

Green little monsters terrorize a town during Christmas!

Gremlins is pretty violent and gory for a PG movie. Some parents may not want their young children to watch it. The language is PG, the d word, a few gd's and 1 a-hole.
4


Posted on 06/05/07 by movienut33 Adult contributor
4

Posted on 02/10/07 by Anonymous Adult contributor

Different as an adult than I remembered it as a Kid

I did remember the comical violence and mean-spirited mischief of the gremlins. I thought that would be okay. What I didn't remember was the swearing (some things I think would have earned it a pg13 now. Also there is an instance where the main female character reveals a yucky-to-kids Christmas situation from her past. She should have ended with, "That's when I stopped liking Christmas," rather than what she did say (specific thought about the man in red.) The movie doesn't do anything to redeem that line and it doesn't add or detract from the story.
4


Posted on 08/07/06 by baconbrother4 Adult contributor
4


Posted on 07/08/06 by G3 Adult contributor

A good and funny/scary movie

Kids Reviews

There are 10 reviews.

3


Posted on 07/13/08 by bibliophile Kid contributor, age 15

Okay

This was an okay movie. There was some violence, but I wouldn't call it gory. When they say a mom blends and chops a gremlin, it's pretty much off screen. You see the gremlin in the blender, but really only its legs, and some goopy stuff flying from the bowl (we assume guts, but I didn't even catch it. Only my dad did). There is definitely some smoking and drinking. Mentioning of suicides. SEVERAL swear words (like fifteen or so, counting the Lord's name taken in vain). I highly recommend an edited version, such as ClearPlay. Really, though, not a very scary movie, though the gremlins with red eyes would scare kids under ten, probably.
4

Posted on 03/31/08 by Anonymous Kid contributor, age 13

Cool yet grusom horror comedy!!

This's probably the coolest horror/ comedy I have ever seen! (come to think of it this is the ONLY horror comedy i have ever seen),well on to the issues! 1. lots of grusom violence,gremlins are beheaded,explode,burn,and one gets choped up in a bleneder,People are also killed and hurt, little human blood, but there is alot of gremlin blood (all green though), the gremlin leader grusomly has his skin burned off. 2.Moderate language including: D--n,Go---mn,and H--l. 3.Alittle comicialisim,"Snow white","burgur king",and"it's a wounderful life". 4.The gremlins smoke and drink profusely, they even semm to enjoy it!?! Over all this is one cool movie! any Brave kids 10 and up should love it!
3


Posted on 03/18/08 by Smartcritic Kid contributor, age 10
5


Posted on 12/30/07 by mrt123 Kid contributor, age 12

iffy

i have to say i actually think this movie should be pg-13 because there is alot of drinking and smoking and voilence. though this is my favorite movie and should be okay for 10 and up.
4

Posted on 11/25/07 by Anonymous Kid contributor, age 10

this movie was into scaryness. lots of blood, beer, cussing a very little, guns, gambling, kissing 1 time only, and trying to kill humans, vise versa. the good part about this movie, is the little friend walking around is so cute he makes you laugh!! i love this movie, but you have to know your kid to watch it!!
4


Posted on 08/20/07 by movies make me :) Kid contributor, age 9

funny but the second is better

it is good but when i watched the second gremlins the were laufing constently
5


Posted on 06/03/07 by Bebop Kid contributor, age 11

Grimlins

Grimlins is one of my fav. movies. It has some blood/gore, a little bit of language, and some of the Gremlins smoke, gamble etc. But... it's still a great movie
5


Posted on 04/28/06 by bubbo Kid contributor, age 13

Gremlins was a hilarious and scary horror comedy. One of my favorite scary movies. I love cute little Gizmo, and the Gremlin monsters are scary and fun to watch. I loved every minute of this classic film.
3


Posted on 04/20/06 by G Kid contributor, age 12
5


Posted on 09/15/05 by matt Kid contributor, age 9

good horror movie and comedy movie!

this is a great movie, but i think this is what created PG-13 because i think it should have been rated PG-13 since it is pretty violent, and it may scare some younger kids because the gremlins are EVIL green beasts that go around in chaos
See all 10 kids reviews >
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