barry@ames-lm.UUCP (Kenn Barry) (06/22/84)
[Honor this line - it had to fight to get here!]
I suspect that by this time most people are 'n'-keying over GREMLINS
reviews, but then, *you're* here, aren't you? I saw it last weekend,
expecting in advance to like it, but I was still pleasantly surprised.
This movie is not just good, it's very good; better than ST III and IJ&TOD,
both of which I liked, but with reservations.
The violence which has been mentioned is pretty pure comic book
stuff, no loving shots of gore-on-the-floor, and should offend no one
(though apparently it has; hard to understand). I would call the movie
a comedy, but it's more fun than funny. The special effects are marvelous;
I particularly recall one scene where a whole room full of nasty gremlins
are partying, and it seemed that every one of the dozens of critters
were in motion doing something. I think I'd have to see that scene many
more times to catch everything that was happening.
I guess no review is complete without criticism. I wish that
Dante shared Spielberg's insight into the typical middle-class family;
if the characters in GREMLINS had had the same verisimilitude, warmth,
and slight craziness that the family in ET had, ET's current position
as biggest box-office grosser of all time would be in serious jeopardy.
But don't let that stop you. See this film, by all means. On
a scale of 1-10 I'd give it an 8 (just short of classic).
Kenn Barry
NASA-Ames Research Center
Moffett Field, CA
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