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From: upstill@ucbvax.UUCP (Steve Upstill)
Newsgroups: net.movies
Subject: Gremlins (non-spoiler)
Message-ID: <826@ucbvax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 21-May-84 23:26:21 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.826
Posted: Mon May 21 23:26:21 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 23-May-84 08:23:19 EDT
Organization: U.C. Berkeley
Lines: 17

    Well, let's just say that, regardless of how closely he supervised
it, Gremlins is stamped right out of the Spielberg mold.  Count the
elements:  Middle American family, cute monsters, slick and spectacular
special effects, mixture of comedy and horror, a general nurds-eye
view of reality, and more old-movie references than you can count.
But I liked it anyway, ***-worth.  Should fill the bill pretty well 
if you don't expect anything but a few good laughs.
    Old-movie references?  Oh boy, does this movie have old-movie
references.  Some are fairly obvious (like the Wicked Witch of the
West clone), some are at the Trivial Pursuit level (the theater marquee for
"A Boys Life" -- the smokescreen title for ET), others are incredibly 
obscure (the sign on the projection booth wall for Miracle Pictures).
In fact, let's play Spot the Ripoff.  If everyone who sees this movie
will send their favorite old-movie moment to me, I will compile a
complete Gremlin-watchers guide and submit it later.

Steve Upstill