Ah, Gremlins. One of the spookiest Christmas movies outside of The Nightmare Before Christmas. Today we’re going to be breaking down the ways in which it’s superior to Home Alone. Gremlins not only works better as a film overall but after this list, you’ll be giving Home Alone a resounding “Woof”.
Don’t get your Gremlins VHS wet. Be careful with that spicy aftershave, and get ready to rethink the place Gremlins holds in your little holiday heart. We’re not saying that Home Alone is a completely worthless film or anything, but Kevin McAllister is gonna have a tougher time fending it off than the Wet Bandits.
Gremlins Is More Versatile
For many people, holiday movies can feel stale and cheesy. As soon as November hits and you hear the Christmas music, you wish we had another month of Halloween, or at least a bit more love for Thanksgiving. With Gremlins, you don’t have to choose. You can fight the impending Christmas creep by pleasing everyone with this horror-comedy classic.
While Home Alone can be played year-round too, no film other than Gremlins fits precisely in this perfect pocket of the post-Halloween, pre-Christmas slump. Since no one can think of a single Thanksgiving movie, why not just watch Gremlins?
The Darkness Factor
Sort of looping back into versatility, we can look at how dark both films are. Maybe someone would prefer the cheery if not slightly suspenseful feel of Home Alone, but most people I know would spring for the depth of Gremlins. From the murderous creatures to the out of place Santa death talk, this movie gets grim.
Maybe that’s not what people are looking for when it comes to holiday films, but it’ll add variety, and for many people, the holidays aren’t necessarily the cheeriest time of year.
It Has Better Villains
So who’s scarier to you? A couple of soggy burglars who can’t tell their feet from their shoes, or diabolical mythical creatures who will stop at nothing to have a good time at everyone else’s expense?
The Wet Bandits are only a threat to Kevin. The Gremlins, on the other hand, come to wreak havoc on anything that breathes, including sadly, a dog. There are also only two of the Wet Bandits, so the gremlins vastly outnumber them. The Gremlins are also surprisingly capable, which is an important advantage over the bandits.
It Has Superior Music
The music in Gremlins is wonderful. From the original score to the track playing when we enter Kings Falls, it’s filled with songs that fit the mood wonderfully. On an unrelated note, Kings Falls is the same set used to create Hill Valley of Back To The Future fame.
Anyway, like most other 80s movies, Jerry Goldsmith does the soundtrack, in addition to the film having some traditional Christmas music. The original music in Gremlins has an unsettling, spooky synth score. Gremlins also has a really creative use of a traditional Christmas song, “Do You Hear What I hear?”
Chris Columbus and Joe Dante
If it seems like the two of these movies are fairly similar in some way that’s very difficult to pin down, that’s because they are. Home Alone’s director, Chris Columbus, is also the screenwriter for Gremlins.
Gremlins becomes a beautiful dialectical synthesis that’s more than the sum of its parts, considering this combination. The comedic horror elements come from Joe Dante, and the rest of the film, assumedly the heart and marketability, come from Chris Columbus.
Joe Dante also worked on The Twilight Zone, which seems an absolutely integral part of his in-Hollywood education.
Inspired Merchandising Opportunities
Something that can be said about Gremlins one couldn’t say about Home Alone is that it produced really interesting toys. While both had large merchandising campaigns to back them up, there’s something more appealing than a stuffed Kevin McAllister in a cute little Gizmo doll. Perfect for snuggling up to during the holidays.
That being said, the video games that came out of both are dismal. The Gremlins game is a shameless rework of other Atari games, namely a Hamburglar game that was also notoriously not very good. The Home Alone game is plagued by bad controls, despite being released on most popular systems at the time.
The Sequel Is Also Superior
Gremlins 2 is an absolutely underrated gem. Everything about it is cranked up to 11, aside from maybe the horror. It’s definitely more on the satirical end than it’s predecessor, and that only makes it a more fun experience.
Home Alone 2 was okay, but the chances that this situation would happen twice to the same family are extremely slim. When it comes to Gremlins 2: The New Batch, the situation happening doesn’t seem forced. It’s a natural consequence of the nature of the gremlins themselves.
It Has Great Special Effects
If there’s one advantage Joe Dante has over Chris Columbus, it’s that his special effects game is pretty strong. He’s no Tom Savini or anything, but as far as 80s non-horror special effects go, he’s definitely done some solid work.
He’s got both The ‘Burbs and cult classic The Howling under his belt as well. In Home Alone, we get some interesting special effects occasionally out of the rigs that Kevin sets up, but nothing nearly as spectacular as some of the kills in Gremlins. There’s tons of gory fun, which may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but for those who enjoy it, it can be a nice addition to the saccharine sweetness of the holidays.
That Heartbreaking Speech
While it may turn some viewers off, and understandably so, it’s definitely something that brings a new conversation about the holidays to the table. It’s not fun, it’s not sweet, it’s not played as a joke, and some would argue that it feels out of place.
That being said, there’s definitely a reason the speech is in the film. It brings the tone of the film down and lets us know that sometimes the holidays aren’t happy and cheery for everyone, which in our modern consumerist climate is often swept under the rug.
The Atmosphere Is More Festive
Gremlins is filled with not-so-subtle hints that it’s Christmas time. In fact, the whole plot is built around it. In Home Alone, sure it’s Christmas but this really could have happened at any other time of year. It could be said that it took place during Christmas-time just to garner hype during the lucrative holiday film season.
Meanwhile in Gremlins, the root of the problem, the wonderfully adorable Gizmo, is a Christmas present for the main character. There are also snowmen and Santas everywhere. So if you wanna settle down for a creepy, fun Christmas movie this holiday season, Gremlins is your movie.
